Messi above CR7, LeBron, Brady but below two athletes in ESPN's top 100 of 21st century

ESPN revealed Thursday a ranking with the top 100 professional athletes since 2000, with Lionel Messi making the podium as the Argentine ace was ranked higher than other legends such as LeBron James, Tom Brady, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

The Inter Miami star, who “completed” soccer by lifting the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, is only behind two athletes in ESPN‘s ranking: iconic swimmer Michael Phelps and tennis superstar Serena Williams.

Of course, the ranking has given plenty to talk about on social media, as not many agreed with the order of these athletes. However, Messi fans were happy with the fact ESPN placed the soccer star above many other legends.

LeBron and Brady are just behind Messi, and while Cristiano Ronaldo was not even included among the top 10, the Portuguese star was ranked one place higher than Stephen Curry.

Lionel Messi of Argentina celebrates with the trophy after the team’s victory in the CONMEBOL Copa America 2024 Final match between Argentina and Colombia at Hard Rock Stadium on July 15, 2024 in Miami Gardens, Florida.

Many of these athletes are still active, so we’ll have to wait and see whether this ranking should require even more updates when it’s all said and done for some legends. Either way, most of the names who appear on the list have made a strong case to be there. But of course, these kinds of lists are always polarizing.

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ESPN’s top 100 athletes of the 21st century with Messi on the podium

1. Michael Phelps – swimming
2. Serena Williams – tennis
3. Lionel Messi – soccer
4. LeBron James – basketball
5. Tom Brady – football
6. Roger Federer – tennis
7. Simone Biles – gymnastics
8. Tiger Woods – golf
9. Usain Bolt – track
10. Kobe Bryant – basketball
11. Novak Djokovic – tennis
12. Rafael Nadal – tennis
13. Cristiano Ronaldo – soccer
14. Stephen Curry – basketball
15. Katie Ledecky – swimming
16. Tim Duncan – basketball
17. Shaquille O’Neal – basketball
18. Patrick Mahomes – football
19. Lewis Hamilton – auto racing
20. Aaron Donald – football
21. Diana Taurasi – basketball
22. Sidney Crosby – hockey
23. Kevin Garnett – basketball
24. Albert Pujols – baseball
25. Floyd Mayweather – boxing
26. Peyton Manning – football
27. Randy Moss – football
28. Nikola Jokic – basketball
29. Michael Schumacher – auto racing
30. Mike Trout – baseball
31. Clayton Kershaw – baseball
32. Marta – soccer
33. Miguel Cabrera – baseball
34. Tamika Catchings – basketball
35. Dwyane Wade – basketball
36. Maya Moore – basketball
37. Ichiro Suzuki – baseball
38. Barry Bonds – baseball
39. Kevin Durant – basketball
40. Justin Verlander – baseball
41. Dirk Nowitzki – basketball
42. Giannis Antetokounmpo – basketball
43. Alex Rodriguez – baseball
44. Mikaela Shiffrin – skiing
45. David Ortiz – baseball
46. Max Scherzer – baseball
47. Jimmie Johnson – auto racing
48. Thierry Henry – soccer
49. Aitana Bonmati – soccer
50. Zinedine Zidane – soccer
51. Steve Nash – basketball
52. Adrian Beltré – baseball
53. Derek Jeter – baseball
54. Alex Ovechkin – hockey
55. Luka Modric – soccer
56. Alexia Putellas – soccer
57. Calvin Johnson – football
58. J.J. Watt – football
59. Mariano Rivera – baseball
60. Candace Parker – basketball
61. Ray Lewis – football
62. Shohei Ohtani – baseball
63. Allyson Felix – track
64. Mia Hamm – soccer
65. Kylian Mbappé – soccer
66. Jon Jones – MMA
67. James Harden – basketball
68. Phil Mickelson – golf
69. Jason Kidd – basketball
70. Andrés Iniesta – soccer
71. Manny Pacquiao – boxing
72. Shaun White – snowboarding
73. Mookie Betts – baseball
74. Lisa Leslie – basketball
75. Xavi Hernandez – soccer
76. Georges St-Pierre – MMA
77. Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce – track
78. Bernard Hopkins – boxing
79. Bryce Harper – baseball
80. Andy Murray – tennis
81. Sheryl Swoopes – basketball
82. Kohei Uchimura – gymnastics
83. Chris Paul – basketball
84. Lauren Jackson – basketball
85. Kawhi Leonard – basketball
86. Venus Williams – tennis
87. Ronaldo Nazário – soccer
88. Roy Halladay – baseball
89. Annika Sorenstam – golf
90. A’ja Wilson – basketball
91. Aaron Rodgers – football
92. Pedro Martinez – baseball
93. Rory McIlroy – golf
94. Ronaldinho – soccer
95. Zlatan Ibrahimović – soccer
96. Darrelle Revis – football
97. Virat Kohli – cricket
98. Connor McDavid – hockey
99. Ed Reed – football
100. Charles Woodson – football