Eighth highest paid athlete in the world in 2021, according to Forbes magazine, the Brit would earn 62 million dollars just for his sports activities, with a fixed salary of 55 million.
According to the specialized site RaceFans, his salary, negotiated in the middle of the pandemic, would be more around 30 million by 2021, against 40 million before. It would add about $ 12 million in advertising contracts, according to Forbes.
Hamilton’s fortune, in Formula 1 since 2007, is estimated at about $ 339 million, making the driver Mercedes the richest sportsman in UK history, according to the Sunday Times.
Rivaled on the track by Max Verstappen (Red Bull), Hamilton is still the best paid ahead of the 24-year-old Dutchman (estimated contract at $ 25 million, plus 17 million bonuses).
In addition to the sponsors linked to his team (Petronas, Ineos, IWC, Epson …), Hamilton lent his image to the sound brand Bose, L’Oréal, Sony, Vodafone or Puma.
He has co-designed two models for the MV Agusta motorcycle brand, he has created an energy drink for Monster Energy and collections for Tommy Hilfiger and Police.
To run his business, he has his own company, “Project Forty Four” (Projet 44, his career number).
“He’s a great showman, which is ideal for Formula 1. All the sponsors love that.”, explained the former French driver Jean Alesi in 2017, in his first foray into the Top 10 Forbes of highest paid athletes.
He is the “only driver to exceed the framework of his sport” since Michael Schumacher, Hervé Bodinier, former Deputy Managing Director of Lagardère Plus, a consulting agency aimed at brands, completed at the time.
Friend or acquaintance of many celebrities, a regular at fashion shows and show-biz evenings, he likes to make forays into the world of blockbusters (“Cars”, “Zoolander 2″) and video games (” Call of Duty “).
“He has the qualities of the pilot, an attractive personality and uses all the modern means of communication”, summarized Bodinier. “That is what makes its strength as a brand: for the passionate, it is their performances, and for the uninitiated, it is one of the few athletes who are cited throughout the world,” he added.
Very popular on social media, Hamilton has 25.6 million followers on Instagram, 6.8 million on Twitter or 5.9 on Facebook (against 6.5, 2.2 and 2 for Verstappen).
Ennobled at the end of 2020, Sir Lewis now uses this audience to communicate societal issues (ecology, animal cause, veganism, racism and diversity).
“His views on the environment, on gender, ethnic issues, are very 2021,” estimates Simon Chadwick, sports industry expert for EM Lyon Business School. “Hamilton, it’s Mister 2021.”
When the pilot, who will turn 37 in January, is not necessarily seen to continue beyond the age of 40, Chadwick also estimates that he is preparing the future: “I do not think that his positions on social causes are entirely anodyne”.
“He is well advised, he adopts strategic positions on aspects that interest consumers of the younger generations,” he continues. “He is in transition towards a kind of social ‘influencer’, of social entrepreneur.”
But, above all because of these positions that can divide or provoke irony from a pilot, such as those referring to ecology, “Hamilton does not receive unanimous support”, estimates the expert.
Compared to a flatter personality like tennis player Roger Federer, Chadwick believes Hamilton “could have been even more commercially successful.”
In the Forbes rankings, he is just behind Federer, seventh despite injuries, but still far behind mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor or footballers Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, with income of 180, 130 and 120 million. of dollars.
Source From: Ambito
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