Top Of The Rich List
Monday, April 4, 2005

England football captain David Beckham has enhanced his position as Great Britain's richest young sportsman despite his low productivity with Real Madrid.

Beckham, 29, has yet to win a medal since moving to the Bernabeu two years ago yet increased his wealth and overall advantage over fellow sportsmen aged 30 or under in the Sunday Times` Rich List 2005.

In fact, Beckham, whose bounty includes some earnings by wife Victoria, is the only sports personality to feature in the overall list of Britain`s 1,000 most wealthy individuals.

Their $ 140 million fortune places them equal 654th on the main list, thanks to the former Manchester United midfielder`s $ 9 million-a-year wages in Spain and $ 28 million-a-year-plus endorsements from companies like Gillette, Vodafone and adidas.

Madrid team-mate Michael Owen is the next rung down on the sporting ladder with $ 56 million, an increase of $ 9 million in a year, which represents half of Beckham`s increase.

However, the 25-year-old has edged ahead of former Liverpool team-mate Robbie Fowler, whose investment in property is credited for much of his income.

Foreign stars Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira, Arsenal`s Frenchmen, and Dutch duo Ruud van Nistelrooy and Patrick Kluivert, of Manchester United and Newcastle respectively, make the top dozen.

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