Swiss Roger Federer topped the list of highest-paid athletes for 2020 after the crisis of the newly created Corona virus removed soccer star Lionel Messi from the summit, according to the Forbes magazine's annual report published Friday.
The Swiss tennis legend, with 20 Grand Slam titles, won $ 106.3 million in the last 12 months, advancing four places and becoming the first tennis player to top this list.
Football stars Cristiano Ronaldo ($ 105 million), Messi ($ 104 million), Neymar ($ 95.5 million), followed by American basketball player Lebron James ($ 88.2 million), followed him in the top five.
"The Corona epidemic has cut Messi's and Ronaldo's salaries, and has opened the door for a tennis player to top the highest-paid athletes' ranking for the first time," said Curt Badenhausen, chief editor of Forbes.
Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka ($ 37.4 million), ranked 29th in the list, surpassed her rival Serena Williams ($ 36m) to become the highest-paid athlete, the only two women on the list.
Basketball players dominated the list with 35 players in the first 100 names versus 14 soccer players and 6 tennis players.