When it comes to professional athletes, Illinois' choice for the G.O.A.T. is no surprise.

Who is the greatest athlete of all time? It is a discussion that could definitely start an argument and maybe even a fight. See the problem is that everyone has their own thoughts.

It is hard enough to pick one for each individual sport let alone the best of the best. To compare player to player in different games is like doing apples versus oranges. It just really does not work. The answer is using opinion instead of an actual statement.

What are the criteria? Is it championships, MVP awards, statistics, or some other categories? For the voter, it really depends on what teams and sports they are a fan of. The era they have been watching. Where they live. How they were brought up.

Of course, thanks to technology we can find out what people think including who is considered the G.O.A.T. for each state. Check out the chart.


According to thespun.com,

"When Tom Brady captured his seventh Lombardi Trophy in last weekend’s Super Bowl LV, he reinvigorated conversations trying to determine if he is now the greatest athlete of all time. BetOnline.ag decided to ramp up the conversation by using geotagged Twitter data to determine each U.S. state’s preference for the best athlete ever. The research yielded some pretty interesting results and revealed how different parts of the country evaluate greatness."

My personal choice is Michael Jordan. Illinois agrees with me which is not surprising. He did play and win six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls.

Here is more of the findings...

  • 11 states agree with Michael Jordan
  • 20 states pick Tom Brady - That is not a bad one. He has been to ten Super Bowls and won seven.
  • 11 think it is LeBron James - Sorry, LeBron fans but I am going Jordan.
  • 4 states have tennis player, Serena Williams - When it comes to her sport, she dominates.

Okay, here is where it gets strange. Obviously, they are picking with their hearts.

  • Aaron Rodgers -Wisconsin
  • John Elway - Colorado
  • Peyton Manning - Indiana
  • Joe Montana - California

Who is your G.O.A.T.?


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