Every ranking update ever (Last golf update: 1/2/26 Next golf update: January ’26)

The making of the list.

The Rules

If you disagree with the placement of an athlete whose prime occurred before 1975, please read The ChatGPT Cautionary Tale before commenting.

Historically undervalued: 🔵

Rank	Player			Years	Country
1	Tiger Woods		Why?	1999-active	USA
2	Jack Nicklaus			1957-2005	USA
3	Phil Mickelson	🔵	Why?	1990-active	USA
4	Ben Hogan			1934-1967	USA
5	Sam Snead			1937-1983	USA
6	Arnold Palmer			1952-2004	USA
7	Tom Watson			1970-2016	USA
8	Gary Player			1956-2009	S. Africa
9	Rory McIIroy			2007-active	N. Ireland
10	Bobby Jones			1916-1948	USA
11	Scottie Scheffler			2016-active	USA
12	Ernie Els	🔵		1989-active	S. Africa
13	Nick Faldo			1976-2015	England
14	Seve Ballesteros			1975-2007	Spain
15	Lee Trevino			1966-2000	USA
16	Greg Norman	🔵		1977-2009	Australia
17	Brooks Koepka			2012-active	USA
18	Walter Hagen			1913-1942	USA
19	Gene Sarazen			1920-1976	USA
20	Byron Nelson			1934-1966	USA
21	Vijay Singh			1989-active	Fiji
22	Nick Price			1975-2006	Zimbabwe
23	Dustin Johnson			2008-active	USA
24	Bernhard Langer			1976-2023	Germany
25	Billy Casper			1956-2005	USA
26	Raymond Floyd			1963-2009	USA
27	Jordan Spieth			2012-active	USA
28	Ben Crenshaw			1970-2015	USA
29	Hale Irwin			1966-2004	USA
30	Payne Stewart			1981-1999	USA
31	Xander Schauffele			2017-active	USA
32	Pádraig Harrington			1996-active	Ireland
33	Jon Rahm			2016-active	Spain
34	Justin Thomas			2014-active	USA
35	Sergio Garcia			1996-active	Spain
36	Justin Rose			1998-acitve	England
37	Jason Day			2010-active	Australia
38	Adam Scott			2000-active	Australia
39	Julius Boros			1950-1980	USA
40	Harry Vardon			1893-1929	Jersey
41	John Henry Taylor			1893-1929	England
42	James Braid			1894-1938	Scotland
43	José María Olazábal			1984-2018	Spain
44	Johnny Miller			1966-1994	USA
45	Larry Nelson			1976-2011	USA
46	Davis Love III			1986-2020	USA
47	Fred Couples			1979-2024	USA
48	Jim Furyk	🔵		1994-2022	USA
49	Cary Middlecoff			1946-1971	USA
50	Lanny Wadkins			1970-2001	USA
51	Tom Kite			1970-2004	USA
52	Tom Weiskopf			1965-2004	USA
53	Reteif Goosen			1999-2012	S. Africa
54	Louis Oosthuizen	🔵		2004-active	S. Africa
55	Henrik Stenson			2001-active	Sweden
56	Lee Westwood	🔵		1995-2022	England
57	Martin Kaymer			2008-active	Germany
58	David Duval			1990-2022	USA
59	Steve Elkington	🔵		1988-2011	Australia
60	Justin Leonard			1993-2024	USA
61	Hubert Green			1969-1996	USA
62	Curtis Strange			1975-2002	USA
63	Mark O’Meara			1980-2018	USA
64	Bryson DeChambeau			2015-active	USA
65	Ian Woosnam			1982-2021	Wales
66	Fuzzy Zoeller			1976-2009	USA
67	Tom Lehman			1986-2019	USA
68	Collin Morikawa			2019-active	USA
69	Bubba Watson			2004-active	USA
70	Zach Johnson			2004-active	USA
71	Angel Cabrera			1997-2019	Argentina
72	Sandy Lyle			1974-2013	Scotland
73	Lee Janzen			1985-2015	USA
74	David Graham			1970-1995	Australia
75	Jerry Pate			1975-2011	USA
76	Dave Stockton			1968-1997	USA
77	Paul Azinger			1983-2009	USA
78	Hal Sutton			1980-2005	USA
79	Tommy Fleetwood			2014-active	England
80	Leo Diegel			1920-1939	USA
81	Jimmy Demaret			1935-1967	USA
82	Denny Shute			1926-1972	USA
83	Tony Jacklin			1963-2007	England
84	Colin Montgomerie	🔵		1990-2016	Scotland
85	Luke Donald			1999-2024	England
86	Craig Wood			1925-1964	USA
87	Ralph Guldahl			1930-1973	USA
88	Ian Poulter			2000-2022	England
89	Rickie Fowler			2008-active	USA
90	Hideki Matsuyama			2011-active	Japan
91	Matt Kuchar			1998-active	USA
92	Corey Pavin			1981-2010	USA
93	Darren Clarke			1991-active	N. Ireland
94	Stewart Cink			1996-active	USA
95	Peter Thomson			1951-1984	Australia
96	Steve Stricker	🔵		1993-2021	USA
97	Craig Stadler			1974-2014	USA
98	Andy North			1974-1995	USA
99	John Daly			1986-2024	USA
100	David Toms			1996-2019	USA

The rest of the best golfers of all time.

Every ranking update ever (Last MMA update: 1/1/26)

The making of the list.

The Rules

If you disagree with the placement of an athlete whose prime occurred before 1975, please read The ChatGPT Cautionary Tale before commenting.

Rank	Fighter		Years
1	Jon Jones	Why?	2008-active
2	Islam Makhachev		2010-active
3	Anderson Silva		1997-2020
4	Alexander Volkanovski		2012-active
5	George St-Pierre		2002-2017
6	Khabib Nurmagomedov		2008-2020
7	Ilia Topuria		2015-active
8	Khamzat Chimaev		2018-active
9	Merab Dvalishvili		2013-active
10	Daniel Cormier		2009-2020
11	Stipe Miocic		2010-2024
12	Alex Pereira		2015-active
13	Israel Adesanya		2009-active
14	Fedor Emelianenko		2000-active
15	Francis Ngannou		2013-active
16	Dricus Du Plessis		2013-active
17	Kamaru Usman		2012-active
18	Max Holloway		2010-active
19	Dominick Cruz		2003-active
20	Magomed Ankalaev		2014-active
21	Lyoto Machida		2003-active
22	Dan Henderson		1997-2016
23	Shogun Rua		2002-active
24	Demetrious Johnson	Why?	2007-active
25	Leon Edwards		2011-active
26	Henry Cejudo		2013-active
27	Fabricio Werdum		2002-active
28	Rampage Jackson		1999-active
29	Alexandre Pantoja		2007-active
30	Chuck Liddell		1998-2010
31	Randy Couture		1997-2011
32	Matt Hughes		1998-2013
33	Alistair Overeem		1999-active
34	Charles Oliveira		2008-active
35	Dustin Poirier		2009-active
36	Conor McGregor		2008-active
37	Jose Aldo		2004-active
38	Frank Shamrock		1994-2010
39	Royce Gracie		1993-2016
40	Rashad Evans		2003-2018
41	Tito Ortiz		1997-active
42	Wanderlei Silva		1996-2018
43	Robert Whittaker		2009-active
44	Aljamain Sterling		2010-active
45	Brandon Moreno		2011-active
46	Cain Velasquez		2006-2019
47	Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira		1999-2015
48	Junior dos Santos		2006-active
49	Chris Weidman		2009-active
50	Petr Yan		2014-active
51	Ken Shamrock		1993-2016
52	Bas Rutten		1993-2006
53	Rickson Gracie		1980-2000
54	Anthony Johnson		2006-active
55	Vitor Belfort		1996-active
56	Jake Shields		1999-active
57	Forrest Griffin		2001-2012
58	Glover Teixeira		2002-active
59	Justin Gaethje		2011-active
60	Vadim Nemkov		2013-active
61	Ryan Bader		2007-active
62	Phil Davis		2008-active
63	Frankie Edgar		2005-active
64	Mirko Cro Cop		2001-2019
65	Ricardo Arona		2000-2009
66	Gegard Mousasi		2003-active
67	Antonio Rogerio Nogueira		2000-2020
68	Kazushi Sakuraba		1996-active
69	TJ Dillashaw		2010-active
70	Josh Barnett		1997-2016
71	Masakatsu Funaki		1993-2012
72	Cyril Gane		2018-active
73	Deiveson Figueiredo		2012-active
74	Jan Blachowicz		2007-active
75	Belal Muhammad		2012-active
76	Mark Coleman		1996-2010
77	Yoel Romero		2009-active
78	Nick Diaz		2001-2015
79	BJ Penn		2001-2019
80	Tyron Woodley		2006-active
81	Jiri Prochazka		2012-active
82	Luke Rockhold		2007-active
83	Jacare Souza		2003-active
84	Stephen Thompson		2010-active
85	Eddie Alvarez		2003-active
86	Rich Franklin		1999-2015
87	Rafael dos Anjos		2004-active
88	Arman Tsarukyan		2015-active
89	Sean O’Malley		2013-active
90	Sean Strickland		2008-active
91	Jack Della Maddalena		2016-active
92	Sean Brady		2014-active
93	Colby Covington		2012-active
94	Tony Ferguson		2008-active
95	Anthony Pettis		2007-active
96	Benson Henderson		2006-active
97	Robbie Lawler		2001-active
98	Shavkat Rakhmonov		2014-active
99	Tom Aspinall		2014-active
100	Frank Mir		2001-active

The rest of the best MMA fighters of all time.

Every ranking update ever (Last soccer update: 1/1/2026 Next soccer update: January ’27)

The making of the list.

The Rules

If you disagree with the placement of an athlete whose prime occurred before 1975, please read The ChatGPT Cautionary Tale before commenting.

Historically undervalued: 🔵

Rank	Player			Position	Years	Country
1	Lionel Messi		Why?	F	2003-active	Argentina
2	Cristiano Ronaldo			F	2002-active	Portugal
3	Pelé			F	1956-1977	Brazil
4	Diego Maradona			M	1976-1997	Argentina
5	Robert Lewandowski	🔵	Why?	F	2005-active	Poland
6	Gerd Müller	🔵		F	1963-1981	Germany
7	Zinedine Zidane			M	1989-2006	France
8	Andrés Iniesta			M	2000-active	Spain
9	Kylian Mbappé			F	2015-active	France
10	Johan Cruyff			M	1964-1984	Netherlands
11	Paolo Maldini			D	1984-2009	Italy
12	Luka Modrić			M	2003-active	Croatia
13	Franz Beckenbauer			D	1964-1983	Germany
14	Ronaldo			F	1993-2011	Brazil
15	Manuel Neuer	🔵		G	2004-active	Germany
16	Xavi			M	1997-2019	Spain
17	Luis Suárez			F	2005-active	Uruguay
18	Karim Benzema			F	2004-active	France
19	Michel Platini			M	1972-1987	France
20	Marco van Basten			F	1981-1995	Netherlands
21	Harry Kane	🔵		F	2009-active	England
22	Sergio Ramos			D	2003-2024	Spain
23	Gianluigi Buffon			G	1995-2023	Italy
24	Alfredo Di Stéfano			F	1945-1966	Argentina
25	Ferenc Puskás			F	1943-1966	Hungary
26	Thierry Henry			F	1994-2012	France
27	Bobby Charlton			M	1956-1980	England
28	Mohamed Salah			F	2010-active	Egypt
29	Eusébio			F	1957-1960	Portugal
30	Lothar Matthäus			M	1978-2000	Germany
31	Ronaldinho			M	1998-2015	Brazil
32	Iker Casillas	🔵		G	1998-2018	Spain
33	Zlatan Ibrahimović			F	1999-2023	Sweden
34	Karl-Heinz Rummenigge			F	1974-1989	Germany
35	Toni Kroos			M	2007-2024	Germany
36	Roberto Carlos			D	1991-2016	Brazil
37	Kevin DeBruyne			M	2008-active	Belgium
38	Garrincha			M	1951-1972	Brazil
39	Neymar			F/M	2009-active	Brazil
40	Roberto Baggio			F/M	1982-2004	Italy
41	Romário			F	1985-2007	Brazil
42	Franco Baresi			D	1977-1987	Italy
43	Francesco Totti			F	1993-2017	Italy
44	Raúl			F	1994-2015	Spain
45	Philipp Lahm			D	2001-2017	Germany
46	Dani Alves			D	2001-2023	Brazil
47	Carles Puyol			D	1996-2014	Spain
48	Luís Figo			F/M	1989-2009	Portugal
49	Lev Yashin			G	1950-1970	Soviet Union
50	Rivaldo			M	1990-2015	Brazil
51	Thomas Müller			F	2007-active	Germany
52	Erling Haaland			F	2015-active	Norway
53	Ruud Gullit			F/M/D	1979-1998	Netherlands
54	Paolo Rossi			F	1973-1987	Italy
55	Mario Kempes			F	1970-1996	Argentina
56	Giuseppe Meazza			F	1927-1947	Italy
57	Marcelo			D	2005-active	Brazil
58	Hugo Sánchez	🔵		F	1976-1997	Mexico
59	Alan Shearer			F	1988-2006	England
60	Virgil van Dijk			D	2011-active	Netherlands
61	Andriy Schevchenko			F	1993-2012	Ukraine
62	Kaká			M	2000-2017	Brazil
63	Andrea Pirlo			M	1995-2017	Italy
64	Bobby Moore			D	1958-1977	England
65	Steven Gerrard			M	1998-2016	England
66	Franck Ribéry			M	2000-2022	France
67	Ángel Di María	🔵		M	2005-active	Argentina
68	Alessandro Nesta			D	1993-2013	Italy
69	Lilian Thuram			D	1991-2008	France
70	Ruud van Nistelrooy			F	2000-2012	Netherlands
71	Cafu			D	1989-2008	Brazil
72	José Manuel Moreno			F	1935-1961	Argentina
73	Edinson Cavani	🔵		F	2006-2024	Uruguay
74	Sergio Agüero			F	2006-2022	Argentina
75	Samuel Eto’o			F	1998-2018	Cameroon
76	Gonzalo Higuaín			F	2006-2022	Argentina
77	Alessandro Del Piero			F	1993-2014	Italy
78	Gerard Piqué			D	2002-2019	Spain
79	George Best			M	1963-1984	N. Ireland
80	Miroslav Klose	🔵		F	1999-2016	Germany
81	Pavel Nedvěd			M	1990-2009	Czech Republic
82	Daniel Passarella			D	1971-1989	Argentina
83	Antoine Griezmann			M/F	2009-active	France
84	Gareth Bale			F	2005-active	Wales
85	Wayne Rooney			F	2002-2021	England
86	Immobile			F	2008-active	Italy
87	Peter Schmeichel			G	1981-2003	Denmark
88	Petr Čech			G	1999-2019	Czech Republic
89	Marcel Desailly			D	1986-2006	France
90	Zico			M	1971-1994	Brazil
91	Oliver Kahn			G	1987-2008	Germany
92	Paul Breitner			M/D	1970-1983	Germany
93	Oleg Blokhin			F	1969-1990	Ukraine
94	Gordon Banks			G	1958-1977	England
95	Kevin Keegan			F	1968-1985	England
96	Fabio Cannavaro			D	1991-2011	Italy
97	Jean-Pierre Papin			F	1981-2004	France
98	Raymond Kopa			F	1949-1967	France
99	George Weah			F	1984-2003	Liberia
100	Giacinto Fachetti			D	1960-1978	Italy
101	John Terry			D	1998-2018	England
102	Thiago Silva			D	2002-active	Brazil
103	Didier Drogba			F	1998-2018	Ivory Coast
104	Jimmy Greaves			F	1957-1980	England
105	David Villa			F	2001-2019	Spain
106	Gary Lineker			F	1978-1994	England
107	Frank Lampard			M	1995-2016	England
108	David Beckham			M	1994-2013	England
109	Sergio Busquets			D	2007-active	Spain
110	Filippo Inzaghi			F	1995-2012	Italy
111	Gianni Rivera			M	1959-1979	Italy
112	Robin van Persie			F	2001-2019	Netherlands
113	Antonio Di Natale			F	2001-2016	Italy
114	Dennis Bergkamp			F	1986-2006	Netherlands
115	Gigi Riva			F	1962-1976	Italy
116	Nemanja Vidić			D	2000-2016	Serbia
117	Hristo Stoichkov			F	1981-2003	Bulgaria
118	Carlos Alberto			D	1963-1982	Brazil
119	Frank Rijkaard			M	1980-1995	Netherlands
120	Giorgio Chiellini	🔵		D	2002-2023	Italy
121	Rob Rensenbrink			F	1965-1982	Netherlands
122	Quini			F	1967-1987	Spain
123	Rivellino			M	1965-1981	Brazil
124	Luis Suárez			M	1953-1973	Spain
125	Michael Owen			F	1996-2013	England

* In 2004, Pele–in conjunction with FIFA–released a list of the greatest footballers of all-time. Pele was tasked by FIFA to produce a list of 100 players, but found it too difficult to narrow the list to 100. He landed on 125. This is the only list on the site that has a top-125 as a nod to Pele.

The rest of the best soccer players of all time.