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2005 SI International 20

Here is the top 10 of the inaugural Sports Illustrated Magazine's International 20 list for the year 2005, ranking the highest paid athletes from around the world (excluding US athletes, they get their own list!).



As with all International 20 lists, this list only includes athletes from outside of the USA, sorted by total earnings (salary, winnings, endorsements and appearance fees). See also the top 10 American athletes on the 2005 Fortunate 50 list.

Rank Name Country Sport earnings (US$) previous year*
1. Michael Schumacher Germany Auto Racing $81,000,000 1
2. David Beckham Great Britain Soccer $30,000,000 2
3. Valentino Rossi Italy Motor Sports $24,500,000 ?
4. Ronaldo Brazil Soccer $24,000,000 ?
5. Maria Sharapova Russia Tennis $23,006,263 ?
6. Vijay Singh Fiji Golf $22,038,699 ?
7. Ernie Els South Africa Golf $21,868,386 ?
8. Ichiro Suzuki Japan Baseball $20,500,000 ?
9. Yao Ming China Basketball $19,436,880 ?
10. Dikembe Mutombo Congo Basketball $19,021,511 ?

* There is some information about who would have made the International 20 list in 2004 if such a list was made.

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