The highest-paid athlete in 2021 above Lionel Messi, LeBron James, and Tom Brady

The list of the 10 highest-paid players over the last year was unveiled recently and it immediately became a hot topic on the Internet as fans discussed who they thought that was missing there, while others praised the ones that were involved in it.

However, there has been certain consensus regarding some surprising appearances, like Dak Prescott's fourth-place over many other well-known superstars. Besides, the absence of the likes of Stephen Curry, James Harden, and Giannis Antetokoumpo called many people's attention.

But one of the things these kind of lists seem unable to avoid is the controversy they always create regarding the top spots. In this case, the ranking was based on facts and the money each player received, but some fans still showed their disagreement and stated that another player should have been the best-paid.

The highest-paid athlete in 2020-2021 above Messi, LeBron, and Brady

According to the list revealed by Forbes, Connor McGregor was the athlete that earned the most last year with a $180 million income. He was one of only four to have surpassed the $100 million earnings, being Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Dak Prescott the others.

Still, the MMA superstar hasn't collected most of that fortune due to his work on the octagon. As the report shows, McGregor earned $158 million in personal business and endorsements. Meanwhile, he was paid $22 million for his appearance in UFC 257.

The complete list of the 10 best-paid athletes over the last year

With McGregor topping the list, many other moneymaker superstars round out the top 10. The method employed, according to Forbes, took into account not only salaries but other sources of income as well. These were the 10 highest-paid athletes between 2020 and 2021: