Dhoni outrun Ronaldo-Messi-Bolt in Forbes’ brand value

New York, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni surpassed the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Usain Bolt in brand value according to the most recent list released by Forbes, media reported on Thursday.
According to the reports, Forbes released a list of “Most Valuable Athlete Brand” where Dhoni has been placed at fifth position, ahead of Portugal and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo and Argentine professional footballer Lionel Messi.
Forbes list showed that MSD also outrun Jamaican sprint legend Usain Bolt and Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal.
According to the list, Dhoni is ranked fifth in a list of star athletes with a brand value of USD 20 million in 2014, slightly down from USD 21 million last year.
The list is topped by American basketball player LeBron James with a brand value of USD 37 million in 2014.
The list witnessed the removal of Woods from the No. 1 spot among individual athletes for the first time since 2007.
On Dhoni, Forbes said that Team India captain signed bat sponsorship deals with Spartan Sports and Amity University in late 2013, reportedly worth a combined USD 4 million annually, up from the USD 1 million Reebok was paying previously.
It is worthy to mention that MSD is the only Indian who features in the list.
American golfer Tiger Woods is ranked second and has a 2014 brand value of USD 36 million.
On the third spot is Federer, whose brand value in 2014 is USD 32 million.
The list also includes Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt (6), Portugal and Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo (7), Argentine professional footballer Lionel Messi (9) and Nadal on the 10th position.
Rounding out the top 10, according to Forbes, are: 1) LeBron James; 2) Tiger Woods; 3) Roger Federer; 4) Phil Mickelson; 5) Mahendra Singh Dhoni; 6) Usain Bolt; 7) Cristiano Ronaldo; 8) Kobe Bryant; 9) Lionel Messi; and 10) Rafael Nadal.
The list is part of Forbes Fab 40, which consists of the 10 most valuable sports brands in businesses, events, teams and athletes and quantifies the earning power of each brand relative to its competitors.
Professional baseball team New York Yankees is the most valuable team brand in sports, worth USD 521 million.
The top event brand is the Super Bowl, which last season generated an estimated USD 518 million in revenue from broadcasting, tickets, the halftime show, concessions and licensing.