F1’s Lewis Hamilton laps the competition as world’s ‘most wanted’ athlete
SportsPro, a British magazine, has released its latest ranking of the 50 most marketable athletes in the world. Formula 1 driver and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton tops the list.
Hamilton previously led the ranking in 2014, marking his second stint at the top. Among athletes, only three have achieved the feat twice: American gymnast Simone Biles (2021, 2024), and footballers Lionel Messi (2020, 2023) and Neymar (2012, 2013). Now at 40, Hamilton is also the oldest athlete to ever top the list. SportsPro has published the rankings annually since 2010.
Top 10 most marketable athletes of 2025
- Lewis Hamilton (UK, motorsports)
- Simone Biles (U.S., gymnastics)
- Ilona Maher (U.S., rugby)
- Stephen Curry (U.S., basketball)
- Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal, soccer)
- Neymar (Brazil, soccer)
- Caitlin Clark (U.S., basketball)
- LeBron James (U.S., basketball)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece, basketball)
- Coco Gauff (U.S., tennis)
Expanding beyond the top 10, this year’s top 50 includes athletes from 17 countries, led by the U.S. (17 athletes), the UK (7) and Brazil (6). The list features 30 men and 20 women representing 12 sports. Football dominates with 18 players, followed by basketball with nine.
Notably, the «50 Most Marketable Athletes» ranking does not measure athletic performance or income. Instead, SportsPro evaluates each athlete’s marketing potential — their appeal to brands — based on a 100-point scale.
The assessment considers the following key criteria: reputation, trust, audience size (social following) and economic value (estimated future profitability).
