Zidan remains the richest athlete of France

The departure from big sport did not stop the famous football player Zinedine Zidan again to become a champion - this time in terms of annual income. According to estimates carried out by the French sports weekly L'Equipe Magazine, Zidan earned 13 million euros in 2006. Despite the fact that this figure is 1.6 million lower than the 2005 indicator, it provides Zidan's first place in the ranking of business athletes.

Most of the income receives Zidane from firms whose products he is intensively advertised - Adidas, Danon, Audi and a number of other companies put about 9.1 million euros in Zidane. According to advertising experts, the image of Zidan remains still strong, which provides him with participation in the largest advertising campaigns.

He, however, steps on the heels of the former associate in the national team - Thierry Henry. This footballer increased his income by 2.7 million and reached an indicator of 12.4 million euros. Arsenal, in order to avoid the player’s transition to Barcelona, ​​increased him a monthly salary from 436 thousand euros to 672 thousand euros “clean”. At the same time, Henri resumed at a higher level of payment a number of his contracts for advertising products - income from them approaches 5 million euros.

In third place, having squeezed the players, very numerous in the list of 10 and in the list of 50 "businessmen from sports", the French basketball player - Tony Parker made its way. Compared to Zidan, his annual income is more modest - 9.8 million euros. However, at the same time, the athlete goes up the rising - compared to last year, he advanced at once in two places in the ranking, receiving a solid “hawk” of 4.2 million, ITAR -TASS reports.

Claude Mackelele with 7.2 million euros stands in fourth place, and Patrick Wieira with almost the same result - on the fifth step of the "magic staircase". Only to the sixth place managed to break through the "wall" of the players representative of the tennis players Amelie Mororemo. With her 6.8 million euros, she made a powerful breakthrough of 9 positions in the ranking, increasing her income by 2.8 million euros. Mororemo is the only woman not only in the leading ten - but also for all 50 seats.

The football players - Lilian Tyuram with his 6.1 million euros, William Gallas (5.8), David Truseg (5.7) and Willy Sanyol (5.2), end again. The latter became the record holder of the general list in the pace of advancement - he ascended immediately to 15 seats. A person who does not play football manages to appear among the “thicknesses in the boots” in only 15th place - this is a three -time world champion in rally Sebastian Leb.

For it, for 30 positions, representatives of glorious football are again followed. Only on the 46 step there was a place for tennis player Richarg Gasuka with his 1.8 million bloody earned, and on the neighboring 47 -speed - for the basketball player Michael Pietryus with the same amount of income. In an honorary final 50th place, the rider Olivier Panis - he earned 1.6 million euros over the year.

Commenting on the results, the magazine notes that the dominance of football players according to the results of 2006 became completely obvious - since during the period since 2005 the number of "non -football players" has decreased in a sports top 50 from 12 to all to all 6. It also says that the threshold for the leading ten increased from 4.9 to 5.2 million euros. The total income of those included significantly increased - it is more than half of the capital in 194 million euros, which belongs to the list of 50 athletes. The gap of "dozens" from the rest of the athletes is also intensified.

Nevertheless, the average income of the participant of the 50 list has increased slightly and now reaches 3.88 million euros. In this regard, L'Equipe notes that the real income of the remaining 6850 French professional athletes is endlessly lower - "they would be super -fast if they could earn 4777 euros a month, that is, as much as Zidan paid FIFA as a fine for his famous head."