Roger Federer and Tiger Woods are the most financially valuable athletes according to Forbes

Tiger Woods and Roger Federer

Roger Federer and Tiger Woods are tied at the top of the list for the most financially valuable athletes on the planet. In 2013, both Federer and Woods earned $46 million.

According to Forbes, it costs the tournament organizers a total of $1 million just to have the Swiss maestro on the starting list. The 17-time Grand Slam champion has signed a 10-year deal with Nike worth $100 million. Federer also has a huge fan following on the social media with over 14 million fans on facebook and close to 2 million fans on twitter.

"Consistency for so many years has benefitted Federer's brand value greatly. In his case, it doesn't even matter if he wins another big tournament again," says Hans-Willy Brockes, the head of Europäische Sponsoring Börse (ESB). 

"A brand's value generally comes from its recognition and the ability to generate sales and earnings based on this recognition. That's why Google and Apple are among the most valuable brands ever,while the brand value of Basler Läckerli cookies is much lower." 

Here are the top 10 most valuable athletes:

1.  Roger Federer (Switzerland), Tennis – $46 million
     Tiger Woods (USA), Golf – $46 million
2. LeBron James (USA), Basketball – $27 million
3. Phil Mickelson (USA), Golf – $25 million
4. Maria Sharapova (Russia), Tennis – $23 million
5. Mahendra Singh Dhoni (India), Cricket – $21 million
6. Usain Bolt (Jamaica), Track and field – $20 million
7. Kobe Bryant (USA), Basketball – $19 million
8. Li Na (China), Tennis – $15 million
9. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal), Football – $13 million
10. Lionel Messi (Argentina), Football – $13 million