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Famous Athletes

The best-known sportspeople in our archive, ranked by historical popularity.

1,514 athletes in our database, ranked by historical popularity. Page 24 of 31.

Most famous athlete

Muhammad Ali

Highest historical popularity score (HPI 90.7)

Most common birth month

August

146 of 1,514 were born in August

Living vs deceased

1,357 / 157

90% are still living

Most common nationality

Japanese

233 people, 15% of the list

Editor-written profiles

81

5% have a full original profile so far

The ranked list (from #1151)

  1. 1151Theo WalcottTheo WalcottArsenal winger who scored a hat-trick for England in a 4-1 win away to Croatia.🇬🇧British · Born March 16, 1989View profile
  2. 1152
    HH
    Hiroshi HirakawaFormer footballer who won caps for the Japan national team during his playing career.🇯🇵Japanese · Born January 10, 1965View profile
  3. 1153Tyson GayTyson GaySprinter who ran 100 metres in 9.69 seconds, the American record, and won the 100m and 200m at the 2007 World Championships.🇺🇸American · Born August 9, 1982View profile
  4. 1154Alexis Mac AllisterAlexis Mac AllisterMidfielder who won the 2022 World Cup with Argentina before joining Liverpool in 2023.🇦🇷Argentine · Born December 24, 1998View profile
  5. 1155Alberto AquilaniAlberto AquilaniPlaymaker who rose through the Roma youth ranks, joined Liverpool in 2009 and later moved into coaching.🇮🇹Italian · Born July 7, 1984View profile
  6. 1156Bryan RuizBryan RuizCosta Rica attacking midfielder who captained his country to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup.Costa Rican · Born August 18, 1985View profile
  7. 1157Phil FodenPhil FodenManchester City midfielder who was named PFA Players' Player of the Year after the 2023-24 Premier League season.🇬🇧British · Born May 28, 2000View profile
  8. 1158Sebastian LarssonSebastian LarssonSet-piece specialist who helped Birmingham City win the 2011 League Cup and later won over 100 caps for Sweden.🇸🇪Swedish · Born June 6, 1985View profile
  9. 1159Joe HartJoe HartGoalkeeper who won two Premier League titles with Manchester City and kept goal for England.🇬🇧British · Born April 19, 1987View profile
  10. 1160Niko KranjčarNiko KranjčarCreative attacking midfielder who played for Portsmouth and Tottenham Hotspur and won many caps for Croatia.🇭🇷Croatian · Born August 13, 1984View profile
  11. 1161
    HN
    Hiroshi NanamiMidfielder who starred for Júbilo Iwata, played at the 1998 World Cup and spent time in Serie A.🇯🇵Japanese · Born November 28, 1972View profile
  12. 1162Clint DempseyClint DempseyForward who scored at three World Cups for the United States and starred for Fulham and Seattle Sounders.🇺🇸American · Born March 9, 1983View profile
  13. 1163Yuri ZhirkovYuri ZhirkovLeft-back who helped Russia reach the Euro 2008 semi-finals and later won league titles with Zenit.🇷🇺Russian · Born August 20, 1983View profile
  14. 1164Justin GatlinJustin GatlinSprinter who won Olympic 100 metres gold in 2004 and beat Usain Bolt at the 2017 World Championships.🇺🇸American · Born February 10, 1982View profile
  15. 1165Dwyane WadeDwyane WadeMiami Heat guard who won three NBA championships and the 2006 Finals MVP award.🇺🇸American · Born January 17, 1982View profile
  16. 1166
    ÁO
    Ángel OrtizParaguayan footballer remembered for a long professional playing career before his retirement.Paraguayan · Born December 27, 1977View profile
  17. 1167Owen HargreavesOwen HargreavesMidfielder who won the Champions League with Bayern Munich in 2001 and Manchester United in 2008.🇬🇧British · Born January 20, 1981View profile
  18. 1168Dayot UpamecanoDayot UpamecanoCentre-back who moved from RB Leipzig to Bayern Munich in 2021 and plays for France.🇫🇷French · Born October 27, 1998View profile
  19. 1169Sergei IgnashevichSergei IgnashevichDefender who won the UEFA Cup with CSKA Moscow in 2005 and made over 100 appearances for Russia.🇷🇺Russian · Born July 14, 1979View profile
  20. 1170Marc GuéhiMarc GuéhiCentre-back who captained Crystal Palace to the 2025 FA Cup and played for England at Euro 2024.🇬🇧British · Born July 13, 2000View profile
  21. 1171Julian BrandtJulian BrandtAttacking midfielder who won the 2017 Confederations Cup with Germany and starred for Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund.🇩🇪German · Born May 2, 1996View profile
  22. 1172Nadia PetrovaNadia PetrovaRussian who reached the top five in both singles and doubles rankings, including two French Open semi-finals.🇷🇺Russian · Born June 8, 1982View profile
  23. 1173Kamil GlikKamil GlikCentre-back who won Ligue 1 with Monaco in 2017 and played for Poland at Euro 2016.🇵🇱Polish · Born February 3, 1988View profile
  24. 1174Yoann GourcuffYoann GourcuffPlaymaker who inspired Bordeaux to the 2008-09 Ligue 1 title and was named French league player of the year.🇫🇷French · Born July 11, 1986View profile
  25. 1175
    MY
    Masakuni YamamotoCoach who led Japan's Olympic team at the 2004 Athens Games and worked with the senior side.🇯🇵Japanese · Born April 4, 1958View profile
  26. 1176Alessandro FlorenziAlessandro FlorenziRoma full-back remembered for a spectacular long-range lob against Barcelona in the Champions League.🇮🇹Italian · Born March 11, 1991View profile
  27. 1177Alexandra KosteniukAlexandra KosteniukChess grandmaster who held the Women's World Championship title between 2008 and 2010.🇷🇺Russian · Born April 23, 1984View profile
  28. 1178Šime VrsaljkoŠime VrsaljkoRight-back who helped Croatia reach the 2018 World Cup final and played for Atlético Madrid.🇭🇷Croatian · Born January 10, 1992View profile
  29. 1179Jermain DefoeJermain DefoeProlific English striker who scored more than 150 Premier League goals for clubs including Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland.🇬🇧British · Born October 7, 1982View profile
  30. 1180Álvaro OdriozolaÁlvaro OdriozolaRight-back who rose through Real Sociedad and moved to Real Madrid in 2018.🇪🇸Spanish · Born December 14, 1995View profile
  31. 1181
    YN
    Yoshihiro NatsukaFormer player who moved into coaching and has worked as a football manager in Japan.🇯🇵Japanese · Born October 7, 1969View profile
  32. 1182Christian PulisicChristian PulisicAmerican winger who won the 2021 Champions League with Chelsea.🇺🇸American · Born September 18, 1998View profile
  33. 1183Michael OliseMichael OliseWinger who impressed at Crystal Palace before joining Bayern Munich in 2024 and playing for France.🇬🇧British · Born December 12, 2001View profile
  34. 1184Cole PalmerCole PalmerAttacking midfielder who scored 22 Premier League goals in his first season at Chelsea after leaving Manchester City.🇬🇧British · Born May 6, 2002View profile
  35. 1185Masahiro FukudaMasahiro FukudaStriker who became a leading forward for Urawa Reds and earned caps for Japan in the 1990s.🇯🇵Japanese · Born December 27, 1966View profile
  36. 1186
    OT
    Osamu TaninakaFormer footballer who won caps for the Japan national team during his playing career.🇯🇵Japanese · Born September 24, 1964View profile
  37. 1187Volkan DemirelVolkan DemirelGoalkeeper and long-serving captain of Fenerbahçe, who won several Süper Lig titles and played for Turkey.🇹🇷Turkish · Born October 27, 1981View profile
  38. 1188Gary CahillGary CahillCentre-back who won the 2012 Champions League with Chelsea and played for England at the 2014 World Cup.🇬🇧British · Born December 19, 1985View profile
  39. 1189Mauricio IslaMauricio IslaChilean right-back who won the Copa América in both 2015 and 2016 with his country.🇨🇱Chilean · Born June 12, 1988View profile
  40. 1190Shinji OnoShinji OnoMidfielder who left Urawa Reds for Feyenoord and helped them lift the 2002 UEFA Cup.🇯🇵Japanese · Born September 27, 1979View profile
  41. 1191Naohiro TakaharaNaohiro TakaharaForward who played for Hamburg and Eintracht Frankfurt and represented Japan at the 2006 World Cup.🇯🇵Japanese · Born June 4, 1979View profile
  42. 1192Goce SedloskiGoce SedloskiFormer North Macedonia international turned manager, now in charge of the national side and Vardar.Macedonian · Born April 10, 1974View profile
  43. 1193Sébastien SquillaciSébastien SquillaciCentre-back who won the UEFA Cup with Sevilla before joining Arsenal in 2010.🇫🇷French · Born August 11, 1980View profile
  44. 1194Ruslan PonomariovRuslan PonomariovChess grandmaster who became the youngest FIDE world champion in 2002 by beating Vasyl Ivanchuk in the final.Ukraine · Born October 11, 1983View profile
  45. 1195Elena RybakinaElena RybakinaTennis player who won the 2022 Wimbledon singles title, beating Ons Jabeur in the final.Kazakh · Born June 17, 1999View profile
  46. 1196Emile HeskeyEmile HeskeyPowerful striker who won the League Cup with both Leicester City and Liverpool and played for England at two World Cups.🇬🇧British · Born January 11, 1978View profile
  47. 1197Shigetatsu MatsunagaShigetatsu MatsunagaFormer goalkeeper now serving as goalkeeper coach at J1 League club Yokohama Marinos.🇯🇵Japanese · Born August 12, 1962View profile
  48. 1198Dávinson SánchezDávinson SánchezColombian centre-back who won the 2016 Copa Libertadores with Atlético Nacional before joining Tottenham Hotspur.🇨🇴Colombian · Born June 12, 1996View profile
  49. 1199Federico BernardeschiFederico BernardeschiWinger who won Serie A titles with Juventus and was part of Italy's Euro 2020 winning squad.🇮🇹Italian · Born February 16, 1994View profile
  50. 1200Marion BartoliMarion BartoliFrench tennis player who won the 2013 Wimbledon singles title, beating Sabine Lisicki in the final.🇫🇷French · Born October 2, 1984View profile

How we rank and select

  • Ranking: people are ordered by their Historical Popularity Index (HPI) from Pantheon. HPI combines how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about a person, how many page views those articles get, how evenly the views are spread across languages and how long ago the person lived. People Pantheon does not yet cover are listed after them, ordered by our own popularity score (the number of Wikipedia language editions with an article about them).
  • Membership: each person appears in one occupation list only, based on their primary occupation as classified by Pantheon (for example, a queen who wrote poetry is listed as royalty, not as a writer). Kings, queens, emperors, sultans and royal consorts are not listed as politicians or writers: anyone who held a monarch's office on Wikidata, and never served as a president or head of government, counts as royalty. For the few people Pantheon does not cover, we use the primary field recorded in our database.
  • One-line summaries: each summary is an original line written for this site with AI assistance under our editorial rules, then checked against the Wikipedia introduction so no wording is copied.
  • Statistics: every figure on this page is calculated live from our database each time the page loads, so it changes as we add people.

Further reading

Reviewed by the Who Shares My Birthday editorial team.

Last reviewed: October 2026

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