Forbes ranking of top athletes
After a three-year break, Forbes magazine has once once more compiled its ranking of the “most valuable” Hungarian athletes in the run-up to the Olympic Games in Paris.
According to Forbes, the list is intended to show which active Hungarian athletes with international successes are best able to build a brand and generate additional income as of September 2021. The ranking reflects both the athletes’ ability to earn money and their sporting achievements.
Footballers dominate the top 25
Footballers are well represented in this year’s list – ten of the country’s 25 most successful sportsmen and women come from the “king” discipline. Football is still the sport with the greatest audience response, and the national team in particular has made considerable progress in recent years. Three consecutive qualifications for European Championships, a run of 14 games without defeat in the reporting period and an impressive 4-0 win once morest England in an away match underline their performance. Direct qualification for this year’s European Championship finals created a special unity between the team, professionals and fans.
Olympic champions in the top positions
But there are also several Olympic champions among the top-ranked. The three-time gold medalist in fencing, Áron Szilágyi, has made a big jump from the last ranking in 2021 to second place. According to Forbes, his example shows what conscious, long-term and professional brand building can achieve. Although fencing is not one of the most financially lucrative sports, Szilágyi is in great demand among sponsors due to his professional handling of his popularity.
Olympic swimming champion, multiple world champion and world record holder Kristóf Milák also made it into the top ten, but fell from third to sixth place. It is also noticeable that for the first time there are no kayak canoe athletes and no handball players on the list. In total there are only four women in the top 25, including the exceptional swimmer of past years, the “Iron Lady” Katinka Hosszú.
Die Top 10
The top 10 most successful Hungarian athletes are led by Dominik Szoboszlai, captain of the national football team and professional at Liverpool FC. Behind him are fencer Áron Szilágyi and football goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi (RB Leipzig) in second and third place. Swimmer Katinka Hosszú is in fourth place, footballer András Schäfer (Union Berlin) in fifth place. Swimmer Kristóf Milák is in sixth place, followed by three other footballers: Roland Sallai, Attila Szalai and Willi Orbán in seventh to nineth place. The top 10 is completed by cyclist Attila Valter.
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