As the world's top sports stars wait for the action to resume, here's what the top 20 earned last year - in pictures

The biggest earners over the last 12 months - and we can't wait to see them perform again

#20 James Harden. The Houston Rockets basketball star had earnings of $47.7m last year, according to Forbes.

#19 Phil Mickelson. The left-handed American golfer had earnings of $48.4m. Of that sum, $12.4m was in prize money, and $36m in endorsements.

=#17 Mike Trout. The Los Angeles Angels baseball player earned $50.6m.

=#17 Novak Djokovic. The tennis superstar earned $50.6m.

#16 Russell Westbrook. The Houston Rockets star had earnings of $53.7m.

=#13 Lewis Hamilton, the Formula One world champion has earnings of $55m.

=#13 Khalil Mack. Outside lineback for the Chicago Bears, $55m.

=#13 Anthony Joshua. The British boxer earned $55m.

#12 Ben Roethlisberger, The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback had earnings of $55.5m.

#11 Tiger Woods. The American golfer had earnings of $63.9m. Of that $9.9m was in prize money, and £54m in endorsements.

#10 Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets star. $65.4m.

#9 Stephen Curry, of the Golden State Warriors, $79.8m.

#8 LeBron James. The Los Angeles Lakers basketball star earned $89m.

#7 Aaron Rodgers, quarterback for Green Bay Packers, had earnings of $89.3m.

#6 Russell Wilson. The Seattle Seahawks quarterback had an income of $89.5m.

#5 Roger Federer. The Swiss tennis legend had an income of $93.4m. Only $7.4m was in prize money, and the remaining $86m in endorsements.

#4 Canelo Alvarez. The Mexican boxer, a four-division world champion, brought in $94m.

#3 Neymar. The PSG star earned $105m.

#2 Cristiano Ronaldo. Juventus and Portugal, earnings of $109m.

#1 Lionel Messi. The Barcelona star topped the money rankings for last year according to Forbes, with earnings of $127 million, of which $92m was salary and a further $35m in endorsements.

With coronavirus wreaking havoc on events around the world, sports stars have been frustrated, along with millions of fans.

The action might have come to a standstill, leaving them kicking their heels, doing their best to keep fit, and waiting for the crisis to pass so they can get back to what they do best.

Sport is all about achievement, the glory of winning and getting the better of opponents whether as an individual or as part of a team.

But there is no denying the best performers get well rewarded for their efforts.

Many have donated to the coronavirus cause - Lionel Messi, Roger Federer, Cristiano Ronaldo - to name a few, from their vast funds.

These are the 20 best paid sports people in the planet, and Forbes compiled a list of their earnings in prize money and endorsements over 2019.

To see who earned the most, in reverse order, swipe the pictures.

The Forbes listings show just how much the top twenty athletes in the world earned last year. Here they are in reverse order. To see the next picture, just swipe.