When this article was first published back in 2020, we were still collectively reeling at the prospect of Patrick Mahomes II’s blockbuster $450 million deal — then the biggest-ever known sports contract. But since then, incredibly enough, the Kansas City quarterback has been bumped down a few spots in the ongoing rankings for most expensive sports contracts in history.
At the time of this writing, Patrick Mahomes’ decade-long agreement sits at #4 behind Cristiano Ronaldo‘s half-billion deal with Saudi football club Al-Nassr (#3), Lionel Messi‘s former $674 million agreement with FC Barcelona (#2), and of course, Shohei Ohtani’s headline-making $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers (#1).
[NOTE: ALL $$$ REFERENCED = USD]
Shohei Ohtani: The $700 Million Man
After almost six years of being stranded on struggle street with the Los Angeles Angels alongside Mike Trout, in December 2023, Shohei Ohtani inked a staggering $700 million/10-year contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This development has led the highly-decorated “Shotime,” who is Major League Baseball’s reigning MVP, to break yet another record. Not just within the realm of baseball, but professional sports period.
To put things in a slightly more digestible frame of reference, from his player contract alone, the two-way superstar will essentially be earning…
- $70,000,000 per year
- $5,833,333.33 per month
- $1,346,153.84 per week
- $191,780.82 per day
- $7,990.87 per hour
- $133.18 per minute
- $2.22 per second
And for a slightly more ridiculous point of comparison: the combined value of Shohei Ohtani and Dodgers teammate Mookie Betts’ player contracts amounts to just shy of $1.07 billion.
That’s more than the current value of small market MLB franchises like the Miami Marlins ($1 billion) and shockingly close to the Oakland Athletics ($1.2 billion); the latter of which was the subject of Michael Lewis’ Moneyball (as well as the eventual screen adaptation).
But there’s an intriguing twist to all this.
Since the news of Ohtani’s salary was initially broken, ESPN has revealed he’ll be deferring $68 million of his annual $70 million compensation/$680 million of his total $700 compensation until after the contract’s playing terms; to be paid between 2034 and 2043.
“The deferrals were Ohtani’s idea, a source close to the situation said, motivated largely by the thought of helping the Dodgers sign other players and made easier by his massive off-the-field earnings,” Aiden Gonzalez of the renowned sports publication reported.
“Ohtani is believed to make upward of $45 million annually through endorsements, a source said, making him clearly the most marketable player in Major League Baseball. The Los Angeles Angels were believed to make more than $20 million annually off that same marketability during his tenure there.”
There are also tax benefits (read: loopholes) attached to this arrangement. And not just for Shohei Ohtani himself, who would be taking a state-mandated haircut in California otherwise.
Gonzalez continued: “Ohtani’s cost toward the Dodgers’ competitive balance tax payroll — which typically uses the average annual value of contracts, in this case $70 million, but discounts deferred money — will be about $46 million after each season.”
“That puts the combined cost of Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Mookie Betts toward the CBT payroll at somewhere in the neighbourhood of $100 million annually. The luxury tax threshold sits at $237 million in 2024.”
Chess, not checkers.
The Asterisk Next To The Rankings
Before we proceed, a few key details need to be addressed:
- Numbers are not indicative of endorsement deals or any other supplementary forms of income that often contribute to total career earnings, e.g. Roger Federer’s 2019 winnings amounted to $6.3 million vs $100 million worth of endorsements that same year.
- Athletes of individual sports may have been excluded due to the fact that prize money, promotional deals, and so forth are not always guaranteed within a contract, e.g. Floyd Mayweather’s six-fight pact with Showtime guaranteed approximately $200 million; a pay-per-view side deal earned him an additional $250 million (also note the use of “pact” and not “contract”).
- Numbers are based purely on what is public knowledge, therefore undisclosed or unverified contracts/backdoor deals associated with certain high-profile athletes have also been excluded
Now… where were we?
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The Most Expensive Sports Contracts [2024]
#1. Shohei Ohtani, MLB (Los Angeles Dodgers) — $700,000,000
Per year: $70,000,000
Per game/event: $432,099
Active dates: 2024-2033
#2. Lionel Messi, La Liga (FC Barcelona) — $674,000,000
Per year: $168,500,000
Per game/event: $4,434,210
Active dates: 2017-2021
#3. Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Super League (Al-Nassr) — $536,336,818
Per year: $214,534,727
Per game/event: $7,151,158
Active dates: 2023-2025
#4. Patrick Mahomes II, NFL (Kansas City Chiefs) — $450,000,000
Per year: $45,000,000
Per game/event: $2,465,686
Active dates: 2020-2031
#6. Mike Trout, MLB (Los Angeles Angels) — $426,500,000
Per year: $35,541,667
Per game/event: $219,393
Active dates: 2019-2030
=#7. Canelo Alvarez, Boxing (DAZN) — $365,000,000
Per year: $73,000,000
Per game/event: $33,181,818
Active dates: 2018-2023
=#7. Mookie Betts, MLB (Los Angeles Dodgers) — $365,000,000
Per year: $30,416,667
Per game/event: $187,757
Active dates: 2021-2032
#9. Aaron Judge, MLB (New York Yankees) — $360,000,000
Per year: $40,000,000
Per game/event: $246,913
Active dates: 2023-2031
#10. Manny Machado, MLB (San Diego Padres) — $350,000,000
Per year: $31,818,818
Per game/event: $196,409
Active dates: 2023-2034
#11. Francisco Lindor, MLB (New York Mets) — $341,000,000
Per year: $34,100,000
Per game/event: $210,494
Active dates: 2022-2031
#12. Fernando Tatis Jr, MLB (San Diego Padres) — $340,000,000
Per year: $24,285,714
Per game/event: $149,912
Active dates: 2021-2034
=#13. Bryce Harper, MLB (Philadelphia Phillies) — $330,000,000
Per year: $25,384,615
Per game/event: $156,695
Active dates: 2019-2031
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=#13. Max Verstappen, Formula 1 (Red Bull Racing) — $330,000,000
Per year: $55,000,000
Per game/event: $2,500,000
Active dates: 2023-2028
=#15. Giancarlo Stanton, MLB (Miami Marlins) — $325,000,000
Per year: $25,000,000
Per game/event: $154,320
Active dates: 2015-2027 [Traded to New York Yankees in 2017]
=#15. Corey Seager, MLB (Texas Ranger) — $325,000,000
Per year: $32,500,000
Per game/event: $200,617
Active dates: 2022-2031
#17. Gerrit Cole, MLB (New York Yankees) — $324,000,000
Per year: $36,000,000
Per game/event: $222,222
Active dates: 2020-2028
#18. Rafael Devers, MLB (Boston Red Sox) — $313,500,000
Per year: $31,350,000
Per game/event: $193,519
Active dates: 2024-2033
#19. Jaylen Brown, NBA (Boston Celtics) — $303,734,891
Per year: $60,746,978
Per game/event: $740,816
Active dates: 2024-2029
=#20. Manny Machado, MLB (San Diego Padres) — $300,000,000
Per year: $30,000,000
Per game/event: $185,185
Active dates: 2019-2028
=#20. Trea Turner, MLB (Philadelphia Phillies) — $300,000,000
Per year: $27,272,727
Per game/event: $168,350
Active dates: 2023-2033
#22. Xander Bogaerts, MLB (San Diego Padres) — $280,000,000
Per year: $25,454,545
Per game/event: $157,127
Active dates: 2023-2033
=#23. Joe Burrow, NFL (Cincinnati Bengals) — $275,000,000
Per year: $55,000,000
Per game/event: $3,235,294
Active dates: 2024-2029
=#23. Alex Rodriguez, MLB (New York Yankees) — $275,000,000
Per year: $27,500,000
Per game/event: $169,753
Active dates: 2008-2017
#25. Nikola Jokic, NBA (Denver Nuggets) — $264,000,000
Per year: $52,800,000
Per game/event: $643,902
Active dates: 2023-2028
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