TIME Athlete of the Year Predictions 2026

The biggest show in sport landed in North America this year, and the TIME Athlete of the Year 2026 market has the World Cup written all over it.

Six of the nine names leading the way here played at the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Spain won it, edging Argentina 1-0 after extra time at MetLife Stadium on July 19.

But TIME doesn't hand this one out on World Cup medals alone. Since the award began in 2019, six of its seven winners have been American, and Lionel Messi in 2023 is the only exception.

The last two have gone to WNBA stars, Caitlin Clark in 2024 and A'ja Wilson in 2025. So, does a World Cup year swing it back to the world game, or does TIME stay close to home again?

For the latest news, analysis and odds, check out our TIME Athlete of the Year 2026 predictions below.

TIME Athlete of the Year Predictions 2026

Lamine Yamal

There's a reason the Barcelona winger leads the market.

Yamal won the World Cup with Spain and a second straight La Liga title with Barcelona, who sealed it with three matches to spare after a 2-0 win over Real Madrid.

He finished third in the Ballon d'Or, and he's still only 19. The knock? His World Cup was quiet by his standards, with one goal for the tournament. Teammate Rodri took the Golden Ball.

Still, a teenager who's already won La Liga and a World Cup is exactly the kind of story that ends up on a magazine cover.

Kylian Mbappe

If this were judged purely on goals, Mbappe would be a long way clear. He won the World Cup Golden Boot with 10 goals and four assists, becoming the first player to win it at two World Cups.

He was also the Champions League's top scorer with 15 goals and won a second straight Pichichi with 25 La Liga goals for Real Madrid.

That's 42 goals in 44 games for his club. He also finished runner-up in the Ballon d'Or.

What's missing is the big team trophy. France were beaten in the semi-finals and then lost a 6-4 thriller to England in the third-place play-off.

Harry Kane

Kane has the freshest headline of anyone in this market.

He won the Ballon d'Or at the London Palladium on October 26, the first English winner since Michael Owen in 2001.

He scored 36 Bundesliga goals to top the charts for a third straight season, and 61 in 51 games in all competitions as Bayern Munich won the league and the DFB Cup.

He added six goals at the World Cup as England reached the semi-finals, where Argentina beat them 2-1.

Shohei Ohtani

Ohtani is the one genuine two-way case in the field.

He hit 30 home runs for the Los Angeles Dodgers and went 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA across 14 starts on the mound.

The problem is how it finished. He didn't pitch after early July, and the Dodgers' bid for a third straight title ended with a 4-0 NLCS sweep by the Milwaukee Brewers.

Angel Reese

This is the live one.

In her first season with the Atlanta Dream, Reese set WNBA single-season records with 521 total rebounds and 206 offensive rebounds.

She was named the league's Defensive Player of the Year, picking up 46 of 74 votes.

TIME has gone to the WNBA two years running. A title on top of a record-breaking season would make Reese very hard to ignore.

Erling Haaland

Haaland scored 27 Premier League goals for Manchester City in 2025-26 and 38 in all competitions.

He got Norway to the World Cup, where their run ended against England in the quarter-finals.

He finished eighth in the Ballon d'Or, so it's hard to see him jumping the three footballers ahead of him in this market.

Josh Allen

Allen is the only one of the nine whose season is still in full swing.

Through six games he's thrown for 1,504 yards and nine touchdowns, and he leads the NFL with eight rushing touchdowns.

TIME's call comes in December, so the Bills star has around six more weeks to build his case.

Lionel Messi

Messi already has one of these, winning in 2023.

He scored eight goals at the World Cup, finished second in Golden Ball voting and came within an extra-time goal of a second world title.

He announced his retirement from the Argentina national team on August 31, and he's since taken his MLS tally to a league-leading 25 goals for Inter Miami.

He also finished fifth in the Ballon d'Or. It's a great farewell year, but probably not a winning one.

Cristiano Ronaldo

Ronaldo made history just by turning up, playing a record sixth World Cup.

It ended in the Round of 16, when Spain beat Portugal 1-0 on July 6, and Ronaldo confirmed it was his last World Cup.

Hard to make a winning case from there.

Who Has Won TIME Athlete of the Year?

2019: US Women's National Soccer Team

2020: LeBron James

2021: Simone Biles

2022: Aaron Judge

2023: Lionel Messi

2024: Caitlin Clark

2025: A'ja Wilson