Back in May 2021, Forbes released a list of highest paid athletes, and Conor ‘The Notorious’ McGregor was sitting on number one with a total amount of $180 million in earnings. But the majority of his earnings came from a lucrative sale of his brand Proper 12 – and not from the actual sport that made him famous.
MMA megastar admitted that it would be hard for him to beat the football star Lionel Messi for the second time when it comes to accumulated wealth.
Forbes 2021 Richest athletes lists Lionel Messi at number 2 spot with $130 million. But in August of 2021 Messi signed a two-year contract with Paris Saint-Germain. The contract gave him a $41 million annual net salary plus bonuses. With this number, Messi easily beat McGregor.
Conor McGregor admitted the defeat but won’t give up his position on the list easily.
“It’s crazy how this team has scooped all these incredible players up, and in such quick succession too. Messi is on 75mill U.S dollars a year, flat. Not including endorsement on top.” McGregor addressed Messi’s transfer on his instagram.
“He [will] be hard to beat this year on the Forbes list without one more fight in the book. But that said, don’t count me out. We are only 2 months into this new Forbes fiscal year and I already have his years wage boxed off hahaahahahaha.” McGregor wrote in the caption.
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McGregor is unlikely to return until the second half of 2022. It’s unclear what the fight to make is considering that Poirier appears to be done with the match up and Nate Diaz has other plans. McGregor made the bulk of his money thanks to the amount of pay per view buys he brings in but many estimate that he’s also underpaid. Majority of his wealth comes from ventures outside the UFC. He also reportedly made $100 M thanks to the boxing exhibition against Floyd Mayweather.