Gareth Bale is the second richest young sports star in Britain and Ireland, with the Welsh football icon now worth a mammoth £94m.
According to the Sunday Times Rich List, which is published for the 31st year on Sunday, Bale is behind only golfer Rory McIlroy among sports people aged 30 and under. McIlroy, the only golfer ever to win four majors before his 30th birthday, sits at the top of the list by some distance, with a personal fortune of £138m.
Bale, 29, a former pupil of Whitchurch High School in Cardiff, has endured a difficult season at Real Madrid with the Spanish giants reportedly keen to sell him this summer.
Real manager Zinedine Zidane has publicly criticised Bale, prompting a passionate defence of the star by his agent. Bale is continually linked with a move to Manchester United.
Despite the current friction, however, his playing contract with the European champions nets him a whopping £18.2m a year after tax.
Bale also rakes in millions through endorsements and has even trade-marked his signature heart-shaped goal celebration. It's believed he pulls in well in excess of £10m a year through sponsorship deals.
In 2014 he penned a six-year deal with Adidas reportedly worth around £20m. Bale has also been backed by companies like Nissan, Foot Locker, EA Sports, Lucozade and broadcaster BT Sport.
It's worth noting the former Southampton and Spurs player also earns handsomely from social media. Bale has more than 35m Instagram followers and pulls in approximately £160,000 per sponsored post.
The Sunday Times estimates that Bale's wealth has risen by £20m this year, boosting his bank balance by eye-watering proportions even by the standards of football's cash-drenched environment.
In fact, the Young Sports Stars Rich List, despite being topped by McIlroy, is dominated by footballers with only heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua - who is placed fourth with a worth of £49m - bucking the trend.
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero, on a weekly salary of £250,000, is one spot lower than Bale at third, but his earnings of £58m are some way short of the Welshman's.
Interesting is the presence of much maligned Premier League high-earners Like Arsenal's Mesut Ozil (42m) and Manchester United trio Alexis Sanchez (39m), Paul Pogba (37m) and Romelu Lukaku (16m). Even injury prone West Ham forward Andy Carroll (19m) features.
The soaring success of Tottenham striker Harry Kane has also seen the current England captain earn a place on the list, which has his overall wealth at £16m.
In all, sports stars account for just over a third – 17 out of 50 places – of the Young Rich List, where everyone has a minimum worth of £16m this year.
These are the richest people in Wales in 2019
The 2019 Sunday Times Rich List – contained in a 156-page special edition of The Sunday Times Magazine – is the definitive guide to wealth in the United Kingdom.
It charts the wealth of the 1,000 richest people in the UK. The list is based on identifiable wealth, including land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies.
It excludes bank accounts, to which the paper has no access. The magazine includes several interviews and features, focused on some of the leading players and personalities among the richest 1,000, as well as a full ranking by order of wealth.
The Sunday Times Young Sports Stars Rich List 2019
1. Rory McIlroy £138m (Up £28m this year)
2. Gareth Bale £94m (Up £20m)
3. Sergio Aguero £58m (Up (£10m)
4. Anthony Joshua £49m (Up 14m)
5. Mesut Ozil £42m (Up £14m)
6. Eden Hazard £40m (Up £8m)
7. Alexis Sanchez £39m (Up £18m)
8. Paul Pogba £37m (Up £12m)
9. Theo Walcott £29m (Up £3m)
10. Willian £27m (Up £4m)
11. Kevin De Bruyne £25m (Up £9m)
12. David De Gea £24m (Up £6m)
13. Daniel Sturridge £22m (Up £3m)
14. Andy Carroll £19m (Up £2m)
15. Raheem Sterling £18m (New entry)
= 16. Harry Kane £16m (New entry)
= 16. Romelu Lukaku £16m (New entry)
