Highest-earning athletes on Instagram unveiled

Cristiano Ronaldo has led the way on Instagram during these uncertain times. Attain recently researched which athletes earned the most money during the lockdown period of March 12 to May 14. Report informs citing the Daily Mail.

They have estimated just how much money athletes have amassed by calculating the average earning of every sponsored post.

With the research also estimating every follower to be worth £0.00313, Instagram can become a serious earner for celebrities worldwide - with one million followers allowing them to command an estimated £3,130 for a sponsored collaboration. However, that calculation is not a strict formula.

Barcelona rival Lionel Messi sits firmly behind in second, earning roughly £1.3m overall from his four sponsored posts.

Former Barcelona team-mate Neymar is third in the charts, earning an estimated £1.2m.

Three other footballers, past or present, also make the top 10 - they include former England and Manchester United star David Beckham (£405,000), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (£184,000) and Dani Alves (£134,000).

Former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal (£584,000) lies fourth in the Instagram charts. At the same time, India's cricket superstar Virat Kohli (£379,000), Dwyane Wade (£143m), and Britain's world heavyweight champion boxer Anthony Joshua (£122m) make up the rest of the top 10.