Almost everyone who’s been striving for greater equality within sport has, over recent years, been quick to laud the progress of women’s sport.

And those plaudits have been well-deserved; there’s no question women’s sport is developing at an impressive rate in terms of the quality of the performances as well as the level of respect, profile and attention it’s receiving.

Female athletes are no longer, in the main anyway, second-rate citizens and female sport is, by most people, viewed as something worth watching.

That’s a significant shift in comparison to even a decade ago.

Yet there’s one area in which female athletes lag severely behind their male counterparts and that’s when it comes to pay.

This week, the respected American sports news company, Sportico, released its list of highest paid athletes in 2023.

One aspect of the results was truly shocking.

Everyone knows male athletes get paid more in salary and prize money than women, as well as earning more from endorsements.

So it came as little surprise to see Cristiano Ronaldo top of the list with the footballer’s earnings totalling $275 million, $215 million of which is his salary and $60 million is endorsements.

Golfer Jon Rahm is second on the list with total earnings of $203 million and completing the top five are Lionel Messi on $130 million, LeBron James on $125.7 million and Kylian........

© Herald Scotland