Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams top the list of highest-paid female athletes of 2022, Emma Raducanu and Iga Swiatek in Top-5
Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams occupied the top-two spots in the 2022 list of the highest-paid female athletes in the world. Osaka beat the 23-time Grand Slam champion Williams to the top of this year's list. Additionally, 4 of the top 5 places were occupied by WTA athletes.
2021 US Open winner Emma Raducanu and World No. 1 Iga Swiatek also feature in the list at No. 4 and No. 5 respectively. The top-5 of the list was complete with freestyle skier Eileen Gu making an appearance at No. 3.
The World’s Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2022 on.forbes.com/60123KlVE by @thebrettknight, @JustBirny https://t.co/C4Kpm9OCI3
As reported by Forbes, Osaka earned a mammoth amount off-the-field as she was sidelined for quite some time due to various injuries throughout the year. Recently, she also invested in a pickleball team along with fellow tennis player Nick Kyrgios. Osaka earned a whopping $51.1 million in 2022.
Tennis ace Serena Williams, who retired from the sport in 2022 after the US Open, still managed to secure second place in Forbes' list. The 41-year-old has her own business venture, Serena Ventures, through which she has invested in more than 60 portfolios, all contributing to her earnings of 2022. The American earned $41.3 million.
Despite suffering a drastic fall in her form as well as her singles rankings following her 2021 Grand Slam win, Raducanu still holds a lot of sponsorships, such as British Airways, Dior, and Porsche. As a result, the Brit earned $18.7 million in 2022.
World No. 1 Swiatek has had an impressive 2022 season with two Grand Slam wins. The Pole was the only athlete in the top-5 who earned the majority of her earnings on-field. She earned $14.9 million in 2022, only $5 million of which came via sponsorships and other off-field activities.
Other tennis players among the Top-10 were former World No. 1 Venus Williams, young tennis sensation Coco Gauff, and Jessica Pegula.
Serena Williams named among 25 most influential women of 2022
Serena Williams has had an eventful 2022. The American hung up her tennis boots after dominating the game for over two decades and was ranked No. 2 in the world's top-paid female athletes of 2022.
In a report by the Financial Times, the 41-year-old was also named among the 25 most influential women in the world. Serena Williams found herself in good company as her friend, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, and superstar musician Billie Eilish were also included.