GGOATRANK

GOAT Rank · 5087

Greatest athletes of all time

This ranking is led by Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Michael Phelps. GOAT Rank currently ranks 5087 eligible athletes using verified career records across dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Quick answer

According to GOAT Rank's current model, Lionel Messi ranks #1 on this list with a GOAT Score of 97.0.

How the GOAT Score is calculated →
#AthleteGOAT Score
Sport
Basketball
Career
1997–2009
Country
🇺🇸 United States
Peak
88.0
Dominance
86.0
Statistics
85.0
Honours
90.0
Longevity
82.0
Athlete: Lisa Leslie
Sport
Football
Career
1989–2008
Country
🇧🇷 Brazil
Peak
84.0
Dominance
82.0
Statistics
78.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
90.0
Athlete: Cafu
Sport
Cricket
Career
2000–2017
Country
🇵🇰 Pakistan
Peak
92.0
Dominance
86.0
Statistics
94.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
92.0
Athlete: Younis Khan
Sport
Football
Career
1979–1996
Country
🇩🇪 Germany
Peak
90.0
Dominance
80.0
Statistics
84.0
Honours
86.0
Longevity
84.0
Athlete: Silvia Neid
Sport
Tennis
Career
1972–1983
Country
🇸🇪 Sweden
Peak
95.0
Dominance
93.0
Statistics
92.0
Honours
92.0
Longevity
82.0
Athlete: Björn Borg
Sport
Basketball
Career
1970–1985
Country
🇺🇸 United States
Peak
90.0
Dominance
80.0
Statistics
92.0
Honours
82.0
Longevity
90.0
Athlete: Dan Issel
Sport
Swimming
Career
2016–active
Country
🇺🇸 United States
Peak
92.0
Dominance
86.0
Statistics
88.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
82.0
Athlete: Lilly King
Sport
Cricket
Career
2006–2018
Country
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England
Peak
92.0
Dominance
86.0
Statistics
96.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
90.0
Athlete: Alastair Cook
Sport
Tennis
Career
1932–1954
Country
🇺🇸 United States
Peak
98.0
Dominance
94.0
Statistics
92.0
Honours
92.0
Longevity
78.0
Athlete: Don Budge
Sport
Football
Career
1995–2017
Country
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 United Kingdom
Peak
86.0
Dominance
80.0
Statistics
88.0
Honours
82.0
Longevity
88.0
Athlete: Frank Lampard
Sport
Football
Career
2009–active
Country
🇧🇷 Brazil
Peak
90.0
Dominance
82.0
Statistics
90.0
Honours
82.0
Longevity
80.0
Athlete: Neymar Jr
Sport
Swimming
Career
2012–2024
Country
🇦🇺 Australia
Peak
92.0
Dominance
86.0
Statistics
90.0
Honours
90.0
Longevity
78.0
Athlete: Emma McKeon
Sport
Boxing
Career
1891–1899
Country
🇺🇸 United States
Peak
94.0
Dominance
90.0
Statistics
92.0
Honours
88.0
Longevity
76.0
Athlete: Jimmy Barry
Sport
Football
Career
1953–1972
Country
🇩🇪 Germany
Peak
88.0
Dominance
80.0
Statistics
90.0
Honours
78.0
Longevity
88.0
Athlete: Uwe Seeler

Compare the leaders

Lionel Messi vs Cristiano Ronaldo

Read the full methodology

Sport lists use the raw In-Sport GOAT Score. Cross-sport lists use the official competition-depth adjustment. No scores are recalculated for this page.

Read the full methodology

Frequently asked questions

How is this ranking calculated?

Five verified components are weighted consistently: dominance, peak, longevity, honours and statistics.

Who is included?

According to GOAT Rank's current data model, only verified athletes with sufficient career history, metrics, honours and independent sources are eligible. Rank and score are read live.

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