What the Academy Awards are to the film industry, the Laureus Awards are to the sporting world. A ceremony that honors remarkable achievements in sports, it’s not just about recognizing the best of the best but also about using sports to create social change. In 2020, Lewis Hamilton and Lionel Messi—arguably the GOATs of Formula 1 and soccer, respectively—shared the honor of Laureus Sportsman of the Year. Considering how much they’ve both done for their sports throughout their careers, it was only fitting that 2020 was the first time two sportspeople shared the honor.

Following in the footsteps of Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel, Hamilton became only the third F1 driver in history to achieve that honor. While Messi had won the Laureus Awards with the Argentinian National Football team before, he became the first footballer to win the individual award. As Hamilton and Messi have since continued to further establish themselves as the GOATs of their sport, the seven-time champion hailed the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner for his 2023 feat.

Lionel Messi created history after beating Max Verstappen

In a spectacular, explosive 2021 F1 season that saw Hamilton and Max Verstappen fight it out for the crown, the Dutchman came out on top. Courtesy of his first championship and stellar performance throughout the year, the now-25-year-old was nominated for the 2022 Laureus Sportsman of the Year. Edging out the likes of Novak Djokovic and Tom Brady, he became the fourth F1 driver to win the honor. 

The dominant performance that followed the 2021 season in 2022 saw Verstappen not only win his second consecutive title but also get nominated for the award a second year running. But it wasn’t meant to be this time because Lionel Messi had other plans. After winning his first-ever FIFA World Cup title with Argentina, Messi became the first player to win the Golden Ball—the tournament’s best player—twice. His sustained efforts for Argentina finally paid off, and Laureus recognized them, too. 

At the 2023 Awards ceremony, Messi pipped Verstappen to the Sportsman of the Year title and also became the first person to win the Team of the Year in the same season. Having edged out his 2021 arch-rival, Hamilton penned a message for the World Cup winner, writing, “Legend!! So well deserved! Congrats!” As legendary as Hamilton (and the world) thinks the Argentine is, the seven-time champion doesn’t believe he’s the greatest sportsperson of all time.

Read More: Only Lionel Messi Can Unite Clashing F1 World as Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso Raise a Toast to the New World Champion

Lewis Hamilton names his GOAT outside of F1

The Greatest Of All Time debate is one that eternally exists in every sport. It’s also one that’ll never have a clear winner. Because of how sports continually evolve with time, comparing sportspeople from different generations within a sport doesn’t really make sense. But that doesn’t stop us from giving it a go either way. To make things even more challenging, a Mercedes team personnel went around the team’s garage and asked their team members who they thought was the GOAT outside F1.

Given that no GOAT debate could ever be complete without mentioning Lionel Messi, the Argentine’s name was bound to come up. But it wasn’t Hamilton who said it. While the seven-time champion’s teammate George Russell put his money on Roger Federer, Hamilton chose one of his heroes, who also happens to be a close friend and an NBA legend. If you haven’t already guessed, the seven-time champion said Michael Jordan. 

Who do you think is the greatest sportsperson of all time?

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