Top 10 Highest-Paid Female Athletes in the World

Forbes released its list of the world's highest-paid female athletes in 2021. Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka beat the record of American tennis star Serena Williams, becoming the highest-paid female athlete in the world in 2021.

According to Forbes, Osaka earned a total of US$37.4 million (approximately Rp 553.7 billion) from 2020-2021 through prizes and endorsements. This surpasses Williams' earnings by US$1.4 million. A significant portion of Osaka's income comes from a deal with Nike, which pays her US$10 million annually, along with brand endorsements from Nissan Motor, Shiseido, and Yonex.

This ranking was previously consistently held by top-ranked tennis player Serena Williams, who is now the second-highest-paid female athlete. The 21st-century tennis sensation, Williams holds the most combined singles, doubles, and mixed doubles titles among active tennis players, male or female. Williams earned a total of $36 million from endorsements and prize money.

World No. 1 tennis player Ashleigh Barty is ranked third on the list of highest-paid athletes with total earnings of US$13.1 million. Other female athletes on the list include Simona Halep (US$10.9 million), Bianca Andreescu (US$8.9 million), Garbine Muguruza (US$6.6 million), Elina Svitolina (US$6.4 million), Sofia Kenin (US$5.8 million), Angelique Kerber (US$5.3 million), and Alex Morgan (US$4.6 million).

Of the ten highest-paid female athletes, nine are tennis players. Only Alex Morgan is a professional soccer player from the United States.