Nine Monuments, four Grand Tours, closing in on 100 professional victories, Tadej Pogačar is so dominant and complete that his annual UAE Team Emirates-XRG salary of €8.2m is more than what seven WorldTour teams spent on their entire 30-man teams in 2024.

In compiling cycling’s 2025 rich list, Cyclingnews has been able to ascertain that Pogačar’s base salary is more than €3m more than the next set of wealthiest riders – and that’s excluding win bonuses, private sponsorship agreements and additional fees.

We have spoken with several insiders in the sport who have divulged information on contract details which are usually kept confidential, and we’re able to reveal the current top-10 highest earners, as well as a select few other standout names.

The total combined revenues of the 35 professional men’s cycling teams in 2025 exceeds €730m, with an estimated 45% – €330m – spent on rider salaries. The typical salary for a WorldTour professional is around €250,000, but there are believed to be more than 60 riders on €1m contracts, with roughly half earning at least €2m. “Salaries for the top guys haven’t exactly doubled, but have gone up significantly in the past few years,” one agent said.

All of the estimated amounts listed below – derived from multiple conversations with in-the-know people – only refer to a rider’s base salary, and do not take into account additional payment from sponsorships and appearances fees.

This article was published on Cyclingnews in April 2025. To read the full article click here.