The list was researched by ESPN’s director of sports analytics and released on the 31st May.The list features a host of familiar names of the sporting world and was researched using a formula which combined salary and endorsements along with social media following and Google search engine popularity, the results of which were calculated to figure out who the 100 most famous athletes on the planet were.
Real Madrid footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who was one of the star performers in Real Madrid’s historic 11th Champions League win, was proclaimed to be the most famous sports person on the planet, followed by NBA star LeBron James and footballing rival Lionel Messi.
Messi’s Barcelona teammate Neymar found himself in the 4th spot with Swiss tennis ace Roger Federer rounding off the top five. Ronaldo leads a list of 17 footballers who star in the top 100 list. The top five footballers on the list ply their trade in La Liga, with James Rodriguez and Gareth Bale who are on 9th and 10th in the list, round up the list of the top five most famous footballers.
Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney is 6th on the most famous footballer’s list, coming only 17th in the overall standings.
Full list
| Position | Name | Sport |
| 1 | Cristiano Ronaldo | Football |
| 2 | LeBron James | Basketball |
| 3 | Lionel Messi | Football |
| 4 | Neymar | Football |
| 5 | Roger Federer | Tennis |
| 6 | Kevin Durant | Basketball |
| 7 | Tiger Woods | Golf |
| 8 | Virat Kohli | Cricket |
| 9 | James Rodriguez | Football |
| 10 | Rafael Nadal | Tennis |
