ESPN The Magazine has established a proprietary formula that ranks the top athletes in the world. The Sports Analytics team at the company ranked 800 athletes using three factors that can influence fame: Google Trend Score, endorsement dollars and social network followers. Peter Keating is a senior writer and explores the reasons why being famous does not necessarily mean you are successful or liked. You can make informed decisions about your favorite athlete by looking at the top 100 athletes around the globe.
Canelo
Saul "Canelo” Alvarez ranks among the top-paid athletes around the world. DAZN signed him a 5-year, $365m deal last year. His contract was one of the most significant in sports history. Alvarez, who is 28 years old, has won five championships and three of them by knockout. He's also the highest-paid Mexican athlete and won the WBA regular super middleweight title.
Ledecky
American swimmer Katie Ledecky is undoubtedly the best female athlete of all times. Ledecky has competed on the global stage almost a decade and won a record 15 golds medals. Ledecky has five world records, five World Championships and five Olympic golds. Ledecky, who is also an Olympic medalist, will compete in Tokyo 2020 Games.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antotounmpe was a popular basketball player in 2019, according to Forbes. He has also established a basketball academy in Athens. AntetokounBros is a basketball academy that helps underprivileged children. This program is for boys and girls aged 12-16 years old, as well as young athletes interested in coaching.
Rapinoe
Megan Rapinoe is one of the most famous athletes in the world, and not just because of her stellar sporting career. She is also known for her activism in the fight for equal compensation and racial equity. In fact, Rapinoe has been the subject of several articles, including a recent one in The New York Times about the impact of the CARES Act. Here are some of her achievements in 2019.
Biles
Simone Biles returned to the sport in 2018, after taking a post-Olympic leave. She enlisted Laurent and Cecile Landi as coaches and removed her rivals to keep her in the spotlight. It's not known what her new relationship will be like, but it's certainly exciting to see her progress! Biles also revealed that she'll be working with former UCLA coach Val Kondos Field as executive producer and supervising choreographer. She will also use video screens, lighting effects, and an in house DJ.