According to the list released by Forbes on Wednesday afternoon, India cricket team captain Virat Kohli ranks ahead of Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi when it comes to brand value. The captain of the Indian cricket has a brand value of $14.5 million which puts him ahead of Messi as well as NBA team Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry on the 7th spot in the top 10 list revealed by Forbes. The brand value is an athlete’s earnings (excluding salary and bonus from their sport and all investment income), minus the average income of the top 10 athletes in the same sport. Tennis legend Roger Federer leads the list with a brand value of $37.2m followed by NBA star LeBron James ($33.4 mn) and sprinter Usain Bolt ($27 mn). Real Madrid’s star striker Cristiano Ronaldo is in the 4th spot with a brand value of $21.5 mn. Tiger Woods who is not at his peak anymore kept the 6th spot with a brand value of $16.6 mn.
Interestingly, Kohli is already the World’s Highest Paid Cricketer and among the highest paid athletes in the world. He recently went past former Australian captain Ricky Ponting to score 31st ODI century and is now only behind Indian great Sachin Tendulkar. Here is the list of athletes with highest brand value:
1. Roger Federer $37.2m
2. LeBron James $33.4m
3. Usain Bolt $27m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo $21.5m
5. Phil Mickelson $19.6m
6. Tiger Woods $16.6m
7. Virat Kohli $14.5m
8. Rory McIlroy $13.6m
9. Lionel Messi $13.5m
10. Steph Curry $13.4m
As far as the events are considered, the Indian Premier League failed to make it into the top 10 list despite having a huge fan base. IPL had completed 10 years this season and has a large viewership. Super Bowl grabbed the first spot with a value of $663 million followed by Summer Olympics with $419 mn. Here is the full list:
1. Super Bowl – $663m
2. Summer Olympics – $419m
3. Winter Olympics – $285m
4. FIFA World Cup – $229m
5. NCAA Final Four – $228m
6. WrestleMania – $195m
7. UCL – $185m
8. College Football Playoffs – $176m
9. Daytonna 500 – $140m
10. MLB World Series – $124m