Erling Haaland has been ranked the most marketable footballer on the planet, overtaking Cristiano Ronaldo, according to SportsPro's annual list of the 50 most marketable athletes in the world.
The sports business media company assessed 1,202 athletes across 70 sports using data collected between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026. Athletes were scored out of 100 points across three categories: brand equity (45 points), momentum (40 points) and commercial trajectory (15 points). Tennis player Aryna Sabalenka topped the overall list, ahead of skier Eileen Gu, basketball star Giannis Antetokounmpo, Haaland in fourth and tennis player Carlos Alcaraz in fifth. Haaland is the only footballer to break into the top 10 of the overall rankings.
Driven by YouTube and viral moments
Michael Long, SportsPro's head of commercial content, pointed to the success of Haaland's YouTube channel, launched in October 2025, which has amassed 4.6 million subscribers and close to 250 million views. "We're seeing YouTube become an increasingly important platform for sports content consumption in general, but particularly for athletes who are looking to build their media profiles and control their own narrative," Long told GOAL. "Haaland's personal channel gives him an outlet to develop his own voice and build direct relationships with his fanbase, while his day-in-the-life output is consistently strong and drives significant viewership and engagement."
Haaland's reach was highlighted again when a seven-minute vlog of him shaving off his long hair was viewed around 10 million times, featuring appearances from Noel Gallagher, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Jack Grealish and Pep Guardiola. He has also collaborated with YouTube creators KSI and the Sidemen.
A breakout World Cup
Haaland's global profile grew further during Norway's run to the quarter-finals at their first World Cup in 28 years. He scored seven goals in five appearances, including a brace in a last-16 win over Brazil, and gained 32 million new Instagram followers during the tournament, more than any other player.
Speaking to Norwegian outlet VG at the time, Haaland described the experience as life-changing: "It has been the coolest weeks and the journey I have had in my entire life. It has been completely surreal, it is difficult to take it in now. You get a bit empty. If I think quickly through these 40 days, it has been completely insane." ABC called him "a global soccer sensation on and off the pitch" who had "transcended the tournament with his unique personality," while NBC dubbed him "the MVP of the small screen."
"Off the field, this was the year Haaland went truly global," Long said, "largely thanks to the World Cup, where he performed incredibly well under pressure, affirmed his status as a top striker, and ingratiated himself to a relatively new and untapped market in North America."
Brand deals and a looming threat
Haaland's commercial portfolio includes deals with Nike, Beats by Dre, Breitling and Budweiser, for whom he appeared in advertising during the World Cup. Long explained the reasoning behind his high ranking: "Haaland is at the forefront of the world's most popular sport and its leading competitions, which naturally makes him highly visible throughout the year. His record-breaking exploits for club and country continue to fuel his popularity, while his unique personality, sense of humour and relatability have captured the imagination within and outside of football. He continues to use social media to great effect and, backed by a talented team that manages his accounts, he is a clear standout among athletes when it comes to the content he puts out on a regular basis."
One potential threat to Haaland's standing is Manchester City's situation after being found guilty of 114 breaches of the Premier League's financial rules, with the timing of a final judgement still unclear as the club continues to contest the verdict.
Where other stars ranked
Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior placed 19th and 20th respectively, Barcelona's Lamine Yamal was 23rd, Neymar was 24th and Lionel Messi was 27th. Arsenal's Alessia Russo (29th) and Alexia Putellas (47th) were the only women's footballers in the top 50.
Ronaldo, who topped the footballer rankings a year ago and sat fifth overall in 2025, dropped to 14th in 2026. Long attributed much of the fall to changes in the ranking model rather than diminished popularity: "There's a case to say Ronaldo's marketability is on the wane as he enters the twilight of his career following his move to Saudi Arabia, but his drop in our rankings isn't necessarily down to diminishing marketability. The key reason for his fall is primarily due to the evolved assessment model we used to determine the rankings, so direct year-on-year comparisons are a tad misleading. This year, the model prioritises momentum and commercial trajectory over accumulated brand equity, which means many established stars and older athletes with more limited career runways ahead of them have fallen compared to 2025, including Ronaldo."
Long drew a direct comparison between the two players: "Haaland is a star on the rise with considerable commercial momentum, whereas Ronaldo is a global icon with established equity, a hugely commercialised personal brand and an extensive partnership portfolio - and therefore more limited room for growth in future. Our assessment model puts Haaland ahead of Ronaldo in the rankings, but it really depends on how you define 'marketability' and which elements you deem to be most important for driving an individual's commercial value. Haaland is the man of the moment right now, whereas Ronaldo's overall marketability is quite possibly unmatched when you consider his entire career."
Potential challengers
Long suggested Yamal, still just 19, has room to climb if he builds his personal brand further: "Continued success and great individual performances on the field will undoubtedly help, but he'll also need to continue posting and engaging with his growing audience on social. If he can convert the heightened attention he's seeing into a large and engaged personal following, his marketability will continue to rise - and brand partnerships and other monetisation opportunities will surely follow."
On Mbappe and Vinicius, Long said both remain highly marketable despite finishing outside the top 10: "Mbappe has appeared in the list every year since 2018 and made the top 10 four times. Vinicius has appeared twice and ranked second in 2024. Being ranked inside the top 20 out of all athletes globally indicates that both players remain hugely marketable when compared to the hundreds of athletes we assessed this year."
