This archive report was first published on 7 August 2019.
For the fourth year in a row, Serena Williams has taken the top spot on Forbes' list of the highest-paid female athletes, with an estimated total earnings of $29.2 million.
Published on August 7, 2019, Forbes' annual list ranks athletes based on their prize money, salaries, bonuses, endorsements, and appearance fees between June 1, 2018, and June 1, 2019.
Naomi Osaka, the Japanese tennis player who won Grand Slam titles at the U.S. and Australian Opens, came in second on the list with a total income of $24.3 million, driven mainly by her off-court earnings, which soared to an estimated $16 million from $1.5 million a year ago.
Williams is the only woman to make it onto Forbes' top 100 best-paid athletes list, coming in at No. 63.
U.S. women's soccer player Alex Morgan was the highest-placed non-tennis player on the women's list at number 12, with Forbes putting her total earnings of $5.8 million.
Of the top 15 on Forbes' list of best-paid female athletes, 12 were tennis players, with Indian badminton player P.V. Sindhu coming in tied for 13th ($5.5 million), and Thai golfer Ariya Jutanugarn ($5.3 million) rounding out the top 15.
