While Title IX ensures equal opportunity in sports, there are still gender disparities in the business side of things. Check out the infographic below to learn more about the differences between the top paid male and female athletes.
According to the Forbes 2020 report, male athletes are consistently outlearning female athletes. In the sports world. US Surfing is the only sport to require equal pay for men and women. The average WNBA player makes around 1.55% of what the average NBA player makes. Additionally, nine out of 10 of the highest paid female athletes are tennis players.
The following are the top paid male and female athletes, and their earnings.
- Roger Federer, tennis – $106 M, Naomi Osaka, tennis – $37.4 M
- Christiano Ronaldo, soccer – $105 M, Serena Williams, tennis – $36 M
- Lionel Messi, soccer – $104 M, Ashleigh Barty, tennis – $13.1 M
- Neymar, soccer – $95 M, Simona Halep, tennis – $10.9 M
- Lebron James, basketball – $88 M, Bianca Andreescu, tennis – $8.9 M
- Stephen Curry, basketball – $74 M, Garbiñe Muguruza, tennis – $6.6 M
- Kevin Durant, basketball – $63 M, Evina Svitolina, tennis – $6.4 M
- Tiger Woods, golf, – $62 M, Sofia Kenin, tennis – $5.8 M
- Kirk Cousins, football – $60 M, Angelique Kerber, tennis – $5.3 M
- Carson Wentz, football – $59 M, Alex Morgan, soccer $4.6 M
Want to learn more? Read about the history of women in sports, from ancient times to Title IX, here.