Tom Brady Settles for Consolation Prize as Michael Jordan’s $3.75 Billion Career Earnings Steal the Spotlight

In the world of the stringent net worth clash, NBA icon Michael Jordan has had a touchdown, rather a slam dunk, defeating NFL legend, Tom Brady. Off the field, Brady receives only a consolation prize with MJ running away in the distance in terms of their respective net worth.

Even though Brady has retired, he possesses a staggering net worth of $300 million. This exhaustive amount, however, seems to be meager when compared to the basketball titan Jordan, who owns $3.75 billion as per his career earning records. The Chicago Bulls legend currently tops the chart of the Top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes of All Time. Comparing the two figures shows how wide apart they actually stand in terms of their financial muscle.

Even though Brady’s journey began on the football field, culminating in a story of one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, he has excelled in business as well. While he was part of the New England Patriots between 2000 and 2019, he amassed an impressive earning of $350 million. This included his salary worth $235 million along with his bonuses. 

Upon joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady settled for a $50 million contract that was further complemented by an additional $15 million in 2022. However, the real break that he received was in 2023, when Forbes crowned him as the highest-paid NFL player. 

He sealed $30 million in on-field earnings, backed up by an additional $45 million through endorsements and business deals. Notably, Brady is big on sports investments with stakes in WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, Picklbeball’s Las Vegas Night Owls, the Raiders in the NFL, and Championship soccer club, Birmingham City. Although he has also diversified his portfolio other than being a player, he ended up earning a second-place honor when you compare it to Michael Jordan. 

Michael Jordan’s astounding earnings leave Tom Brady biting the dust

For Jordan, his journey off the field started much before Brady. Back in 1984, the budding NBA star caught the attention of Nike and Jordan entered into a partnership with the lucrative athlete brand. 40 years since he has now transcended his role as a basketball icon and has evolved as a global brand.

His financial power is approximately $2.7 billion, adjusted for inflation, and with a revenue of approximately $95 million after considering other earnings amounted to $3.7 billion. This surpasses the earnings of most of the top athletes of the present times. 

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Nike, with an annual revenue of $920 million, took a risky move, by signing the then-rookie basketball player to the iconic “Air Jordan” sneaker line. Cut to 2023, as Nike’s skyrocketing revenue to $51 billion, the contribution of Jordan Brand amounted to $6.6 billion to that total.  This is not just the end as the revenue of the brand continues to surge, with a rise of 29% last year alone.

As Brady gets displaced in the rankings of the top 10 Highest-Paid Athletes of All Time, Jordan’s immediate competitors become golfing legend Tiger Woods and soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo. 

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