Good News: Congratulations To Highest-Paid Female Athletes 2024: Coco, Caitlin and Korda….Read More

Interest in women’s sports has exploded recently with record TV ratings, attendance, revenue, sponsorships and franchise valuations across multiple sports properties. For the athletes, the money is starting to flow as well.

The world’s 15 highest-paid female athletes will earn an estimated $221 million in 2024, up 27% versus last year. Eleven athletes made at least $10 million, compared with six in 2023.

Tennis star Coco Gauff ranks No. 1 for the second straight year with $30.4 million from prize money and endorsements. She is just the third woman in sports to earn more than $30 million in a given year, after Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams.

Overall, athletes from five different sports made the cut, led by tennis with nine entries. Golf had three players in the top 15, while skiing (Eileen Gu), basketball (Caitlin Clark) and gymnastics (Simone Biles) each had one athlete represented.

Clark ($11.1 million) makes her list debut after a record-breaking college career that included more than a dozen NIL deals at Iowa. Several of those brands, including Nike, Gatorade, State Farm and Panini, have continued their relationship with Clark as a pro where she was the No. 1 overall pick by the Indiana Fever.

Nike is Clark’s most valuable endorsement deal. In April, the Swoosh signed the future WNBA Rookie of the Year to an eight-year agreement worth more than $3 million a year on average. Other brand partners include Wilson, Hy Vee, Xfinity, Gainbridge and Lilly.

Gauff had a disappointing performance at the Grand Slams this year, with her best showing semifinal appearances at the Australian Open and French Open—she did win the doubles title at the French. The 20-year-old did win three titles in 2024, including the richest tournament in the sport. Gauff defeated Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 in the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and earned $4.805 million for the title. It was the biggest payout ever for a women’s tennis event.

Gauff earned $9.4 million in prize money but took in more than twice as much off the court. She added two new deals to her deep endorsement portfolio, signing a multiyear pact with L’Oreal to pitch its natural hair care brand Carol’s Daughter and adding juice brand Naked, where she was named CSO—chief smoothie officer. The Naked deal includes an equity position.

Coco is on top, but her reign will be challenged by breakout tennis star Zheng, who made an estimated $20.6 million, including $15 million off the court. She won a pair of WTA events and reached the finals in three others, including the Australian Open, but her big breakthrough was in Paris at the Olympics. She became the first Asian tennis player, male or female, to win an Olympic gold in singles, triggering major bonuses from sponsors and new deals that will significantly boost her off-court earnings in 2025. She has a dozen endorsement partners led by Nike.

The endorsement landscape in China is a gold mine for breakthrough athletes and is partially responsible for the sponsor windfalls for Emma Raducanu and Eileen Gu, who both have Chinese ancestry. Zheng is just the second Chinese tennis player to crack the top 10 after Li Na. Li’s endorsement earnings approached $20 million a year after she won the French Open (2011) and Wimbledon (2014). Like Li, Zheng is represented by IMG, which has deep connections in China from its past work there.

Another athlete shooting up the charts is Nelly Korda ($10.4 million). The world’s No. 1 golfer reeled off a record-tying five straight wins early in the year and seven titles overall in 16 events. She was the first American with seven wins in a season since Beth Daniel in 1990. The win streak and appearances at the Met Gala and Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue made Korda a crossover star in 2024. Her stellar play also boosted her bank account from sponsor bonuses. Partners include Nike, T-Mobile, TaylorMade, Goldman Sachs, Delta Airlines, Cisco, Grant Thornton, Whoop, US LBM and LivPur. In July, travel brand Tumi signed Korda as a brand ambassador.

Zheng and Korda are part of a group that skews young and makes bank. Overall, the top 15 earners are 25 years old on average, and 30-year-old Jessica Pegula is the only one older than 28. Compare that to the 100 highest-paid men last year, which had a cutoff of $32.5 million. The average age was 31 and 10 athletes older than 38 cracked the top 100.

Several other athletes made more than $6 million, by Sportico‘s count, but fell just outside the top 15, including Czech tennis player Barbora Krejcikova, soccer star Alex Morgan and WNBA All-Star Sabrina Ionescu.

The earnings include prize money, salaries and bonuses during 2024 for active athletes, including Olympic medal payouts and prize money from the Billie Jean King Cup. Venus Williams is not technically retired but the 44-year-old played just two matches early in the year and has largely hung up her racket. The seven-time Grand Slam champion was not considered for the list but would have made the cut based on her hefty corporate speaking income.

The endorsement earnings estimates were compiled through conversations with those familiar with marketing agreements and also include royalties, memorabilia, appearance fees, media and businesses tied to their celebrity. The figures are all before taxes and any agent fees.