Top earning sports stars

The England striker will bank a cool £10million each year until 2015 with endorsements likely to double that figure.

However, Rooney still finds his bank balance dwarfed by some of the world’s most famous sports stars as this glance at their balance sheets highlights.

Tiger Woods.

Like Rooney, Woods has made headlines for the wrong reasons in recent months. He was dropped by a number of sponsors following lurid allegations about his private life and his form on the course remains below-par.

However, off it the 14-time Major champion remains a money-making machine after banking around £75million from his salary, winnings, bonuses, endorsements and appearance fees.

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Roger Federer.

The perennial sportsbook favourite for Wimbledon has lost his number one slot to Rafael Nadal this season, but off the court he continues to blaze a trail in tennis.

Prize money, endorsements, appearance fees and other income topped the £35million mark last year.

He used to star in Gillette adverts alongside Woods and Thierry Henry in what was a holy trinity of sport’s top earners.

David Beckham.

He might not play for England any more but the veteran Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder still rakes in the cash.

The global marketing phenomenon pocketed £30millon last year after his basic wage was dwarfed by image rights and his myriad endorsements with the likes of Adidas, Motorola and Pepsi.

Phil Mickelson.

Regularly second to Woods on the leaderboard, Mickelson earned around £27million last year in prize money, appearance and sponsorship fees.

The left-handed has now won four Majors including the 2010 Masters after a stunning final round at Augusta in April.

Kobe Bryant.

The LA Lakers shooting guard is the highest profile basketball player in the United States and is remunerated accordingly.

Taking over the mantle from the now retired Michael Jordan, Bryant’s basic salary is around the £8million mark before he receives the same from a lengthy and lucrative endorsement deal with Nike.

Alex Rodriguez.

A-Rod signed a record breaking 10-year, 275million US dollar contract to become the highest paid player in baseball history three years ago.

The 34-year-old New York Yankees star is the youngest player to reach the 500 home run mark and he looks set to break future records.