Mansions and Millions: Most Extravagant Homes In Sports

When you earn millions year after year, buying a mansion isn’t too challenging, but these athletes took living large to the next level. They did it by designing and building jaw-dropping, mind boggling mansions. These mansions have it all and then some. Fitted with every element to maximize comfort and personal enjoyment, these properties will make whatever you thought your dream house was feel small and insufficient. Let’s step inside and look at how the stars on the field relax off of it.

Michael Jordan

His Airness, Michael Jordan clearly needs a big home to house all of his hardware. With six NBA championship trophies and tons of other personal accolades, Jordan can’t live in your everyday house. Not enough room.

 

And with a net worth of over $1 billion, Jordan is able to purchase virtually anything under the sun, excluding good players and a winning formula for the Charlotte Hornets, the NBA team he owns.

So what did the basketball GOAT outfit his house with? Let’s drive in and find out.

When Jordan (and teammates) needed to bulk up, they’d hit the full-scale gym.

For starters, let’s look at the property’s centerpiece: the full length basketball court emblazoned with Jordan’s signature logo. Nothing like keeping your game sharp than having a full-length court to practice on.

Ok, time to relax. Let’s migrate from the gym to the outdoor pool. But this pool isn’t your ordinary pool found in suburbia. Nope, this infinity pool has a grass island sitting right in the middle of it, a convenient place to lounge and soak up the sun.

Moving out of the pool, one encounters the massive patio that overlooks Jordan’s artificial lake, fully stocked with fish.w

Now for the inside of the house. With nine bedrooms and 19 bedrooms, the mansion can throw a pretty big adult sleepover. But what if they run out of liquor, you ask? Don’t worry, the basement includes a massive wine cellar, and of course, with Jordan being an avid cigar smoker, there’s a comfy cigar lounge.

And this lounge includes more than rare Cubans, it features ornate poker tables where, almost guaranteed, some intense, high-stakes games were held.

Besides the standard features most mansions have, i.e. fancy kitchen, massive television in every room, expensive lighting fixtures, beautiful rooms with sprawling couches, Jordan’s mansion featured doors from the original Playboy Mansion in Chicago.

However, none of the gaudy designs, garish features, or glittering selling points can get this mansion off the market. From an unbiased point of view, the design is ugly. It lacks taste and warmth, and many features are rendered useless during the cold Chicago winters. Its grey appearance and dark accents on most wooden pieces give of a gloomy, depressing vibe, kind of like the franchise he’s in charge of.

Barry Bonds

For Barry Bonds, we’re hitting doubles here, peeking into two mansions the former slugger once called home.

His first mansion, located in Hillsborough, an affluent suburb of San Francisco, was listed on the market for a reasonable $6.6 million. Sitting on only one half acre of land, it’s a wonder Barry had enough room to store all of the steroids he took throughout his playing career.

A modest five bedroom Mediterranean-style mansion, Bonds’ digs included two impressive kitchens, gorgeous exposed-wooden beams to accentuate his high ceilings, and beautiful arched doorways.

It appears that the man who clubbed a (tainted) record 762 home runs had a taste for the finer things in life.

But his former Beverly Hills-area mansion is really spectacular, almost more so than the unimaginable change in head sizes Bonds underwent from his rookie season to his last.

From 2002 through 2014, Bonds lived in another gargantuan Mediterranean-style mansion.

Listed at $33 million, this home elicits idyllic imagery of the rolling hills of Italy.

With a terracotta red-roof, massive archways and balconies, iron gates, and authentic frescos lining the interior walls, one would think they’ve been teleported to Italy when stepping foot on his property.

Sticking with the Italian theme, his home theater is fitted with red-velvet curtains and the house’s floors are comprised of special, imported Italian stone.

Just move to Italy already…oh, and the entire second floor is outfitted with columns and smooth plaster.

To keep the slugger entertained, Bonds has two custom fish tanks in his living room.

He also had a backyard that is big enough to field a baseball team full of his friends from the steroid era.

Keeping up with everyone else’s mansion, Bonds’ seven bedroom and 13 bathroom has a pool table and numerous arcade games.

LeBron James

When you’re a king, you need a castle. When you’re LeBron James, you need two.

Before exploring LeBron’s new L.A. mansion, let’s have a look at his old Miami crib.

While playing for the Miami Heat from 2010-2014, James needed a special place to escape the chaos of South Beach. With that in mind the King purchased a 12,000 square foot property for $9 million.

A waterfront property with stunning views of Biscayne Bay, James’ outdoor area is the property’s showpiece.

An infinity pool that overlooks the harbor and changes colors at night.

It must have been the site of some good partying following James’ two titles in Miami.

Inside the compound, James can stay busy with a luxury movie theater, wine cellar, and fitness facility.

He’s probably not watching replays of J.R. Smith running out the clock in Game 1 of the 2018 Finals.

Purchased for $9 million, James sold the property for $13.4 million when he made his move back to Cleveland.

But if you thought this mansion was impressive, wait until you see his new living quarters in the City of Angels- the second of James’ two Los Angeles-area mansions.

Located in the affluent neighborhood of Brentwood, James’ new pad was purchased for $23 million.

It features all the bells and whistles one would expect the Lakers’ new star to have.

At 15,800 square feet, this mansion is more of a palace, and walking in gives off a royal feel.

Decked out with white marble and lavish wood reclaimed from Europe, this eight bedroom, 11 bathroom palace suits the King well.

For his entertainment, this palace  includes a home theater, pool table, and fitness facility.

For a bit of R and R, James and his guests can head to the in-house spa equipped with a sauna, steam room, and massage room.

Here’s LeBron’s happy place, the space that allows the mid-30-year-old to stay in shape year round.

From the master bedroom, James can take an elevator ride to his rooftop terrace with views overlooking downtown L.A. or the Pacific Ocean, and with his and hers bathrooms and massive walk-in closets, there’s ample room to store all his Nike gear.

And here’s where the James’ can enjoy some good wine and food on the onyx bar.

And when James and his guests want to get a bit rowdy, they can take advantage of the wine cellar and cigar bar (for those of you who don’t know, James loves to sip on some vino).

On the spacious outdoor patio, James can take advantage of a full kitchen, BBQ, and beer taps, or take a dip in the pool to cool off.

Whether James can bring a title to L.A. has  yet to be determined, but, on a real estate level, he’s an undisputed champion.

Shaquille O’Neal

Standing at 7-foot 1-inch and 330-pounds, Shaquille O’Neal is, to say the least, a big man. Naturally, Big Diesel, as he is commonly referred, lived in a massive mansion.

Situated on three acres of prime real estate in the gated community Isleworth, a suburb of Orlando, Florida, Shaq’s 31,000-square-foot gargantuan estate has 12 bedrooms and 15 bathrooms.

Fully adorned with Superman logos, a nod to Shaq’s alter ego and favorite superhero, Shaq purchased the property in 1993 for just under $4 million and is asking for $28 million. So what makes this mega-mansion worth so much?

Let’s start off with Shaq’s 450 square foot bed in his 900 square foot master bedroom. Yes, his bed is 15 feet long and 30 feet wide.

Moving on from the mattress, Shaq, an avid car collector, has a garage capable of holding 17 cars.

With its mirrored walls, the garage has a showroom-like effect.

Migrating to the entertainment side of things, the mansion has 6,000 square foot indoor basketball court,

Shaq can hang out in here and not practice a single free throw.

A man of many tastes and passions, Shaq clearly likes to get down with ancient Egyptian history while looking at his futuristic fish tank.

No wonder they call him the Big Aristotle.

Swimming to the next room, the full home theater, decorated with plenty of Superman insignia, can keep the Big Diesel entertained for hours on end, assuming the fish get boring.

Lastly, there’s a cigar bar and wine cellar.

Going outside, the property has waterfront access to Lake Butler and comes with a 95- foot-long pool that is 15 feet deep. To top it off, there’s a hot tub and artificial waterfall, giving the star center a piece of paradise in his own backyard.

Although Shaq is selling the property as he finds himself spending less and less time in Orlando, the mansion he once called home is as legendary as his time in the NBA.

Tom Brady

GOAT alert. With five Super Bowl rings, Tom Brady solidified himself as the greatest quarterback of all time. The New England quarterback, married to supermodel Gisele Bunchden, lives a lavish life when he’s not slinging the ball on Sundays.

Back in 2014, Brady and his wife sold their exclusive Brentwood mansion to Dr. Dre for $40 million, about four times more than what they purchased it for ($11.75 million). Brady keeps winning, on and off the field.

With the sale, Brady and Gisele decided to custom build a luxury compound in Brookline, Mass.

For the sake of this article, we’ll be covering the Brookline mansion, not his luxury $20 million New York City apartment overlooking the Hudson River or his mansion tucked away in Costa Rica.

Back to Boston. Situated on a modest five acres of land, Brady’s $4.5 million, 14,000-square-foot mansion may be the most modest house on this list. A five bedroom house for Brady, his wife, and kids, the property sits just behind the prestigious Brookline Country Club — America’s oldest country club.

And with that prime location, Brady’s backyard may be the best on this list. Tons of room to train, golf, and hang with the kids makes this yard incredibly versatile.

On the inside, Brady and his wife meticulously decorated the place with tons of bright colors to keep the gray New England weather at bay.

Painted white bricks, light wood, and large windows keep the place cheery at all times.

While the large provide perfect natural light and uninterupted views of the golf course that stretches out just beyond the kitchen.

Brady, one of the NFL’s most unique players in terms of how he cares for his body, has a spa, rehab tub, and personal gym to keep the 41-year-old playing into his mid 40s.

For relaxation, the property has a home theater, wine cellar, library, and kitchen specially designed for his personal chef.

Just like Brady, this property isn’t too flashy but gets the job done and is a winner inside and out.

 Peyton Manning

Omaha! Maybe Peyton Manning’s favorite word to yell, but it’s not where he decided to call home.

The now-retired and future Hall of Fame quarterback scored when purchased a mansion in one of Denver’s most fancy suburbs, Cherry Hills Village.

Purchased for a reasonable $4.5 million, the quarterback’s spacious house sits on 3.5 acres of land, with 16,464 square feet of space, seven bedrooms, and 10 bathrooms.

Manning’s estate can accommodate his whole family, even Eli.

The inside of the house is nicely manicured to reflect Manning’s presumably basic personality

But, fake plant aside, the pool table must make for some intense competition between a family of champions.

And here is where Peyton can sign big contracts, or cancel others like his Papa John’s one.

Seriously, even Nationwide doesn’t have offices this nice.

So, you ask, “What goes well with pizza?” Wine. Fortunately, Peyton has a wine cellar chock-full of quality reds and whites.

These go great with “Omaha!” steaks.

Tiger Woods

When you are one of the world’s greatest golfers, you need a special place to escape the greens and find some peace of mind.

For Tiger Woods, that special place is his $54 million mansion in Jupiter Island, Fla., one of Florida’s most elite communities with a population of around 900 and miles of untouched, pristine beach.

With about 10,000 square feet, this sprawling beachfront property includes all of the amenities the golfer could ever need and imagine.

To keep his golf game sharp, the backyard was transformed into a golf course that includes four putting greens, six different bunkers with multiple types of sand, and the ability to launch balls off his second story balcony.

And you better believe when Woods returns from a hard day’s work that he can relax. He’s got a 100-foot swimming pool and a 60-foot diving well. When Tiger wants to relax on land, he can take advantage of his world-class gym, home theater, personal wine cellar and oxygen therapy room.

Here’s to hoping Tiger’s golf game can once again become as impressive as the property he calls home.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Being one of the highest paid athletes in the world, Cristiano Ronaldo’s $6.2 million mansion in Madrid is, relatively speaking, modest.

From the outside, the elite goal scorer’s pad is fairly subdued, but once you enter the house and check out the backyard, the flair and opulence really has a kick.

Let’s start in the backyard, where Ronaldo’s pool highlights the space.

Out of the pool, there’s a massive lawn where the star can practice his moves (or show of his quads).

When he needs to take it up a notch, he can head indoors to his state-of-the-art gym, equipped with all of the proper machinery and equipment to keep his legs chiseled.

From the inside, Ronaldo is not afraid to flaunt his impressive amount of trophies.

There are dedicated trophy cases in multiple rooms and numerous portraits of the star hung on the walls.

Modesty, as most of you know, is not a word in Ronaldo’s lexicon, and with custom blankets in each room featuring his signature CR7 nickname, it’s no question he has become one of the most obnoxious athletes in sports.

After moving to Juventus, the question remains …

What will Ronaldo do with his Madrid mansion and all of his blankets.

Super car collection? Of course.

CR7 is a documented supercar fanatic, and this pose says it all.

Floyd Mayweather

Does he write his own Instagram posts? Can he read? Not sure about either of those, but what Floyd “Money” Mayweather does have is money, and he has a lot of it.

One of the wealthiest athletes on the planet, Mayweather earned his millions by throwing punches and dodging even more. 

After Floyd defeated Conor McGregor in a hopefully-not-fixed boxing match, the undefeated champion decided to buy a mansion in Beverly Hills, the 90210.

Costing $25 million, the 15,000 square foot palace, as he calls it, has it all.

By now, you get the gist of what comes standard in these mega mansions. Movie theater and gargantuan wine collection in the cellar?

Yep. Huge pool located in a sprawling backyard next to an impressive patio? Why not. Six bedrooms and 10 bathrooms? Standard.

Wine for days.

Additional features include cocktail bars, a kitchen bigger than most apartment units, and copious amounts of spacious rooms with comfortable couches.

A spacious common room where he can lounge after his track meet. Sorry, boxing match.

This place may be the greatest knockout of his career.