Entertainment site Betting.com has analyzed the Instagram earnings of 200 US sports stars across the NFL, NBA, and MLB franchises to reveal the richest athletes on the platform.
From gym wear to cars, sports stars are known for utilizing their huge social media following by partnering with household-name brands to increase their earnings through sponsored content. Whether it’s becoming a brand ambassador or posting a one-off advertisement, which icons are earning the most on Instagram in 2023?
Photo: Betting.comA new study from Betting.com has revealed the earning power on Instagram of the top current and retired athletes across the NFL, NBA, and MLB franchises, as well as how much they are expected to make in 2023. On top of this, they’ve also revealed the top-earning 2023 NFL Draft prospects on Instagram.
LeBron James is the highest-earning US sports star on Instagram, predicted to earn almost $14 million on the platform in 2023
Thanks to the NBA having so many iconic stars and likable personalities, it might not come as a surprise that the top 10 is entirely dominated by basketball players.
One of the most iconic sports stars in the world, LeBron James, is revealed to be the highest-earning US sports star on social media, expected to rake in almost $14 million on the platform in 2023.
Earning an average of $380,501 per post, this means that LeBron James earns more from just two sponsored posts on Instagram than what he earns in two games of basketball, for which he is reported to earn just over $502,000 per game.
The top 10 sports stars with the highest predicted earnings on Instagram for 2023…
Rank | Athlete | Average earnings per sponsored post | Estimated earnings so far in 2023 | Estimated earnings for 2023 |
1 | LeBron James | $380,501.00 | $3,424,509 | $13,698,036 |
2 | Shaquille O’Neal | $75,804.00 | $1,743,492 | $6,973,968 |
3 | Stephen Curry | $129,692.00 | $1,167,228 | $4,668,912 |
4 | Dwyane Wade | $52,117.00 | $469,053 | $1,876,212 |
5 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | $37,827.00 | $416,097 | $1,664,388 |
6 | James Harden | $30,787.00 | $215,509 | $862,036 |
7 | Jimmy Butler | $20,780.00 | $187,020 | $748,080 |
8 | Damian Lillard | $25,530.50 | $178,714 | $714,854 |
9 | Michael Jordan | $51,759.00 | $155,277 | $621,108 |
10 | Allen Iverson | $33,579.00 | $134,316 | $537,264 |
Shaquille O’Neal, lovingly known as Shaq, comes in second place with an estimated earning of almost $7 million for 2023.
Despite retiring from his sport in 2011, the basketball legend is still raking it in on social media, earning an average of $129,692 per post. Stephen Curry, a current player for the Golden State Warriors, comes in third.
Tom Brady is the highest-earning NFL star, earning almost $35,000 per sponsored post.
Recently retired NFL star Tom Brady is the highest-earning NFL star on Instagram, earning an average of $34,988 per sponsored post. Estimated to have earnt $104,964 so far in 2023, Brady’s predicted earnings for the year amount to $419,856.
Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs legend Patrick Mahomes comes in second place as the highest-earning NFL star on Instagram with an average earning power of $13,577 per post and a projected earning of $162,924 in 2023.
Joe Burrow, the quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals, comes in third place with an average earning power of $8,450 per post and a predicted earning of $67,600 in 2023.
Bryce Young is the top NFL Draft prospect with the highest earning power
University of Alabama quarterback, Bryce Young, is one of 2023’s most anticipated NFL prospects. With an estimated earning power of $1,148 per post, it also makes him the NFL prospect with the highest earning power on the platform.
Young is followed by Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback C.J. Stroud ($874) and Bijan Robinson $834, running back for the Texas Longhorns. With the NFL draft approaching on the 28th of April, it will be interesting to see how their earning power skyrockets.
Alex Rodriguez is the highest-earning basketball icon, earning almost $11,000 per post.
Baseball veteran Alex Rodriguez comes in the first place as the MLB player with the highest earning power on Instagram and is expected to earn around $130,572 in 2023 from the platform.
Meanwhile, Shohei Ohtani is the highest-earning current player, earning around $4,521 on average per post, while Mike Trout comes in third, earning an average of $5,313 per post.
Which athletes do you love to see on your Instagram feed?
Methodology
A seed list of the top 30 best players of all time and the 30 best current was taken for NFL, MLB, and NBA franchises.
The Instagram Influencer Sponsored Post Money Calculator was used to find the average earnings per post. The lowest and highest earnings per post were taken and averaged.
Instagram was used to find the number of sponsored posts so far for each athlete in 2023. This was then multiplied by four to find the predicted earnings for 2023.
Featured Image: Betting.com
