7 sport stars with surprisingly big net worth – tennis billionaire to Barca flop

Several big names immediately spring to mind when we think of rich athletes.

Tiger Woods, Lionel Messi, Conor McGregor, Cristiano Ronaldo and LeBron James are undoubtedly among those who have made their money as a result of dominating their sports for several years.

But there are also lesser known athletes who can go toe-to-toe with sport's very richest figures, either due to successful business ventures on the side or their huge family fortunes. Daily Star Sport brings you seven of the sports stars you had no idea were filthy rich.

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Ion Tiriac

You would be forgiven for thinking household names like Serena Williams and Roger Federer are the wealthiest tennis stars in history. But you would be wrong as that title belongs to 83-year-old Ion Tiriac, who has a gargantuan net worth of £1.5billion.

The Romanian won around £200,000 during his playing days, the highlight of which was a doubles success at the 1970 French Open alongside Ilie Nastase. Yet his greatest skills were showcased off the court as a savvy businessman.

Tiriac took advantage of fading communism in his country towards the end of the Cold War by becoming the first to open a privately-owned bank. And the Tiriac Bank has since been a big financial success.

He has also branched out into retail, insurance and airline businesses under the company Tiriac Holdings Ltd. By 2007, he had been named by Forbes as Romania's first billionaire.

Eddie Jordan

The 74-year-old Irishman is one of Formula One’s richest ever people, having accumulated a net worth (£498m) surpassed only by Michael Schumacher.

Jordan went from trading conkers in the school playground to buying and selling school books after graduating. His passion for cars eventually led him to F1, where he set up constructor Jordan Grand Prix in 1991.

Jordan was a mainstay on the grid, implementing a relaxed atmosphere and nurturing a number of big names until 2005, when he sold his team for a reported £50m to Dutch manufacturer Spyker. He has since invested in a host of different projects, including Valeo Foods and a £1bn New York skyscraper.

Asamoah Gyan

The Ghanaian striker is one of the most renowned African players of all time. He netted six goals across three World Cups – which to this day is the most by any player from the continent.

His journey across various different countries towards the latter part of his career, including the UAE, China, India and Turkey, left him a vast amount of wealth. But his business forays across various areas, such as planes, real estate, bottled water, boxing promotion, petrol stations and rice and noodles, is what led to his whopping £16.6m worth.

His airline Baby Jet has even been given licence approval by the Ghanaian authorities. Reports in Ghana revealed that the airline will begin operations as a cargo handler before becoming a commercial carrier.

Martin Braithwaite

Barcelona can certainly learn a lesson in managing their finances from their Danish striker Martin Braithwaite. The 31-year-old flop was reported by Forbes in 2020 to be the La Liga club’s second richest player after Lionel Messi, but he has since gone on to snatch that title since Messi’s 2021 switch to Paris Saint-Germain.

The ex-Middlesbrough man has been shunned by manager Xavi but still pockets a staggering £4m-a-year from the Catalan juggernauts. Still, his yearly salary at the Camp barely touches his earnings away from the pitch, with the bulk of his immense wealth being rooted in an $850,000 (£714,298) investment into the real estate business NYCE.

The company's website boasts approximately £252million in assets under management, including a real estate portfolio believed to be worth around £210m. However, the portfolio, which includes properties within New York, Philadelphia, Jersey City and San Antonio, is far from his lone source of riches.

Braithwaite also co-owns clothing business ‘Trente’ alongside French entrepreneur, journalist and TV personality Anne-Leure Louis. And when he decides to kick back from his business endeavours, the veteran can feast at his own restaurant 'Gave', which is located within Barcelona.

Mathieu Flamini

Ex-Arsenal star Mathieu Flamini is best remembered as a hard-tackling defensive-midfielder who also enjoyed stints at AC Milan and Crystal Palace.

But the 38-year-old shrewdly balanced the latter part of his career with entrepreneurship off the pitch. He co-founded GFBiochemicals in 2008 – the first company in the world to mass-produce levulinic acid, with its fuel being made from plant waste which can be used to create plastic in an environmentally friendly way.

It has left him with a meaty net worth in the region of £11.6bn. That figure is now believed to have soared even higher as a result of him becoming the firm’s CEO, as well as his recent venture with The BioJournal.

Jessica Pegula

Another tennis sensation to make the list is American Jessica Pegula, who is currently eighth in the women’s rankings.

Pegula’s vast fortune makes her undoubtedly one of the sport’s richest ever figures. While others have their career earnings and sponsors to thank, the 28-year-old’s wealth predominantly stems from off the court.

She stands to inherit a billion dollar empire from her father Terry's gas property and sports empire. Having started out as a gas engineer, the 71-year-old now owns NFL team the Buffalo Bills.

Terry bought the franchise with his wife Kim in 2014 to add to their ownership of hockey side Buffalo Sabres and lacrosse team Buffalo Bandits. That means Jessica, who has earned just £4m from her tennis career, will one day take over an empire worth a staggering $5.8bn (£4.5bn), according to Forbes.

Faiq Bolkiah

Which names surprised you most on our list? Let us know in the comments section.

Former Chelsea prospect Faiq Bolkiah is the 24-year-old nephew of the Sultan of Brunei, who is reportedly worth £16bn.

Having been born in Los Angeles, he was educated in England while pursuing his dream of becoming a footballer. He first joined the academy of Southampton before going on to train with Reading and have a trial at Arsenal.

Chelsea eventually snapped him up, handing him a two-year contract, though that wasn't extended which led him to join Leicester in 2016. Faiq signed his first professional contract with the Foxes but was let go four years later, and he now plies his trade in Thailand for Chonburi FC.

The Brunei international's identity was revealed soon after his Leicester stint, with his dad Jefri being the brother of oil tycoon Hassanal and one of the heirs to the Sultan’s fortune. Their wealth is so great that legendary singer Michael Jackson was once reportedly flown in to perform a private concert for the striker's seventh birthday.

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