Who is unanimously considered the greatest American sports icon of all time?

44 comments

1. Babe Ruth

2. Michael Jordan. He had an unbelievable brand around him. You couldn’t go 20 minutes without seeing a commercial with him in it in the 1990s. He almost had a deity like status when he was an active NBA player. He honestly easily could have been elected President in 2000.

3. Babe Ruth was the first real superstar athlete

4. Jim Thorpe

5. Probably Jordan is who I would pick but there’s a lot of others I wouldn’t argue with

6. Muhammad Ali.
   This conversation starts and ends with Ali.

7. Great answers, but I would throw out Jesse Owens as a contender, too.

8. I think Ali fits most for iconic.

9. I think you could make an argument for Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, and Babe Ruth. Brady will be there once he’s been retired for awhile. Babe Ruth has a 100 year head start on him.. and a sizeable one on Ali and Jordan. But, he’s also a uniquely American icon tied to the longest running American team sport. I’m not sure (in fact, I’d doubt) whether his reach is or ever was anywhere near as far as Jordan’s or Ali’s. Ultimately, I’d probably say Jordan, because he just seems to have blown up at the perfect time where literally every person in the world knew he was the face of Nike and a sports God. Then again, Ali had the political aspect that Jordan never did. I don’t know. Hard to choose between the two.

10. No one. Americans love to argue and we will argue anything. There’s a lot of people who say Michael Jordan couldn’t win without Pippin, people argue Babe Ruth because Babe Ruth used a corked bat he isn’t the goat of MLB. You can find a large group of Americans to argue on any player so no one can be considered unanimously the Greatest Of All Time

11. It’s not unanimously agreed on

12. Add Gretzky to the list. What he did in hockey is mind boggling.

13. Probably Babe Ruth

14. Serena Williams

15. Babe Ruth, Micheal Jordan, and Tom Brady are all rather popular.

16. It’s Ali. He achieved *world* fame. Jordan is the only arguable competitor.

17. No one is unanimous. I’d probably go with Ali, but there are people who are older than me who would never accept that because of his draft resistance.

    Arnold Palmer was loved by everyone in golf. He will always be The King.

    Edit : in thinking about it, I’d change my vote to Vin Scully. Everyone loved him.

18. Ali

19. Jordan and it’s not even close.

20. Coulda (probably woulda) been Tiger Woods until the… thing.

    International game… broke racial boundaries and arguably the best to ever play.

    But now… nah. It’s Jordan.

21. Unanimously would mean absolutely everybody being in agreement!

22. Ernie McCracken

23. Jesse Owens. The only athlete to personally piss off Hitler with his victory. That’s a tough act to follow.

24. Among other great suggestions, Michael Phelps should be in the conversations. 28 Olympic medals is the highest ever by an athlete, and the next closest has 18. He has 23 Gold, which is more than the next closest has just medals.

25. Jordan, Brady, Tiger Woods. Babe Ruth and Ali but that’s more historical shit at this point

26. If your talking biggest icons in sports I’d say 1. MJ 2. Babe 3.Brady

27. Grayson Allen

28. All the ones OP mentioned definitely. I’d add a few golfers Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods.

    But if I had to pick one I’d have to say Jordan. I would say LeBron James aswell but I’m biased as an ohioan

29. Ali

30. Muhammad Ali

31. Gotta be Dick Butkus.

32. I think this is a question that could be answered one of two ways; who was the greatest athlete in United States history – for which there will never be consensus, and who was the greatest AMERICAN athlete in the sense of reaching cultural greatness – for that I think there’s a fair case to be made for Jordan.

33. Most people will say there isn’t a unanimous GOAT, but I think they’re forgetting one of the greats.

    In 1966, Al Bundy scored four touchdowns in a single game while playing for the Polk High School Panthers in the 1966 city championship game versus Andrew Johnson High School, including the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds against his old nemesis, Bubba “Spare Tire” Dixon.

34. Tom Brady

35. Michael Jordan. With Mike it has more to do with marketability though. Brady is a better, more accomplished professional athlete.

36. I’m going with Bill Russell

37. If you want to go more modern you could do either Simone Biles or Serena Williams

38. If say the USA has a lot more major sports that most countries so:
    Baseball – Babe Ruth
    Football – Joe Montana
    Hockey – maybe Mike Modano
    Swimming – Michale Phelps
    Golf – Tiger Woods or Arnold Palmer
    Basketball – Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant
    Soccer – I don’t know any
    Boxing – Mile Tyson or Muhammad Ali
    Skating – Michelle Kwan
    Cycling – Lance Armstrong

39. Who is the greatest female American sport icon of all time?

40. It’s not unanimous.

    I would add Simone Biles to the list.

41. Jim Thorpe. Olympic champion and sport star in baseball and football

42. Personally, I’d say Michael Phelps, Michael Jordan,.and Michael Trout. I like Mike.

43. Muhammad Ali

44. So many over the years. I would nominate Jesse Owens , though.