You’d think that Shohei Ohtani—the global face of baseball, a one-man dynasty adored by fans from Japan to the U.S. alike—would be the undisputed “king” of the sport, paid the most by both his team and through sponsorships. But while that might have been true last season, this year the jungle seems to have a new ruler—Juan Soto.

In a jaw-dropping deal in December, the Mets signed Soto to a 15-year, $765 million contract — the largest in sports history. Yes, this deal even surpasses Ohtani’s record-breaking contract last year. For this season alone, Soto will take $61.88 million, making him the highest-paid player in baseball. And here is the kicker—no deferred money.

Plus, add in a $75 million signing bonus and an opt-out after five years, and this is a financial power move. Hector Gomez, in fact, highlighted one crucial bit of the sponsorships, which takes the total earnings to another level. “With 7 million dollars earned in sponsorships and 122 million in salary, Juan Soto leads the highest-paid in MLB 2025, according to Sportico.”

You can’t really forget the sponsorships, as Hector Gomez highlighted.

Juan Soto is backed by brands like Under Armour, Cerveza Presidente, Banreservas, New Era, Celsius, and Topps, so Hector Gomez’s stance is understandable. So, his rise isn’t just about numbers—it’s about global dominance too. Meanwhile, no doubt, Ohtani, when it comes to popularity, is unmatched in Japan. From the Narita Airport to the busiest streets, his face is there on every billboard. He has won both best pitcher and best hitter awards–something not seen since Babe Ruth. Now he even has back-to-back world titles!

But the kicker is that despite his fame, Ohtani’s $700 million is deferred, and he just earns $2 million annually in real-time salary. His present time value is down $28 million, and this makes him just the 18th highest-paid player of the year. But even he is not far off from the commercial empire and has deals with over 20 global brands, like Hugo Boss or Porsche.

But the message is clear on the wall now: it’s Soto’s world now — and everyone else, even Ohtani, is playing catch-up. Maybe even New Balance, actually!

New Balance misses a key moment at the Shohei Ohtani World Series

It took just five days for the dust to settle and the confetti to clear after one of the most thrilling World Series games in years. The Dodgers outlasted the Jays in a seven-game classic, and it pulled in an average of 15.71 million viewers, the best since 2017. But one major player dropped the ball—New Balance.

Even after having Shohei Ohtani, the most marketable athlete on planet earth, the Boston-based brand failed to make the most of the moment. Sure, the “We Got Now” commercial did go everywhere, but for a WS featuring the face of their brand, the New Balance presence feels kind of flat.

There were no pop-up activations in Los Angeles, no special-edition drops, and worst of all, no new Ohtani cleat colorways to tell the story through the games. Even worse, while Nike, the Jordan brand, and Under Armour all flooded socials with high-energy content, New Balance posted just two simple photos of Ohtani, one during and one after the series.

Shockingly, this is the same brand that nailed Coco Gauff’s U.S. Open campaign earlier this year with awesome visuals and creative storytelling. This time, though, it seems like they played it safe.