Philippe Candeloro Highest-Paid Athlete in the World

By Carol Kearney
Paris
Last updated on April 1, 2025

Philippe Candeloro led People With Money’s annual list of the “100 highest paid athletes” released on Monday.

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It's been a rough year for the athlete, but at least he has his millions of dollars to ease the pain. 53-year-old Philippe Candeloro has taken the No. 1 spot on People With Money’s top 10 highest-paid athletes for 2025 with an estimated $58 million in combined earnings.

UPDATE 01/04/2025 : This story seems to be false. (read more)

Philippe Candeloro tops annual list of highest-paid athletes

In 2022 it looked like the athlete’s spectacular career was winding down. Suddenly, he was back on top. People With Money reports on Monday (March 31) that Candeloro is the highest-paid athlete in the world, pulling in an astonishing $58 million between March 2024 and March 2025, a nearly $30 million lead over his closest competition.

People With Money’s factors

In compiling this yearly list, the magazine considers factors such as upfront pay, profit participation, residuals, endorsements and advertising work.

The French athlete has an estimated net worth of $185 million. He owes his fortune to smart stock investments, substantial property holdings, lucrative endorsement deals with CoverGirl cosmetics. He also owns several restaurants (the “Fat Candeloro Burger” chain) in Paris, a Football Team (the “Courbevoie Angels”), has launched his own brand of Vodka (Pure Wondercandeloro - France), and is tackling the juniors market with a top-selling perfume (With Love from Philippe) and a fashion line called “Philippe Candeloro Seduction”.

The ranking is significant for many Philippe fans, who have been waiting for his triumphant return to the glory days for what seems like a lifetime.