<p>First published back in 1923, TIME Magazine has been a cornerstone of popular culture and the discussion that surrounds it for more than a century.</p> <p>Since 2019, the New York-based publication has added an Athlete of the Year award to go alongside their long-running Person of the Year accolade.</p> <p>Previous winners include LeBron James, Lionel Messi and Caitlin Clark and now there are a host of other sporting superstars looking to join them as TIME’s Athlete of the Year.</p> <p>From two-way baseball freaks to QBs with rocket launchers for arms and everything in between, there is no shortage of suitors for this title. But just who will be crowned the 2025 TIME Athlete of the Year? Let’s find out!</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>TIME Athlete of the Year 2025 Predictions – The Favourites</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Shohei Ohtani</h3> <p>Another borderline unbelievable season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, has taken Japanese baseball sensation Shohei Ohtani to a whole other level of global recognition.</p> <p>It’s also taken him to the very, very short favourite for TIME’s Athlete of the Year for 2025.</p> <p>It’s hard to argue with Ohtani’s current billing in the outright market for this award, as rarely have we seen a single player so comprehensively dominate their chosen sport.</p> <p>The man they call ‘Shotime’ helped the Dodgers to back-to-back World Series this year, smashing 55 home runs in the process (a franchise record for the Dodgers). He also pitched 47 innings for 62 strikeouts.</p> <p>This all led to Ohtani taking him his second straight MVP award and fourth overall and despite TIME Magazine being based in the home of the Yankees, they’ll struggle to find a reason not to award LA-based Ohtani their Athlete of the Year award.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Josh Allen</h3> <p>According to the current outright betting, Ohtani’s biggest threat for TIME’s Athlete of the Year is Buffalo Bills QB Josh Allen.</p> <p>Although that first Super Bowl still eludes him, Allen is clearly doing everything in his power to drag his side to the NFL’s ultimate prize.</p> <p>In the last 12 months he threw for 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns, while rushing for 12 more. His dual-threat brilliance earned him his first AP NFL MVP and also set or extended franchise records, including being the first player ever to record five straight 40+ total-touchdown seasons.</p> <p>Now can he add TIME’s Athlete of the Year to his list of personal accolades in 2025?</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Max Verstappen</h3> <p>The next athlete gunning for pole position on TIME’s list of sporting superstars, is F1 phenomenon Max Verstappen.</p> <p>Although it looks unlikely he will win the Driver’s Championship this time around, the 2024 season saw Verstappen cement his reputation as one of F1’s all-time greats, when he collected his fourth title, becoming one of only six drivers to have achieved that feat.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Patrick Mahomes</h3> <p>The second QB to make this list, Patrick Mahomes simply continues to do Patrick Mahomes things.</p> <p>While Super Bowl and MVP glory eluded him last season, something that seems more of an exception than a rule, Mahomes still went nuclear.<br /> <br /> He notched his 77th win in his first 100 starts, breaking the record for most wins by a QB in that span. He also became the fastest QB to reach 30,000 passing yards, doing it in just 103 games. the franchise front, he now holds most passing touchdowns in Chiefs history.</p> <p>Will he also be holding TIME’s Athlete of the Year award for 2025? Watch this space.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>TIME Athlete of the Year 2025 Predictions – Under the Radar Options</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Caitlin Clark</h3> <p>The reigning TIME Athlete of the Year, superstar female hooper Caitlin Clark is still favoured by some punters to go back-to-back.</p> <p>As impressive as ever, Clark is still the face of the WNBL, but be warned, since this award inception, no athlete has ever gone back-to-back.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Lionel Messi</h3> <p>Widely considered to now be the undisputed GOAT of the World Game, Lionel Messi put down roots in the USA and hasn’t looked back.</p> <p>Since signing for the David Beckham owned Inter Miami FC, Messi has taken footballer or ‘soccer’ to the American masses, ahead of the 2026 World Cup on their shores.</p> <p>This influence could see him pick up the Athlete of the Year accolade from TIME for the second time, particularly considering they are an American-based publication.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Luke Littler</h3> <p>Luke “The Nuke” Littler has taken someone most blokes do at the pub for fun and used it to turn himself into a global superstar.</p> <p>The new school king of darts, Littler has just become the youngest ever World No.1 and one of only three players to have won five major titles in a single calendar year.</p> <p>We’re unsure how much the Yanks care about darts, but if they do, Littler is a solid smokey for Athlete of the Year.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Now that you have the rundown on our top picks &amp; predictions for head on over to our Sportsbet markets for a punt on the <a href="https://www.sportsbet.com.au/betting/novelties-and-entertainment/time-person-of-the-year/2025-time-person-of-the-year-8793312">2025 TIME Person Of The Year</a>!</p>