Maria Sharapova — The $325M Marketing Machine

Sharapova won Wimbledon at 17 and earned $38 million in endorsements that year — more than any female athlete in history at the time. Nike, Tag Heuer, Porsche, Tiffany, and Evian all signed her. Her beauty and 6'2" frame made her the most photographed tennis player since Chris Evert. She then founded Sugarpova (a candy company) and invested in real estate and tech startups. Career earnings topped $325 million — with less than $40 million from prize money. The meldonium doping scandal in 2016 cost her a two-year ban but barely dented her brand. Beauty and business survived what tennis couldn't.