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Cristiano Ronaldo tops rich list ahead of Lionel Messi

By Abhinav Kini

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Cristiano Ronaldo is the richest player in world football with a personal wealth of £152 million.

According to the annual Goal.com rich list released earlier today, the Real Madrid star is the richest footballer in the world, with a net worth of about £7 million more than Barcelona rival, Lionel Messi whose worth is £145 million.

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The 30-year-old topped the list last year as well but increased his earnings after an outstanding 2014 where he won the Ballon d’Or and guided Real Madrid to the Champions League, Copa del Rey and Club World Cup with the Portugal captain earning win bonuses.

Outside of football, Ronaldo raked in the cash with commercial deals and sponsorships with companies like Toyota, Herbalife and Samsung as well as his current deal with Nike.

Messi finished second again while his Barcelona teammate, Neymar finished in third with £98 million, with his family benefiting from his big transfer move from Santos to the Catalans.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic finished in fourth with £76 million while Wayne Rooney rounded off the top five, having benefited from his huge mega deal with Manchester United, taking the Englishman’s net worth to £75 million.

Here is the top 16 of the rich list:

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