Lionel Messi becomes football's second BILLIONAIRE as Barcelona legend beats Cristiano Ronaldo in Forbes' rich list
BARCELONA captain Lionel Messi has become football's second billionaire as he tops Forbes' rich list in 2020.
According to Forbes, the 33-year-old has pocketed over $1,000,000,000 in pre-tax earnings during his career – following in the footsteps of great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
And they have stated the Argentine international is the highest-paid footballer of 2020.
Messi is said to be set to pocket £98million in total this year from his salary and endorsements.
As well as being sponsored by the likes of Adidas and Pepsi, the six-time Ballon d'Or winner has just released a limited edition Budweiser beer.
Juventus striker Ronaldo is second on the Forbes list, as they state he stands to earn £91m this year.
Unsurprisingly, Brazilian trickster Neymar – who could be handed a seven-game ban for punching Marseille defender Alvaro – is in third place.
The Paris Saint-Germain winger, who quit Nike to join Puma, is in line to pocket £75m, with his Les Parisiens team-mate Kylian Mbappe fourth with £33m.
Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah (£29m) is fifth thanks to his endorsements from Adidas and Vodafone Egypt.
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Following him in sixth is Paul Pogba (£26.4m), with his French compatriot Antoine Griezmann seventh with the Barcelona man to earn £25.6m.
Real Madrid outcast Gareth Bale – who is a loan target for Manchester United – is eighth with £22.5m thanks to his whopping wages at the Bernabeu.
Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski is ninth with £21.7m, with Red Devils goalkeeper David De Gea completing the top ten with the Spaniard to take home £21m.
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