One of the most successful women tennis players ever, Maria Yuryevna Sharapova, was born on 19 April 1987, in Nyagan, Russia in the then Soviet Union. She is known for being consistently ranked in the world’s top 10 by the Women’s Tennis Association over the last 15 years, and for winning 40 titles, of which five are grand slams.
So just how rich is Maria Sharapova? Authoritative sources estimate Maria’s net worth to be over $140 million as of early 2017, accumulated from her tournament winnings, and from lucrative sponsorship contracts. As Maria is still relatively young, there is a high chance that her net worth will rise, once she has served her current ban for illegal drug use.
Maria Sharapova Net Worth $140 Million
When she was still very young, Maria started practicing tennis, taught by Yuti Yutikin. Later, her family decided to move to the USA, where Maria was able to attend the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy and also the Rick Macci Tennis Academy. In 2000 Maria won her first tournament, the Eddie Herr International Junior Tennis Championships, and she turned professional the following year, winning her first WTA title in 2003 – the Japan Open – then the Bell Challenge which helped her to be awarded the 2003 WTA Newcomer of the Year trophy.
In 2005 she became the world’s No. 1 and this had a huge impact on the growth of Maria’s net worth through her marketability. In 2007 Sharapova lost several tournaments while experiencing a shoulder injury, which then did not allow her to play for some time, and although she regained form and ranking, she again had shoulder problems, which required surgery in 2009. However, in 2012 Maria again became the world’s No.1, and she was also able to participate in the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, losing to Serena Williams in the final.
Maria’s grand slam wins include two French Opens in 2012 and 2014, Wmbledon in 2004, the US in 2006, and the Australian Open in 2008, and along with other successes, her total prize money won is rapidly approaching $40 million dollars.
During her career, Maria has won many awards too, including ESPY Best Female Tennis Player, Whirpool 6th Sense Player of the Year, WTA Most Fashionable Player, Medal of the Order of Merit to the Fatherland and many others.
However, in addition to her direct winnings as a tennis player, Sharapova has been involved in many commercial endorsements, which elevates her to probably the highest earning female athlete in the world, partly to do with her physical appearance as well. She has worked with such companies as “Motorola”, “Tiffany”, “Land Rover”, “Canon” among many others, all of which have added to her net worth.
Maria is also known for having created her own candy line, called “Sugarpova”. All the money gained from this goes to the Maria Sharapova Foundation.
In her personal life, Maria has dated several celebrities over the years – Adam Levine of Maroon 5, American TV producer Charlie Ebersol from 2008 to 2011, basketballer Sasha Vujacic, and most recently Bulgarian tennis star Grigor Dimitrov, but that’s over too. So Maria remains single, and still bases herself in Bradenton, Florida when not on the tennis circuit, which is in abeyance notionally for two years until April 2017, following her admission of illegal drug use.
