What scandal? Tiger Woods still worth $82 million a year
Tiger Woods need not pawn his yacht just yet.
For all the talk about how the extracurricular activities of the world's No. 1 golfer would squash his endorsement earnings, it seems he's still the Sultan of Spokesmen, with a brand value of a whopping $82 million. That's according to Forbes, which announced today that Woods sits atop its ranking of the world's top sports brands (in the athlete category).
Even though Woods isn't likely to see a repeat of the $105 million he earned from sponsors last year anytime soon, his remaining deals, including those with Nike, Electronic Arts and Procter & Gamble's Gillette, will still earn enough to keep him the world's highest-paid athlete in 2010, even if he does not hit a single golf ball all year. Woods' 2009 endorsement total, on which this list is based, was more than the next three highest-earning athlete spokesmen combined.
Phil Mickelson also cracked the ranking's top 10, finishing tied for seventh with tennis titan Maria Sharapova.
