Breaking Down What Top Athletes Make!
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Many of us have grown up with big league dreams of being a professional athlete equipped with fame, fortune, and millions of adoring fans. Obviously, very few individuals make it to this level but for those who do, a sizeable income is one of the many rewards that follows.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at some of the “financial spoils” that afford the individuals who are lucky enough to make it to the “big time” in professional sports.
Basketball
Lebron James is the highest paid player in NBA history. For the 2022-2023 season, he will make $44,474,988. That breaks down to $542,377 per game, $135,594 per quarter, $11,299 per minute, and $188 per second.
To compare, in 1968 Wilt Chamberlain signed a five-year deal worth $250,000. In other words, at the height of his career “The Big Dipper” earned approximately $50,000 per year or about what Lebron James makes in five minutes of playing time.
So, who was the first NBA player to make $1 million in a season? Moses Malone became the first athlete in any team sport to sign for an annual salary of at least $1 million when he signed a three-year, $3 million contract with the Houston Rockets on July 16, 1979.
The richest player in NBA history is Michael Jordan. According to Forbes, he earned approximately $90 million in salaries during his playing career, and roughly $1.8 billion (pre-tax) for endorsement deals from brands like Nike, Gatorade, McDonald’s and Hanes.
Baseball
In 2019, Mike Trout signed a 12-year contract worth $426 million, with a $20 million signing bonus, making him the highest paid player in baseball. This equates to an average annual salary of $35.54 million. Under this contract, Mike Trout will make roughly $222,222 per regular season game, $66,978 per at bat, $24,691 per inning, $1,645 per pitch for the next twelve years.
Max Scherzer is baseball’s highest paid pitcher after signing a three-year, $130 million contract with the New York Mets. Based upon the terms of this contract, he will make $3.6 million per month – even in the months he doesn’t work – $235,000 for every inning pitched, $5,000 per hour, and $82 per minute. Not bad for someone who does not play every day!
To put things in perspective, in 1927 Babe Ruth earned $70,000, which equates to about $922,000 in today’s dollars. By 1930, his salary increased to $80,000, resulting in him having a higher salary than President Herbert Hoover. When asked if he thought he deserved to be making more money than the President, Babe Ruth said, “’Why not? I had a better year than he did.”
Alex Rodriguez is the richest player in Major League Baseball history. In December 2000, he signed a 10-year, $252 million deal with the Texas Rangers, which shocked the baseball world. Then, in 2008 he signed another 10-year deal with the New York Yankees valued at $275 million.
In 1980, Dave Winfield became the highest-paid player in baseball history, at the time, after Yankees owner George Steinbrenner signed the 29-year-old slugger and Gold Glove outfielder to a 10-year, $23.3 million contract. In other words, Alex Rodriguez made more in one year than Dave Winfield made during his 10-year Yankee contract.
Who was the first Major League Baseball player to sign for $1 million for a season? Nolan Ryan in 1979 for the Houston Astros.
So, in 1979 the city of Houston was home of the first $1 million dollar baseball player and basketball player.
Football
Earlier this year, Aaron Rodgers signed a three-year contract extension of $150.8 million making him the highest paid NFL player. So, for the next three years, Rodgers will make approximately $50 million per year. This equate to roughly $146,038 for every minute of playing time, and an hourly wage of $8,762,304.
Who was the first NFL player to make $1 million in a season? Well, if a signing bonus is included it would be Johnny “Lam” Jones of the New York Jets in 1980. The first with a base salary of $1 million was Bruce Matthews in 1983.
And what city did Bruce Mattehws play in? Houston, of course, with the Oilers! So, in all three major sports, Houston was the first city to have $1 million athletes.
Who is the wealthiest NFL player of all-time? Roger Staubach who has a net worth of $600 million.
Soccer
Right now, the highest paid soccer player in the world is Kylian Mbappe, who earns an annual salary of $62 million. This equates to about $5.25 million per month, which equals a weekly salary of $1.15 million, daily wage of $223,000, hourly pay of $26,300, or $438 per minute. In addition, he earns about the same amount in endorsement deals, so his annual income if you combine both salary and endorsements is roughly $125 million equating to $10.5 million per month, 2.3 million per week, $446,000 per day, $52,600 per hour, and $876 per minute.
Remember, not all of us get to bask in the glory of professional sports competition and splendor, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have fun dreaming about what could have been. As we know, the best things in life – walking, jogging, hiking, exercising, playing in the yard, hanging out with loved ones, conversation, worship, smiling, etc. – are free, and that includes living vicariously through those athletes we love and admire.