Cristiano Ronaldo Beats Lionel Messi to Top Honour Despite Poor Form

• Cristiano Ronaldo has beaten a host of top sporting personalities to be named the world's most marketable athlete
• The Man United star is understood to have racked up a score of 91.21 out of a possible 100 to rank ahead of Serena Williams and Lewis Hamilton
• Ronaldo's football nemesis Lionel Messi is placed fifth on the list behind basketball legend LeBron James
• The Portuguese star has had as much success off the pitch as he has had on it, with the veteran forward the face of several brands including Nike

Cristiano Ronaldo has beaten the world's top sporting personalities to be named the most marketable athlete on the planet.

The Manchester United icon is widely considered one of the greatest footballers of all time, thanks to his football achievements during his illustrious career of more than 20 years.

The veteran striker has thus far lifted seven league titles across the Premier League, La Liga and Serie A, as well as five Champions Leagues and Euro 2016.

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Football

At the individual level, he has won several awards, including the Ballon d'Or on five occasions.

Incredibly, the 37-year-old is thriving off the pitch much as he has on it, with the forward now declared the most marketable athlete in the world.

According to a list released by SportsPro this week of the 50 most marketable athletes, Ronaldo topped the charts ahead of some of the most recognisable names in the world of sports - including Lionel Messi.

The Mirror reports the Portuguese achieved the accolade after garnering a 'marketability score' of 91.21 out of 100.

Tennis icon Serena Williams is placed second on the list, ahead of Formula 1 superstar Lewis Hamilton, who finished third.

Basketball legend LeBron James is fourth on the list, with Messi completing the top five podium.

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Football

Below is a list of the 50 most marketable athletes in the world per SportsPro:

1. Cristiano Ronaldo
2. Serena Williams
3. Lewis Hamilton
4. LeBron James
5. Lionel Messi
6. Naomi Osaka
7. Virat Kohli
8. Alex Morgan
9. Sam Kerr
10. Tom Brady
11. Simone Biles
12. Emma Raducanu
13. Alexia Putellas
14. Stephen Curry
15. Simona Halep
16. Rafael Nadal
17. Neymar
18. Mohamed Salah
19. Kylian Mbappe
20. Rohit Sharma
21. Katie Ledecky
22. Chloe Kim
23. Roger Federer
24. Erling Haaland
25. Charles Leclerc
26. Candace Parker
27. Megan Rapinoe
28. Oksana Masters
29. Eileen Gu
30. Garbine Muguruza
31. Karim Benzema
32. Bianca Andreescu
33. Max Verstappen
34. Bethany Hamilton
35. George Russell
36. Sergio Perez
37. Robert Lewandowski
38. Giannis Antetokounmpo
39. Sky Brown
40. Becky Sauerbrunn
41. Sydney McLaughlin
42. Mesut Ozil
43. Kevin De Bruyne
44. Olivia Dunne
45. Luka Doncic
46. Novak Djokovic
47. Katie Taylor
48. Rory McIlroy
49. Harry Kane
50. Marcus Rashford

Cristiano Ronaldo disappointed after substitution

Sports Brief earlier reported on Ronaldo fuming after Erik ten Hag substituted him while the team was chasing a goal.

Ronaldo was visibly annoyed by the decision and could be seen verbally expressing his frustration.

However, ten Hag defended his decision, saying he had to rotate his team ahead of four games in 10 days, beginning with Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.