NEW YORK (AFP) - Lionel Messi was the world's highest paid athlete over the past year, Forbes reported on Tuesday (June 11) in its annual sporting rich list.

Barcelona and Argentina star Messi dethroned retired boxer Floyd Mayweather as the sports world's highest earner, raking in US$127 million (S$173 million) via salary and endorsement deals.

That put Messi ahead of long-time rival Cristiano Ronaldo, the Juventus and Portugal star who was second with earnings of US$109 million.

Brazil and Paris Saint-Germain striker Neymar completed a sweep of the top three positions by footballers, coming in third with earnings of US$105 million.

The fourth highest earner on the list was Mexico's middleweight boxing star Saul "Canelo" Alvarez with US$94 million.

Alvarez, who defeated Gennady Golovkin last September to become the unified middleweight champion, inked the richest deal in boxing history last October, signing a five-year 11-fight contract with streaming network DAZN worth US$365 million.

Evergreen tennis star Roger Federer was fifth on the list with total earnings of US$93.4 million.

The bulk of Federer's earnings came through lucrative endorsement deals, with the 20-time Grand Slam singles champion pocketing US$86 million.

Stars from the NFL and NBA rounded out the top 10 on the list, with Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson sixth on US$89.5 million, just ahead of Green Bay Packers signal-caller Aaron Rodgers (US$89.3 million).

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James was the highest earning NBA player, with US$89 million, while Golden State's Stephen Curry was ninth with US$79.8 million.

Curry's Golden State team-mate Kevin Durant was 10th on the rankings with US$65.4 million.

Former world number one Tiger Woods was 11th on the list with US$69.3 million, which included an estimated US$54 million in endorsements.

Meanwhile tennis superstar Serena Williams was the only woman to make the list, coming in at 63rd with earnings of US$29.2 million.