• Loading stock data...
Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Ronaldo, Brady Among Athletes Riding MrBeast’s YouTube Success

Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, has 334 million YouTube subscribers—and some of the world’s best athletes were featured in his latest video.

Oct 22, 2023; Tampa, Florida, USA; YouTuber Jimmy Donaldson MrBeast takes photos with fans before a game between the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Some of the world’s top athletes are looking to Jimmy Donaldson, known online as MrBeast, to build their social media presence, particularly on YouTube.

Donaldson—who has more than 334 million YouTube subscribers, the most on the platform—posted a video on Saturday titled “Beat Ronaldo, Win $1,000,000” featuring top sports stars across several sports: Cristiano Ronaldo, Tom Brady, Noah Lyles, Bryce Harper, and Bryson DeChambeau. The video has amassed more than 75 million views as of 2 p.m. ET on Dec. 2.

The YouTuber pitted the star athletes in exhibition competitions with non-professionals for a $100,000 prize. The prize would go to a charity if the professionals won. The non-pros, who ranged from a high school football player to TikTok star Eric Justice Befumo, known as Big Justice, were given an advantage to even the playing field. 

But as seen from the title, Ronaldo was the main attraction, and Donaldson called him “the most popular person I’ve ever had in a video.” The soccer superstar donned the jersey of Al Nassr FC, but lost a $1 million shootout to a fan named Khalid at Al-Awwal Park in Saudi Arabia. 

The 39-year-old soccer legend, who is the most-followed person on Instagram, launched his YouTube account in August and has already amassed 70 million subscribers. He posted a video with Donaldson on his account on Nov. 21 that broke 50 million views and is his second-most-watched video. He posted another video with Donaldson on Nov. 30 that showed the two facing off in a soccer exhibition and is his fifth-most-watched video with more than 21.5 million views.

Of the athletes featured in Donaldson’s video, DeChambeau has the largest YouTube following with more than 1.63 million subscribers. Lyles and Brady each have more than 200,000, while Harper does not have a personal channel. Lyles also featured MrBeast and IShowSpeed, another popular streamer, on one of his most viewed videos, while DeChambeau’s latest video was with Brady.

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Jul 1, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the third inning at PNC Park.

MLB ASG Missing Many Highly Paid Stars, Clearing Path for Youth

Many of MLB’s top earners are not part of the Midsummer Classic.
Jun 27, 2025; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks first overall pick Cooper Flagg speaks to the media during a press conference at the Dallas Mavericks Practice Facility.

Cooper Flagg–Bronny James Summer League Tickets Average $201

The average purchase price on resale platform TickPick is $201.
A helmt is seen during the Texas Tech football team's spring game, Saturday, April 19, 2025, at Jones AT&T Stadium.

CFB’s Revenue-Sharing Era Muddles Future of NIL, Adds PE Questions

Athletic departments can pay college athletes a combined $20.5 million this year.
Jul 3, 2022; London, United Kingdom; Jannik Sinner (ITA) returns a shot during his match against Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) on day seven at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club.

Wimbledon’s Expansion Battle Looms Over Star-Studded Quarterfinals

The expansion’s loudest opposition is Save Wimbledon Park.

Featured Today

American Celebs Want to Be Sports Owners. Soccer Is Where They Start

As U.S. team prices climb, investors set their sights abroad.
July 5, 2025

Baseball’s Celebrity Row: Behind MLB’s First-Pitch Ritual

Often planned, sometimes spontaneous, the ritual throw is baseball’s celebrity row.
July 4, 2025

3,000 Hot Dogs, $20K in Prizes: Behind the Nathan’s Eating Contest

Nathan’s serves up thousands of hot dogs and $20,000 in prize money.
July 3, 2025

Geoffrey Esper Can’t Catch a Break at Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest

“Hot dogs is not one of my favorite competitions of the year.”
Paige Bueckers
exclusive

Women’s March Madness Expansion Wouldn’t Yield More ESPN Money

ESPN is not required to pay extra if women’s March Madness expands.
Jul 6, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Mexico forward Marcel Ruiz (14) heads the ball in front of United States midfielder Brenden Aaronson (11) in the second half during the 2025 Gold Cup Final at NRG Stadium.
July 7, 2025

USMNT Struggles Still Produce Big Gold Cup Ratings for Fox

The U.S. team’s recent issues culminated in a loss to Mexico.
Feb 7, 2025; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; UConn Huskies center Tarris Reed Jr. (5) reacts after his basket against the St. John's Red Storm in the first half at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion.
July 8, 2025

After Decade Apart, ESPN and Big East Rekindle Media Rights Relationship

After a decade-plus apart, the network will stream hundreds of conference events.
Sponsored

Game On: Portfolio Players Stories, Brought to You by E*TRADE from Morgan Stanley

Dealmaker Jeffrey Kaplan maps the evolution of sports as an asset class
July 2, 2025

Paramount Settles Trump Suit Ahead of NFL Season, Skydance Merger

The deal likely allows the much larger Skydance merger deal to proceed.
Leo Messi
June 27, 2025

TNT, Club World Cup Ride Messi to Surprisingly Solid Debut Ratings

TNT Sports carries about a third of matches in the U.S.
June 24, 2025

Fever vs. Aces Draws 5th-Largest TV Audience of 2025 WNBA Season

ESPN will carry seven more Indiana Fever games this year.
June 23, 2025

NBA Finals Game 7 Is Most-Watched Since 2019, but Series Drops 9%

Game 7 drew 16.35 million viewers, the most-watched NBA game since 2019.