From $40 Million to $200 Million a Year: Billionaire Michael Jordan Grew His Annual Income 500% Nearly 20 Years After Retirement

6x NBA champion Michael Jordan had one of the most dominant careers in the history of the NBA. Many consider Jordan to be the greatest player of all time. Surely one of the game’s greats must have been fairly compensated for his contributions, right? Unfortunately, it was not the case for Jordan. Despite being the best player in his era, Jordan’s career earnings as a player don’t mirror his dominance.

After playing for over a decade in the NBA,? Michael Jordan retired as one of the greatest to ever do it. However, looking at his earnings from the NBA we get a very different story. The Hall of Famer was massively underpaid for the majority of his career. But fast forward to the present day, and billionaire Jordan is the richest athlete ever. Here’s how Jordan went from being underpaid to one of the wealthiest in the game.

Michael Jordan earns more money now than ever before

The Chicago Bulls drafted Michael Jordan in the 1984 NBA draft. Subsequently, Jordan brought six championships to Chicago. Moreover, MJ was also the undisputed best player in the league. Over his illustrious career, he earned over $93 Million in player salaries. Though it is a lot of money, when compared to some of the modern NBA stars, Jordan got the short end of the stick.

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So how did Michael Jordan turn the $93 Million into a Billion dollar empire? Jordan was one of the most sought-after prospects coming into the NBA. Naturally, he got offers worth millions from brands before even doing a single dribble in the NBA. Jordan inked a contract with the then-budding company Nike; and as they say, the rest is history. Jordan’s contract with Nike has netted him a staggering amount and has formed the major chunk of his net worth. Currently, MJ’s annual earnings from the Jordan brand stand at an astonishing $200 million per year.

Incidentally, Jordan brand brought in only $40 million before 2010. As a matter fact, Jordan now generates 500% more revenue than he did during his retirement 20 years ago. This is due to the Jordan brand branching out into apparels and other sportswear products. Also MJ owns an NBA team in the Charlotte Hornets. Two decades into his retirement, the Jordan brand is as strong as ever, making ‘His Airness’ Billions.

The Jordan brand has become a cash cow for Nike. The brand, according to estimates, makes over $5 Billion in revenue annually. Jordan also receives 5% on all the brand’s sales, netting him a significant portion of his annual income. Moreover, in the contract’s lifetime, Jordan has earned over $1.5 Billion from Nike.

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Apart from being one of the greatest athletes ever, Jordan is also the wealthiest of the bunch.