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List of sports figures considered the greatest

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In sports, spectators including sports fandom and sportswriters, as well as participants themselves have discussed players, coaches, teams, and related personalities in regards to being the greatest in their field, or sometimes across sports. These discussions on the greatest of all-time—often referred to by the acronym "GOAT"—are often held in sports culture, but widespread consensus on a sport's "GOAT" is uncommon.

Team sports in particular have GOAT discussions compartmentalized by position.

List of sports players considered the greatest

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General

[edit]
Simone Biles
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
All sports Simone Biles [note 1]
Kelly Slater [note 2]
All team sports Wayne Gretzky [note 3]
20th century, female athlete Babe Didrikson Zaharias [note 4]
20th century, individual male athlete Jack Nicklaus [note 5]
20th century, North America Michael Jordan [note 6]
21st century Michael Phelps [note 7]
Olympic Games Michael Phelps [note 8]
Valentina Vezzali [note 9]
Paralympic Games Sarah Storey [note 10]

Athletics and racing sports

[edit]
Ayrton Senna
Michael Phelps
Katie Ledecky
Carl Lewis
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Formula One Ayrton Senna [note 11]
Michael Schumacher [note 12]
Lewis Hamilton [note 13]
Horse racing (Jockeys, flat racing) John Francome [note 14]
Bill Shoemaker [note 15]
Horse racing (Thoroughbreds, flat racing) Armed [note 16]
Citation [note 17]
Man o' War [note 18]
Phar Lap [note 19]
Secretariat [note 20]
Swaps [note 21]
Road running (men's): Marathon Eliud Kipchoge [note 22]
Swimming (in general and men's) Michael Phelps [note 23]
Swimming (women's) Katie Ledecky [note 24]
Track and field (men's): Overall Carl Lewis [note 25]
Track and field (men's): Sprinting Usain Bolt [note 26]

Ball and hockey sports

[edit]
Lionel Messi
Pelé
Shohei Ohtani
Luciana Aymar
Serena Williams
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
American football Tom Brady [note 27]
Jim Brown [note 28]
Jerry Rice [note 29]
Association football (men's) Lionel Messi [note 30]
Pelé [note 31]
Cristiano Ronaldo [note 32]
Association football (women's) Marta [note 33]
Australian rules football Gary Ablett Sr. [note 34]
Baseball Willie Mays [note 35]
Shohei Ohtani [note 36]
Babe Ruth [note 37]
Basketball (men's) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [note 38]
LeBron James [note 39]
Magic Johnson [note 40]
Michael Jordan [note 41]
Basketball (women's) Diana Taurasi [note 42]
Canadian football Doug Flutie [note 43]
Cricket (men's, any form) Sir Donald Bradman [note 44]
Sachin Tendulkar [note 45]
Cricket (men's, ODI) Sachin Tendulkar [note 46]
Golf Tiger Woods [note 47]
Field hockey (in general and men's) Dhyan Chand [note 48]
Field hockey (women's) Luciana Aymar [note 49]
Futsal Falcão [note 50]
Ice hockey Wayne Gretzky [note 51]
Gordie Howe [note 52]
Lacrosse (men's) Gary Gait [note 53]
John Tavares [note 54]
Rugby league Cameron Smith [note 55]
Rugby union Gareth Edwards [note 56]
Jonah Lomu [note 57]
Richie McCaw [note 58]
Softball Lisa Fernandez [note 59]
Table tennis Ma Long [note 60]
Tennis (men's) Bjorn Borg [note 61]
Don Budge [note 62]
Jimmy Connors [note 63]
Novak Djokovic [note 64]
Laurence Doherty [note 65]
Roy Emerson [note 66]
Jack Kramer [note 67]
René Lacoste [note 68]
William Larned [note 69]
Rod Laver [note 70]
John McEnroe [note 71]
Rafael Nadal [note 72]
Roger Federer [note 73]
Fred Perry [note 74]
Ken Rosewall [note 75]
Pete Sampras [note 76]
Bill Tilden [note 77]
Ellsworth Vines [note 78]
Tennis (women's) Maureen Connolly [note 79]
Margaret Court [note 80]
Chris Evert [note 81]
Althea Gibson [note 82]
Steffi Graf [note 83]
Billie Jean King [note 84]
Suzanne Lenglen [note 85]
Alice Marble [note 86]
Helen Wills Moody [note 87]
Martina Navratilova [note 88]
Monica Seles [note 89]
Serena Williams [note 90]
Volleyball (men's): Beach and indoor variants Karch Kiraly [note 91]

Combat sports

[edit]
Teddy Riner
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Boxing Muhammad Ali [note 92]
Floyd Mayweather [note 93]
Sugar Ray Robinson [note 94]
Fencing Edoardo Mangiarotti [note 95]
Judo Teddy Riner [note 96]
MMA Jon Jones [note 97]
Anderson Silva [note 98]
Sumo Hakuhō Shō [note 99]

Esports

[edit]
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
League of Legends Faker [note 100]

Extreme and adventure sports

[edit]
Mikaela Shiffrin
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Skateboarding Tony Hawk [note 101]
Skiing (women's) Mikaela Shiffrin [note 102]
Snowboarding Terje Håkonsen [note 103]
Shaun White [note 104]
Surfing Kelly Slater [note 105]

Parasports

[edit]
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Goalball Sevda Altunoluk [note 106]
Para cross-country skiing Brian McKeever [note 107]
Wheelchair basketball Patrick Anderson [note 108]

Precision sports

[edit]
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Archery (women's) Sara López [note 109]
Darts Phil Taylor [note 110]
Golf Tiger Woods [note 111]

Other individual sports

[edit]
Magnus Carlsen
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Player Sources
Chess Magnus Carlsen [note 112]
Competitive eating (men's) Joey Chestnut [note 113]
Competitive eating (women's) Miki Sudo [note 114]
Gymnastics (men's) Kohei Uchimura [note 115]
Gymnastics (women's) Simone Biles [note 116]

List of team sports athletes considered the greatest by position

[edit]

American football

[edit]
Tom Brady
Rob Gronkowski
Charles Woodson
Ed Reed
Adam Vinatieri
Devin Hester
List of athletes considered the greatest
Position Player Sources
Offense
Center Chuck Bednarik [note 117]
Dermontti Dawson [note 118]
Mel Hein [note 119]
Jim Otto [note 120]
Dwight Stephenson [note 121]
Mike Webster [note 122]
Guard Larry Allen [note 123]
Alan Faneca [note 124]
John Hannah [note 125]
Steve Hutchinson [note 126]
Jerry Kramer [note 127]
Bruce Matthews [note 128]
Randall McDaniel [note 129]
Jim Parker [note 130]
Gene Upshaw [note 131]
Offensive tackle Forrest Gregg [note 132]
Walter Jones [note 133]
Anthony Muñoz [note 134]
Jonathan Ogden [note 135]
Orlando Pace [note 136]
Willie Roaf [note 137]
Jackie Slater [note 138]
Joe Thomas [note 139]
Gary Zimmerman [note 140]
Quarterback Tom Brady [note 141]
Patrick Mahomes [note 142]
Peyton Manning [note 143]
Joe Montana [note 144]
Running back Jim Brown [note 145]
Eric Dickerson [note 146]
Marshall Faulk [note 147]
Walter Payton [note 148]
Barry Sanders [note 149]
Emmitt Smith [note 150]
LaDainian Tomlinson [note 151]
Tight end Mike Ditka [note 152]
Antonio Gates [note 153]
Rob Gronkowski [note 154]
Tony Gonzalez [note 155]
Ozzie Newsome [note 156]
Shannon Sharpe [note 157]
Kellen Winslow [note 158]
Wide receiver Don Hutson [note 159]
Randy Moss [note 160]
Jerry Rice [note 161]
Defense
Cornerback Champ Bailey [note 162]
Mel Blount [note 163]
Mike Haynes [note 164]
Night Train Lane [note 165]
Darrelle Revis [note 166]
Deion Sanders [note 167]
Charles Woodson [note 168]
Rod Woodson [note 169]
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald [note 170]
Joe Greene [note 171]
Deacon Jones [note 172]
Alan Page [note 173]
John Randle [note 174]
Warren Sapp [note 175]
Edge rusher Bruce Smith [note 176]
Lawrence Taylor [note 177]
J. J. Watt [note 178]
Reggie White [note 179]
Linebacker Chuck Bednarik [note 180]
Derrick Brooks [note 181]
Dick Butkus [note 182]
Bill George [note 183]
Ted Hendricks [note 184]
Jack Lambert [note 185]
Ray Lewis [note 186]
Ray Nitschke [note 187]
Junior Seau [note 188]
Mike Singletary [note 189]
Safety Brian Dawkins [note 190]
Paul Krause [note 191]
Ronnie Lott [note 192]
Troy Polamalu [note 193]
Ed Reed [note 194]
Special teams
Gunner Matthew Slater [note 195]
Steve Tasker [note 196]
Kicker Justin Tucker [note 197]
Adam Vinatieri [note 198]
Punter Ray Guy [note 199]
Return specialist
(Kick or punt returner)
Devin Hester [note 200]
Desmond Howard [note 201]
Brian Mitchell [note 202]
Cordarrelle Patterson [note 203]
Deion Sanders [note 204]
Gale Sayers [note 205]

Association football

[edit]
Iker Casillas
List of athletes considered the greatest
Position Player Sources
Goalkeeper Iker Casillas [note 206]
Lev Yashin [note 207]
Defender (general) Paolo Maldini [note 208]
Defender (Full-back) Paolo Maldini [note 209]
Midfielder Diego Maradona [note 210]
Zinedine Zidane [note 211]
Forward (general) Lionel Messi [note 212]
Forward (Striker) Pelé [note 213]

Baseball

[edit]
List of athletes considered the greatest
Position Player Sources
Battery
1 (Pitcher), general Roger Clemens [note 214]
Lefty Grove [note 215]
Walter Johnson [note 216]
Starting pitcher Walter Johnson [note 217]
Christy Matthewson [note 218]
Relief pitcher Mariano Rivera [note 219]
2 (Catcher) Johnny Bench [note 220]
Infield
3 (First baseman) Lou Gehrig [note 221]
4 (Second baseman) Rogers Hornsby [note 222]
5 (Third baseman) Alex Rodriguez [note 223]
Mike Schmidt [note 224]
6 (Shortstop) Alex Rodriguez [note 225]
Honus Wagner [note 226]
Outfield
General Babe Ruth [note 227]
7 (Left fielder) Ted Williams [note 228]
8 (Center fielder) Willie Mays [note 229]
9 (Right fielder) Babe Ruth [note 230]
Other positions
Designated hitter George Brett [note 231]
Edgar Martínez [note 232]

Basketball

[edit]
Michael Jordan
List of athletes considered the greatest
Position Player Sources
Point guard Stephen Curry [note 233]
Magic Johnson [note 234]
Shooting guard Michael Jordan [note 235]
Small forward LeBron James [note 236]
Power forward Tim Duncan [note 237]
Center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [note 238]
Wilt Chamberlain [note 239]

Rugby union

[edit]
Jonah Lomu
Richie McCaw
List of athletes considered the greatest
Position Player Sources
Full-back (15) Serge Blanco [note 240]
Right wing (14) Jonah Lomu [note 241]
Outside centre (13) Brian O'Driscoll [note 242]
Inside centre (12) Tim Horan [note 243]
Left wing (11) David Campese [note 244]
Fly-half (10) Jonny Wilkinson [note 245]
Scrum-half (9) Gareth Edwards [note 246]
Number eight (8) Zinzan Brooke [note 247]
Openside flanker (7) Richie McCaw [note 248]
Blindside flanker (6) Francois Pienaar [note 249]
Tighthead lock (5) John Eales [note 250]
Loosehead lock (4) Martin Johnson [note 251]
Tighthead prop (3) Graham Price [note 252]
Hooker (2) Keith Wood [note 253]
Loosehead prop (1) Jason Leonard [note 254]

Other sports

[edit]
List of athletes considered the greatest
Sport Position Player Sources
Bobsleigh Driver Eugenio Monti [note 255]
Cricket (men's, ODI) Batter Virat Kohli [note 256]

List of sports teams considered the greatest

[edit]
List of teams considered the greatest
Sport Team Sources
Association football Brazil national football team (1970) [note 257]
Basketball Chicago Bulls (1995–96) [note 258]

List of sports personnel considered the greatest

[edit]

Coach/manager

[edit]
List of coaches considered the greatest
Sport Coach Sources
American football Bill Belichick [note 259]
Don Shula [note 260]
Association football Sir Alex Ferguson [note 261]
Basketball, men's Red Auerbach [note 262]
Phil Jackson [note 263]
Gregg Popovich [note 264]

List of sports media figures considered the greatest

[edit]

Commentators

[edit]
List of commentators considered the greatest
Type/Field Individual Sources
Announcer/broadcaster, general Howard Cosell [note 265]
Bob Costas [note 266]
Vin Scully [note 267]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
  2. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • Surfer (2011)[2]
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    • ESPN's "Top 100 professional athletes since 2000" list (2024)[6]
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    • Riding Magazine (2022)[14]
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    • James H. Bishop, former president of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) Championship Committee, quoted in Sports Illustrated: "The Question: The Newport (R.I.) Casino is the home of the newly established National Tennis Hall of Fame. What five players would you nominate for the Hall of Fame?" (1956)[89]
    Tennis player Jack Kramer quoted in Sports Illustrated (1978)[90]
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  63. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  64. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
  65. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • James H. Bishop, former president of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) Championship Committee, quoted in Sports Illustrated: "The Question: The Newport (R.I.) Casino is the home of the newly established National Tennis Hall of Fame. What five players would you nominate for the Hall of Fame?" (1956)[89]
  66. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  67. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • 500 American sports editors, writers and broadcasters polled for the "Greatest Athlete of All Time" (1976)[93]
  68. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • James H. Bishop, former president of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) Championship Committee, quoted in Sports Illustrated: "The Question: The Newport (R.I.) Casino is the home of the newly established National Tennis Hall of Fame. What five players would you nominate for the Hall of Fame?" (1956)[89]
  69. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • James H. Bishop, former president of the United States Lawn Tennis Association (USLTA) Championship Committee, quoted in Sports Illustrated: "The Question: The Newport (R.I.) Casino is the home of the newly established National Tennis Hall of Fame. What five players would you nominate for the Hall of Fame?" (1956)[89]
  70. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
    • 500 American sports editors, writers and broadcasters polled for the "Greatest Athlete of All Time" (1976)[93]
    • BBC Sport (2003)[94]
  71. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  75. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  76. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
  84. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
    • 500 American sports editors, writers and broadcasters polled for the "Greatest Athlete of All Time" (1976)[93]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • "The 20 Greatest Players of the 20th Century", chosen by a panel of 108 sportswriters and editors for Tennis (magazine) (1999)[88]
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    • ESPN (2022, 3 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  196. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 3 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  197. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 21 of 50 panel voters for "Kicker/Punter")[157]
  198. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 22 of 50 panel voters for "Kicker/Punter");[157] (2023)[154]
  199. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 6 of 50 panel voters for "Kicker/Punter")[157]
  200. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 29 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  201. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 1 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  202. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 3 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  203. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
  204. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 6 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  205. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
    • ESPN (2022, 5 of 50 panel voters for "Returner/Special Teamer")[157]
  206. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
  207. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
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  209. ^ Sources or lists that share such an opinion include:
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[edit]
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