List of sportspeople by nickname

This is a list of sportspeople by nickname.

Aviation sport

 * "Mungo" = Mike Mangold, 🇺🇸
 * "The Quick Corsican" = Nicolas Ivanoff, 🇫🇷


 * "Witt" = Steve Wittman, 🇺🇸

Basketball

 * "Ack-Ack" = Tom Heinsohn, American forward-center
 * "Action Jackson" = Mark Jackson, American point guard
 * "The Admiral" = David Robinson, American center
 * "A.I." = Allen Iverson, American shooting guard
 * "Air Jordan" = Michael Jordan, American point guard
 * "The Answer" = Allen Iverson, American shooting guard
 * "The A-Train" = Artis Gilmore, American center
 * "Big Aristotle" = Shaquille O'Neal, American center
 * "Big Ben" = Ben Wallace, American center-forward
 * "Big Country" = Bryant Reeves, American center
 * "The Big Dipper" = Wilt Chamberlain, American center
 * "Big Dog" = Glenn Robinson, American power forward referenced a
 * "The Big E" = Elvin Hayes, American power forwardElvin Hayes Past Stats, Playoff Stats, Statistics, History, and Awards
 * "Big Nasty" = Corliss Williamson, American power forward
 * "Big O" = Oscar Robertson, American point guard (and precursor to the modern point forward)
 * "Big Red" = Dave Cowens, American center
 * "The Big Ticket" = Kevin Garnett, United States power forward
 * "Bimbo" = Vernell Coles, United States basketball player
 * "Bird" = George Yardley, United States basketball player
 * "Black Mamba" = Kobe Bryant, United States shooting guard
 * "Blue" = Theo Edwards, United States shooting guard
 * "Bo" = Charles Outlaw, United States power forward
 * "Buck" = Charles Williams, United States power forward
 * "Buddha" = James Edwards, United States center
 * "Buddy" = Harry Jeannette, United States basketball player
 * "Butterbean" = Bob Love, United States power forward
 * "Cadillac" = Greg Anderson, United States basketball player
 * "Cat" = Cuttino Mobley, United States basketball player
 * "Chief" = Robert Parish, American center
 * "Chocolate Thunder" = Darryl Dawkins, American center
 * "The Chuckster" = Charles Barkley, American power forward
 * "Clyde" = Walt Frazier, United States point guard
 * "Clyde The Glide" = Clyde Drexler, United States shooting guard
 * "Cornbread" = Cedric Maxwell, United States basketball power forward
 * "DJ" = Dennis Johnson, American combo guard
 * "D Square" = Dale Davis, United States center
 * "Dee" = DeCovan Kadell Brown, United States basketball player
 * "Diesel" = Shaquille O'Neal, American center
 * "Doc" = Glenn Rivers, American point guard
 * "Dr. Dunkenstein" = Darrell Griffith, American shooting guard
 * "Dr. J" = Julius Erving, American small forward
 * "Dr. Rounds" = Dan Roundfield, United States power forward
 * "Dollar Bill" = Bill Bradley, American small forward
 * "Doug E. Fresh" = Gerald Wilkins, United States shooting guard
 * "The Dream" = Hakeem Olajuwon, Nigerian-American center
 * "Dugie" = Slater Martin, United States basketball player
 * "Earl The Pearl" = Earl Monroe, United States shooting guard
 * "The enormous Mormon" = Shawn Bradley, United States center
 * "Fast Eddie" = Edward Johnson, Jr., United States basketball player
 * "Fat" = Lafayette Lever, United States point guard
 * "The Glove" = Gary Payton, American point guard
 * "The Goat" = Earl Manigault, United States basketball playerVideohound Golden Movie Retriever 2007; review of biopic
 * "Googs" = Tom Gugliotta, United States power forward
 * "Grandma-ma" = Larry Johnson, United States power forward
 * "Greyhound" = Walter Davis, United States shooting guard
 * "Hap" or "Happy" = Harold Hairston, United States basketball player
 * "The Hawk" = Connie Hawkins, United States power forward
 * "The High Ayatolla of Slamola" = Larry Nance, United States power forward
 * "His Heinous" = Bill Laimbeer, United States center
 * "Hondo" = John Havlicek, American small forward
 * "Horse" = Dan Issel, American forward-center
 * "Hot Rod" =
 * Rodney Hundley, American swingman
 * John Williams, American power forward
 * "The Houdini of the Hardwood" = Bob Cousy, American point guard
 * "The Hoya Destroya" = Patrick Ewing, Jamaica-born American center
 * "The Human Highlight Reel" = Dominique Wilkins, American combo forward
 * "Iceman" = George Gervin, American shooting guard
 * "Jellybean" = Joe Bryant, United States power forward and WNBA coach
 * "Junior" = Ulysses Bridgeman, American small forward
 * "The Junk Yard Dog" = Jerome Williams, United States power forward
 * "Kangaroo Kid" = Billy Cunningham, United States basketball player
 * "Li'l Abner" = Cliff Hagan, American forward-center
 * "Mad Max" = Vernon Maxwell, United States shooting guard
 * "Magic" = Earvin Johnson, American point guard
 * "The Mailman" = Karl Malone, United States power forward
 * "Mão Santa" (Portuguese for "Holy Hand") = Oscar Schmidt, Brazilian small forward
 * "Microwave" = Vinnie Johnson, American shooting guard
 * "Mighty Mouse" = Damon Stoudamire, American point guard
 * "Mr. Big Shot" = Chauncey Billups, American guard
 * "Mr. Bill" = Bill Cartwright, American center
 * "Mr. Clutch" = Jerry West, United States shooting guard
 * "Mr. Everything" = Craig Ehlo, American small forward
 * "Mr. Mean" = Larry Smith, United States basketball player
 * "Mr. Moves" = Michael Russell, United States basketball player
 * "Moochie" = Martyn Norris, United States point guard
 * "Mookie" = Daron Blaylock, United States point guard
 * "Muggsy" = Tyrone Bogues, American point guard
 * "Nate The Great" = Nate Thurmond, United States center
 * "Never Nervous" = Pervis Ellison, United States center
 * "Nick The Quick" = Nick Van Exel, American point guard
 * "The Owl Without a Vowel" = Bill Mlkvy, United States basketball player
 * "Peja" = Predrag Stojaković, Serbian small forward
 * "Penny" = Anfernee Hardaway, United States basketball player
 * "Pistol Pete" = Pete Maravich, United States shooting guard
 * "Pitchin' Paul" = Paul Arizin, United States basketball player
 * "Pooh" = Jerome Richardson, United States basketball player
 * "Popeye" = Ronald Jones, United States power forward
 * "The Reign Man" = Shawn Kemp, United States power forward
 * "Red" = Johnny Kerr, United States basketball player
 * "Red" = Ephraim J. Rocha, United States basketball player
 * "Rifleman" = Chuck Person, American small forward
 * "Rip" = Richard Hamilton, United States shooting guard
 * "Rooney" = Šarūnas Marčiulionis, Lithuanian shooting guard
 * "The Round Mound of Rebound" = Charles Barkley, American power forward
 * "Shaq" = Shaquille O'Neal, United States center
 * "Sheed" = Rasheed Wallace, United States power forward
 * "Silk" = Jamaal Wilkes, American small forward
 * "Sir Charles" = Charles Barkley, United States power forward
 * "Sleepy" = Eric Floyd, United States shooting guard
 * "Smush" = William Parker, United States basketball player
 * "Speedy" = Craig Claxton, United States point guard
 * "Spider" =
 * John Salley, United States power forward
 * Jerry Sloan, United States shooting guard
 * "Spud" = Anthony Webb, American point guard
 * "The Squid" = Sidney Moncrief, American shooting guard
 * "Starbury" = Stephon Marbury, United States basketball player
 * "Stormin' Norman" = Norm Van Lier, American point guard
 * "Stumpy" = Gail Goodrich, United States basketball player
 * "Sweetwater" = Nathaniel Clifton, United States basketball player
 * "T-Mac" = Tracy McGrady, American swingman
 * "Thunder Dan" = Dan Majerle, United States shooting guard
 * "Tiny" = Nate Archibald, American point guard
 * "Tractor" = Robert Traylor, United States power forward
 * "Tree" = Wayne Rollins, United States center
 * "The Truth" = Paul Pierce, United States basketball player
 * "U.D." = '''Udonis Haslem, American power forward
 * "The Waiter" = Toni Kukoč, Croatian small forward
 * "Wilt the Stilt" = Wilt Chamberlain, United States center
 * "The Wizard(s)" =
 * Gus Williams, United States basketball player
 * Walt Williams, United States basketball player
 * "The Worm" = Dennis Rodman, United States power forward
 * "The X-Man" = Xavier McDaniel, American power forward
 * "Zeke" = Isiah Thomas, United States point guard
 * "Zeke from Cabin Creek" = Jerry West, United States shooting guard

Biathlon

 * "The Cannibal" = Ole Einar Bjørndalen 🇳🇴
 * "The Flying Frenchman" = Raphaël Poirée 🇫🇷
 * "The King of Biathlon" = Ole Einar Bjørndalen 🇳🇴
 * "Lucky Luke" = Simon Eder 🇦🇹
 * "Rotkäppchen" (German: "Little Red Riding Hood") = Kati Wilhelm 🇩🇪
 * "Super-Svendsen" = Emil Hegle Svendsen 🇳🇴
 * "Turbo-Disl" = Uschi Disl 🇩🇪
 * "Willi the Kid" = Wilfried Pallhuber 🇮🇹

Boxing

 * "Big Bad John" = John McDermott 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Fraudley" = Audley Harrison 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (intended to be an insult by Frank Warren)
 * "Old Chocolate" = George Godfrey 🇨🇦

Bullfighting

 * "José Falcón" = José Carlos Frita Falcao
 * "El Niño del Sol Naciente" = Atsuhiro Shimoyama 🇯🇵

Cricket

 * "Fab Four" = Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, and V. V. S. Laxman; 🇮🇳 India


 * "The Wall" = Rahul Dravid,


 * "The Cat" = Phil Tufnell, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Creepy" = John Crawley, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Wireless" = Joe Root, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Chef" = Alistair Cook, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Beefy" = Ian Botham, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Banger" = Marcus Trescothick, 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England


 * "Pup" = Michael Clarke, 🇦🇺 Australia
 * "Smudge" = Steve Smith, 🇦🇺 Australia
 * "Baz" = Brendon McCullum, 🇳🇿 New Zealand
 * "The Big Show" = Glenn Maxwell, 🇦🇺 Australia
 * "White Lightning" = Allan Donald, 🇿🇦 South Africa
 * "Steyn Gun" = Dale Steyn, 🇿🇦 South Africa
 * "Alfie" = Justin Langer, 🇦🇺 Australia
 * "Haydos" = Matthew Hayden, 🇦🇺 Australia
 * "All Hands Zondeki" = Monde Zondeki, 🇿🇦 South Africa

Cycling

 * "The Animal" = Ellen van Dijk, road racing and track cycling rider
 * "Afro-Bob" = Robert de Wilde, BMX racing rider
 * "Amtrak" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderAmerican BMXer September 1990 Vol.12 No.8 pg.10
 * "Big Chuck" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderBMX Plus! September 1987 Vol.10 No.9 pg.29
 * "Black Magic" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderBMX Action June 1985 Vol.10 No.6 pg.54 sidebar (which he had stenciled on the back of his racing pants in 1985)
 * "Breakaway killer" = Ji Cheng, 🇨🇳 road cyclist
 * "Bubba" = Burlin Harris III, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderUnited States Olympic Committee document confirming Harris's first name (page.44 *.pdf file.)
 * "Chasemainian Devil" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderBMX Plus! June 1988 Vol.11 No.6 pg.43
 * "Choo-Choo Charlie" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing rider
 * "Crazy Eric" = Eric Steele, 🇬🇧 freestyle BMX rider
 * "Dirt" = Brian Foster, 🇺🇸 BMX racing riderSnap BMX Magazine May 1999 Vol.6 Iss.3 No.31 pg.5 (table of contents)
 * "The Earthquake" = Eric Carter, 🇺🇸 BMX and downhill racing riderBMX Plus! July 1995 Vol.18 No.7 pg.64
 * "Farmer John" = John Tomac, 🇺🇸 BMX, Cross-country and road racing rider
 * "The Fleein' Korean" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing rider
 * "The Flying Dutchman" = Robert de Wilde, BMX racing rider
 * "The Golden Child" = Eric Carter, 🇺🇸 BMX and downhill racing riderBMX Action October 1988 Vol.13 No.10 pg.22Go December 1989 Vol.1 No.2 pg.17
 * "The Green Hornet" = David Zabriskie, 🇺🇸 road racing riderChristian Vande Velde, Vande Velde's View: My ability to discern..., VeloNews, July 9, 2006
 * "His Royal Hoyness" = Chris Hoy, 🇬🇧 track racing rider
 * "Hoycules" = Chris Hoy, 🇬🇧 track racing rider
 * "Jack" = John Prince, 🇬🇧 cyclist (and board track racing pioneer)
 * "Jake the Snake" = Jacob Heilbron, 🇨🇦 Cyclo-cross rider
 * "Johnny T" = John Tomac, 🇺🇸 BMX, Cross-country and road racing rider
 * "King of Skateparks" = Eddie Fiola, 🇺🇸 freestyle BMX rider
 * "Leopard Head" = Sam Pilgrim, 🇬🇧 Freerider
 * "Mellow Johnny" = Lance Armstrong, 🇺🇸 road racing rider (from Maillot Jaune, French for Yellow jersey)Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins: Every Second Counts, Chapter 1, (ISBN 0-385-50871-9), Broadway Books 2003.
 * "No Way Rey" = Hans Rey, 🇩🇪 bike trials rider
 * "The Real McHoy" = Chris Hoy, 🇬🇧 track racing
 * "Scrawny" = Donald Robinson, 🇺🇸 BMX racingAmerican BMXer October 1994 Vol.16 Iss.9 pg.51
 * "Sheffield Steel" = Steve Peat, 🇬🇧 downhill racing rider
 * "The Snake" = Mike King, 🇺🇸 BMX racingBMX Plus September 1992 Vol.15 No.9 pg.50 (gray box)
 * "Speeding Locomotive Charlie" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing
 * "Steam Engine Charlie" = Charles Townsend, 🇺🇸 BMX racing
 * "Stumpdog" = Randy Stumpfhauser, 🇺🇸 BMX racingBMXStars.com profile
 * "Stumpy" = Randy Stumpfhauser, 🇺🇸 BMX racingFox Secure interview
 * "T.I." = Takashi Ito, 🇯🇵 freestyle BMX
 * "Tomac Attack" = John Tomac, 🇺🇸 BMX racing, Cross-country and road racing
 * "The Tome" = John Tomac, 🇺🇸 BMX, Cross-country and road racing rider
 * "Torchy" = William Peden, 🇨🇦 racing cyclistBabaian, Sharon. The Most Benevolent Machine (Ottawa: National Museum of Science and Technology, 1998), p.72.

Darts

 * "Wolfie" = Martin Adams 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "The Flying Scotsman" = Gary Anderson
 * "Barney" = Raymond van Barneveld
 * "The Crafty Cockney" = Eric Bristow 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "The Viking" = Andy Fordham 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Mighty Mike" = Michael van Gerwen
 * "Jackpot" = Adrian Lewis 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Old Stone Face" = John Lowe 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Darth Maple" = John Part 🇨🇦
 * "The Power" = Phil Taylor 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Jocky" = Jocky Wilson

Association football

 * "L'Aeroplanino" (Italian for "The Little Aeroplane") = Vincenzo Montella, Italian striker
 * "El Ángel Gabriel" (Spanish for "The Angel Gabriel"), "Batigol" = Gabriel Batistuta, Argentine striker
 * "Angelo Anguilla" (Italian for "Angelo the Eel") = Angelo Anquilletti, Italian defender
 * "El Apache" (Spanish for "The Apache") = Carlos Tevez, Argentine striker
 * "The Architect", "Maestro", "The Metronome", "Mozart", "The Professor" = Andrea Pirlo, Italian midfielder
 * "L'Ascensore Umano" (Italian for "The Human Lift") = Sebastiano Rossi, Italian goalkeeper
 * "The Atomic Ant" = Sebastian Giovinco, Italian forward
 * "Aussie Guus" = Guus Hiddink, Dutch football manager
 * "O Baixinho" (Portuguese for "The Shorty") = Romário, Brazilian striker
 * "The Bald Eagle"
 * Attilio Lombardo (also "Popeye", "The Ostrich"), Italian football player and manager
 * Jim Smith, English football player, manager and director
 * "Il Balilla" (Genoese for "The Little Boy") = Giuseppe Meazza, Italian forward and manager
 * "Baz" = Barry Cogan, Irish footballer
 * "BBC"
 * Juventus's defensive trio, made up of Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci, and Giorgio Chiellini
 * Real Madrid's attacking trio, made up of Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema, and Cristiano Ronaldo
 * "The Baby-Faced Assassin" = Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Norwegian striker
 * "Berba" = Dimitar Berbatov, Bulgarian striker
 * "The Beast" = Mamadou Sakho, French defender; Zach Thornton, American goalkeeperhttp://www.ussoccer.com/stories/2014/03/14/15/09/interview-with-the-beast-zach-thornton-sits-down-with-the-mnt-blog
 * "El Beatle", "The Fifth Beatle" = George Best, Northern Irish winger"The birth of El Beatle". The Independent (London). Retrieved 20 August 2014
 * "Becks" = David Beckham, English midfielder
 * "Bello di Notte" (Italian for "Beautiful at Night"), "Zibì" = Zbigniew Boniek, Polish midfielder
 * "Bes" (Russian for "Demon") = Vladimir Beschastnykh, Russian striker
 * "Big Ben" = Christian Benteke, Belgian striker
 * "The Big Man", "Cesar", "King Billy" = Billy McNeill, Scottish defender
 * "Big Phil" = Luiz Felipe Scolari, Brazilian manager
 * "Billy" = Alessandro Costacurta, Italian defender
 * "Er Bimbo de Oro" (A Roman dialect/Spanish hybrid, translating to "The Golden Boy"), "L'Ottavo Re di Roma" (Italian for "The Eighth King of Rome"), "Er Pupone" (Roman for "The Big Baby"), "Il Capitano" (Italian for "The Captain"), and "Il Gladiatore" (Italian for "The Gladiator")
 * "The Black Panther", "The Black Pearl" = Eusébio, Portuguese striker
 * "The Black Spider"
 * Lev Yashin (also "The Black Panther"), Russian goalkeeper
 * Fabio Cudicini, Italian goalkeeper
 * Thomas N'Kono, Cameroonian goalkeeper
 * "Bob" = Aleksandr Sheshukov, Russian midfielder
 * "Bobo", "Il Toro" (Italian for "The Bull") = Christian Vieri, Italian striker
 * "The Body" = Robert Lewandowski, Polish striker
 * "Der Bomber" = Gerd Müller, German striker
 * "Bonimba" = Roberto Boninsegna, Italian striker
 * "Brian" = Stuart Lewis, English footballer
 * "La Brujita" (Spanish for "The Little Witch") = Juan Sebastián Verón, Argentine midfielderLa Brujita nació en un clásico
 * "Brunelleschi" = Federico Bernardeschi, Italian midfielder
 * "El Cabezón" (Spanish for "The Big Head") = Omar Sívori, Argentine-Italian forward
 * "El Cañón de Galés (Spanish for "The Cannon of Wales") = Gareth Bale, Welsh midfielder
 * "Carletto" = Carlo Ancelotti, Italian midfielder and manager
 * "The Cat of Prague" = František Plánička, Hungarian goalkeeper "Planicka, Der König der Robinsonaden" - sport.ARD.de - WDR, 2005
 * "Chicharito" (Spanish for "The Little Pea") = Javier Hernández, Mexican forward
 * "Il Cinghiale" (Italian for "The Boar"), "Tyson" = Angelo Peruzzi, Italian goalkeeper
 * "Cobra", "Re David" (Italian for "King David"), "Trezegol" = David Trezeguet, French striker
 * "The Commander", "Regele" (Romanian for "The King"), "The Maradona of the Carpathians" = Gheorghe Hagi, Romanian midfielder"Romania and Gala’s commander and king". FIFA.com. Retrieved 18 November 2013
 * "CR7", "The Commander", "The Steam Engine"(because of his speed), "The Sultan of Stepover" = Cristiano Ronaldo, Portuguese striker
 * "Deltaplano" (Italian for "Hang glider"), "Spiderman" = Walter Zenga, Italian goalkeeper
 * "Dhagandey" (Maldivian for "Man of Steel") = Ali Ashfaq, Maldivian striker
 * "Dino" = Jan Koller, Czech striker
 * "Il Divin Codino" (Italian for "The Divine Ponytail"), "Raffaello", "Robi" = Roberto Baggio, Italian forward
 * "El Divino" (Spanish for "The Divine") = Ricardo Zamora, Spanish goalkeeper
 * "Don Fabio" = Fabio Capello, Italian midfielder and manager
 * "Enceradeira" (Portuguese for "floor polisher") = Zinho, Brazilian midfielder (nickname given as a mockery, regarding his playing style where he constantly went around in circles)
 * "Il Fenomeno" (Italian for "The Phenomenon") = Ronaldo, Brazilian striker
 * "Fergie" = Alex Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager
 * "Fideo" (Spanish for "Noodle") = Ángel Di María, Argentine midfielder
 * "El Flaco" (Spanish for "The Skinny One"), "El Salvador" (Spanish for "The Saviour"), "El Profeta del Gol" (Spanish for "The Goal Prophet") = Johan Cruyff, Dutch winger and manager
 * "The Flying Dutchman" = Robin van Persie, Dutch striker
 * "Furia Ceca" (Italian for "Czech Fury" or "Blind Fury"), "The Czech Cannon" = Pavel Nedvěd, Czech midfielder
 * "The Galloping Major" = Ferenc Puskás, Hungarian striker
 * "Galinho de Quintino" (Portuguese for "Little Rooster from Quintino") = Zico, Brazilian forward or midfielder
 * "Il Gallo" (Italian for "The Rooster") = Andrea Belotti, Italian strikerE il gallo cantò due volte. Palermo-Novara 2-1 Palermocalcio.itTutti ai piedi del 'Gallo'. Il futuro è già qui Livesicilia.it
 * "The Gardner", "Poncherello" = Julio Ricardo Cruz, Argentine striker
 * "Gazza" = Paul Gascoigne, English footballer
 * "I Gemelli del Gol" (Italian for "The Goal Twins)" = Sampdoria's attacking duo, made up of Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Mancini
 * "Genghis Kahn", "Der Titan" (German for "The Titan"), "Vol-Kahn-o", "King Kahn" = Oliver Kahn, German goalkeeper
 * "Il Genio" (Italian for "The Genius")
 * Evaristo Beccalossi, Italian midfielder
 * Dejan Savićević, Montenegrin midfielder
 * "Giero" = Rob Gier, English footballer
 * "Il Gigante Buono" (Italian for "The Gentle Giant") = John Charles, Welsh footballer
 * "The Golden Boy" = Gianni Rivera, Italian midifelder
 * "Golden Guus" = Guus Hiddink, Dutch football manager
 * "Gre-No-Li" = the Swedish attacking trio who played for A.C. Milan, made up of Gunnar Gren, Gunnar Nordahl and Nils Liedholm
 * "El Guaje" (Asturian for "The Kid") = David Villa, Spanish strikerhttp://www.goal.com/en/people/spain/1713/david-villa/profile#http://football-tickets.barcelona.com/index.php/david_villa
 * "Guly" = Andrés Guglielminpietro, Argentine midfielder
 * "Guus Geluk" (literally 'Lucky Guus', Dutch for Disney's Gladstone Gander) = Guus Hiddink, Dutch football manager
 * "Henke", "The King of Kings" = Henrik Larsson, Swedish striker
 * "The Holy Goalie" = Artur Boruc, Polish goalkeeper (due to his custom of blessing himself before games)
 * "Ibra", "Ibracadabra" = Zlatan Ibrahimović, Swedish striker
 * "L'Imperatore" (Italian for "The Emperor") = Adriano, Brazilian striker
 * "The Incredible Sulk" = Nicolas Anelka, French strikerPremiership: Anelka – Return of the Sulk
 * "The Iron Curtain", "The Cat" = Rinat Dasayev, Russian goalkeeper
 * "Ironhead" = Tam Kong-pak, Hong Kong defender
 * "Jinky", "The Wee Man", "The Lord of the Wing" = Jimmy Johnstone, Scottish winger
 * "La Joya" (Spanish for "The Jewel"), "El Pibe de la Pensión" (Spanish for "The Kid from the Boarding House") = Paulo Dybala, Argentine forward
 * "Justo" = Just Fontaine, French striker
 * "Der Kaiser" (German for "The Emperor") = Franz Beckenbauer, German sweeper and manager
 * "Kaiser Franz" (German for "Emperor Franz"), "Piscinin" (Milanese for "The Little One") = Franco Baresi, Italian defender
 * "Kamikaze" = Giorgio Ghezzi, Italian goalkeeper
 * "Keano" = Roy Keane, Irish midfielder
 * "Khomyak" (Russian for "Hamster") = Vladimir Beschastnykh, Russian midfielder/striker
 * "King Eric" = Eric Cantona, French forwardGanguly, Aubrey (March 2001). Ganguly, Aubrey. ed. "Eric and us". United (Manchester: Future Publishing) (100): 42–48
 * "King George" = George Weah, Liberian striker
 * "King Kenny" = Kenny Dalglish, Scottish striker and manager
 * "King Kong" = Giorgio Chiellini, Italian defender
 * "Kun" = Sergio Agüero, Argentine striker
 * "Kuningas" (Finnish for "The King") = Jari Litmanen
 * "The Little General" = Dick Advocaat, Dutch managerAs Dick Advocaat embarks on his second season at Ibrox, the | Sunday Herald, The Newspaper | Find Articles
 * "Lorenzo Il Magnifico" (Italian for "Lorenzo The Magnificent")
 * Lorenzo Buffon, Italian goalkeeper
 * Lorenzo Insigne, Italian forward
 * "Los" (Russian for "Moose") = Dmitri Loskov, Russian midfielderГазета.Ru — Дмитрий Лоськов
 * "Ma-Gi-Ca" = Napoli's attacking trio during the late 1980s, made up of Diego Maradona, Bruno Giordano, and Careca
 * "Magic Box" = Gianfranco Zola, Italian forward
 * "Magic Dwarf" = Philipp Lahm, German defender
 * "O Mágico" (Portuguese for "The Magic"), "The Little Magician" = Philippe Coutinho, Brazilian midfielder
 * "El Mago de Osijek" (Spanish for "The Wizard of Osijek"), "Šukerman" = Davor Šuker, Croatian footballer
 * "Il Mago" (Italian for "The Wizard") = Helenio Herrera, Argentine defender and manager
 * "Mary Poppins" = Alan Shearer, English striker (given as an insult by two Newcastle United executives during a candid interview with a journalist)
 * "Der Mann aus Glas" (German for "The Man of Glass") = Arjen Robben, Dutch midfielder, in reference to his susceptibility to injury
 * "El Matador" (Spanish for "The Bull Fighter")
 * Edinson Cavani, Uruguayan striker
 * Marcelo Salas, Chilean striker
 * "Matrix" = Marco Materazzi, Italian defender
 * "Miracle Worker" = Bora Milutinović, Serbian football soccer trainer (for his achievement of taking four different modest teams beyond the first round in four different World Cup finals)
 * "The Mosquito" = Roberto Anzolin, Italian goalkeeper
 * "A Muralha Azul" (Portuguese for "The Blue Wall") = Dida, Brazilian goalkeeper
 * "MSN" = Barcelona's attacking trio, made up of Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, and Neymar
 * "Myggen" (Norwegian for mosquito) = Erik Mykland, Norwegian midfielder
 * "Nacho" = Ignacio González, Uruguayan footballer
 * "Nacka", "The waving corn cob" = Lennart Skoglund, Swedish striker
 * "El Niño" (Spanish for "The Child") = Fernando Torres, Spanish striker
 * "The Non-Flying Dutchman" = Dennis Bergkamp, Dutch striker (due to his fear of flying)
 * "Nura" = Georgi Nurov, Russian strikerДублёры
 * "The Octopus" = Mohamed Sissoko, Malian midifelder
 * "Pablito", "Torero" (Spanish for "Bull fighter") = Paolo Rossi, Italian striker
 * "El Paròn" (Triestin for "The Master") = Nereo Rocco, Italian footballer and manager
 * "Penna Bianca" (Italian for "The White Feather") = Fabrizio Ravanelli, Italian striker
 * "Pepito" = Giuseppe Rossi, Italian striker
 * "El Polaco" (Spanish for "The Pole"), "Valdanito" = Hernán Crespo, Argentine striker
 * "Il Polpo Paul" (Italian for "Paul The Octopus"), "Pogboom" = Paul Pogba, French midfielder
 * "Il Faraone" (Italian for "The Pharaoh") = Stephan El Shaarawy, Italian striker (in reference to his Egyptian father)
 * "El Pistolero" (Spanish for "The Gunfighter")
 * Luis Suárez, Uruguayan striker
 * Hristo Stoichkov, Bulgarian forward
 * "El Pibe de Bari" (Spanish for "The Kid from Bari"), "Il Gioiello di Bari Vecchia" (Italian for "The Jewel of Old Bari"), "Fantantonio" = Antonio Cassano, Italian forward
 * "El Pibe de Oro" = (The Golden Kid) Diego Maradona, Argentine forward or midfielder
 * "El Pibe" = (The Kid) Carlos Alberto Valderrama, Colombian midfielder
 * "Pinturicchio", = Alessandro Del Piero, Italian forward
 * "The Pitbull", "The Piranha", "Tubarão" (Portuguese for "The Shark") = Edgar Davids, Dutch midfielder
 * "El Pocho" (Spanish for "The Chubby One") = Ezequiel Lavezzi, Argentine winger
 * "Poldi" = Lukas Podolski, German midfielder/strikerAFP: 'Amazing' Podolski helps fire Cologne up table
 * "The Black Pearl" (Pérola Negra), "The King of Football" (O Rei do Futebol), "The King" (O Rei) = Pelé, Brazilian striker
 * "Le Président" (French for "The President") = Laurent Blanc, French defender
 * "El Príncipe" (Spanish for "The Prince")
 * Enzo Francescoli (also "El Flaco", Spanish for "The Skinny One"), Uruguayan midfielder
 * Diego Milito, Argentine striker
 * "El Principito" (Spanish for "The Little Prince") = Lucas Biglia, Argentine midfielder
 * "Il Principe" (Italian for "The Prince") = Giuseppe Giannini, Italian midfielder
 * "Il Principino"/"Il Piccolo Principe" (Italian for "The Little Prince")
 * Alberto Aquilani, Italian midfielder
 * Claudio Marchisio, Italian midfielder
 * Miralem Pjanić, Bosnian midfielder
 * "Il Professore" (Italian for "The Professor")
 * Gunnar Gren, Swedish striker when playing for A.C. Milan
 * Clarence Seedorf, Dutch midfielder
 * Mauro Tassotti, Italian defender
 * "The Prophet of Fusignano" = Arrigo Sacchi, Italian manager
 * "Providenza" (Italian for Providence), "San Massaro" = Daniele Massaro, Italian forward or midfielder
 * "La Pulga" (Spanish. "The Flea") = Lionel Messi, Argentine forward
 * "Rey Arturo" (Spanish for "King Arthur"), "Il Guerriero" (Italian for "The Warrior"), "La Piranha" (Spanish for "The Piranha") = Arturo Vidal, Chilean midfielder
 * "Rizzi-gol" = Ruggiero Rizzitelli, Italian striker
 * "La Roccia" (Italian for "The Rock")
 * Andrea Barzagli, Italian defender
 * Tarcisio Burgnich, Italian defender
 * "Le Roi" (French for "The King") = Michel Platini, French midfielder
 * "Rombo di Tuono" (Italian for "Roar of Thunder") = Luigi Riva, Italian striker
 * "Royce The Voice" = Simon Royce, English goalkeeper
 * "Roycey" = Simon Royce, English goalkeeper
 * "The Ruud Devil", "Van the Man", "Van Gol" = Ruud van Nistelrooy, Dutch striker
 * "La Saeta Rubia" (Spanish for "The Blonde Arrow") = Alfredo Di Stéfano, Argentine striker
 * "San Iker" (Spanish for "Saint Iker") = Iker Casillas, Spanish goalkeeper
 * "S.A.S."
 * Alan Shearer and Teddy Sheringham, when they played up front for England together
 * Luis Suárez and Daniel Sturridge, when they player up front for Liverpool
 * "Schnapper" = Manuel Neuer, German goalkeeper
 * "El Scorpion" = René Higuita, Colombian goalkeeper (named after his infamous goal save against England during a friendly match)A Brief History of Goalkeeping
 * "Sikkimese Sniper" = Baichung Bhutia, Indian football striker
 * "The Škrtelator", "The Terminator" = Martin Škrtel, Slovakian defender
 * "The Special One" = José Mourinho, Portuguese football manager (given to him by the media for his infamous press conference comment)
 * "São Marcos" (literally St. Mark) = Marcos Roberto Silveira Reis, Brazilian goalkeeper
 * "Spillo" (Italian for "Needle") = Alessandro Altobelli, Italian striker
 * "Le Sulk" = Nicolas Anelka, French striker
 * "Superman" = Gianluigi Buffon, Italian goalkeeper
 * "Super Mario"
 * Mario Balotelli, Italian striker
 * Mario Basler, German midfielder
 * "Superpippo" (Italian for "Super Goof") = Filippo Inzaghi, Italian striker
 * "The Swan of Utrecht" = Marco van Basten, Dutch striker
 * "The Three Degrees" = Laurie Cunningham, Brendon Batson and Cyrille Regis (a name given to them in the late 1970s by then-manager of West Bromwich Albion, Ron Atkinson when they played under him. Atkinson named them after the African American female soul group of the same name in reference to their Black heritage)
 * "El Tigre" (Spanish for "The Tiger") = Radamel Falcao, Colombian striker
 * "The Tinkerman", "The Tinkerer" = Claudio Ranieri, Italian football manager (given by the British press during his time at Chelsea)
 * "Tisha" = Andrey Tikhonov, Russian midfielder
 * "Tit" = Yegor Titov, Russian midfielderЕгор Титов. Матчасть Спартака. The nickname is just a contraction of Titov's surname and is not derogatory in Russian
 * "El Tractor" (Spanish for "The Tractor") = Javier Zanetti, Argentine defender
 * "Trigger" = Nicky Southall, English footballer
 * "Tsar Hiddink" = Guus Hiddink, Dutch football manager
 * "Tulip" = Danny Cullip, English footballer
 * "Vecio" (Venetian for "Old Man") = Enzo Bearzot, Italian footballer and managerL'Italia piange Enzo Bearzot – Calcio – Sportmediaset. Sportmediaset.mediaset.it (21 December 2010). Retrieved on 2016-07-23.
 * "Vento dell'Est" (Italian for "Eastern Wind") = Andriy Shevchenko, Ukrainian striker
 * "The Wall"
 * Andrea Barzagli, Italian defender
 * Gianluca Pagliuca, Italian goalkeeper
 * Walter Samuel, Argentine defender
 * "The Warrior"
 * Gary Medel, Chilean midfielder
 * Felipe Melo, Brazilian midfielder
 * "The Washing Machine" = Tiago Mendes, Portuguese midifelder
 * "The Water Carrier" = Didier Deschamps, French midfielder.
 * "Wazza", "The Wonder Boy", "Shrek" = Wayne Rooney, English striker
 * "The Welsh Wizard" = Ryan Giggs, Welsh footballer
 * "Lo Zar" (Italian for "The Tsar") = Pietro Vierchowod, Italian defender
 * "Lo Zio" (Italian for "The Uncle") = Giuseppe Bergomi, Italian defender
 * "Zizou" = Zinedine Zidane, French midfielder
 * "One Size" = Fitz Hall

American football

 * "Breesus" = Drew Brees
 * "The Cowboy" = Justin Smith
 * "Dirty Dozen" = 1975 Dallas Cowboys team
 * "Gunslinger" = Brett Favre
 * "The Hogs" = 1980s/1990s Washington Redskins offensive line
 * "Megatron" = Calvin Johnson
 * "Refrigerator" = William Perry
 * "Shady" = LeSean McCoyGreenstein, Teddy. "Pitt's 'Shady' McCoy shines in South Bend spotlight" Retrieved on December 23, 2013

Australian rules football
All players are Australians unless otherwise indicated.

Canadian football
All players are Canadian unless indicated otherwise.


 * "Indian Jack" = Jack Jacobs, American quarterback and punter of Creek heritageCosentino, Frank. "Jacobs, Jack", in Canadian Encyclopedia (Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1988), Volume 2, p.1102.
 * "The Little Assassin" = Ron Lancaster, American quarterback, coach, and executiveCosentino, Frank. "Lancaster, Ronald", in The Canadian Encyclopedia (Edmonton: Hurtig Publishers, 1988), Volume 2, p.1169.
 * "The Little General" = Ron Lancaster, American quarterback, coach, and executive

Golf

 * "Big Phil" = Phil Mickelson 🇺🇸
 * "Magnificent Seven" =
 * Nancy Lopez 🇺🇸
 * Pat Bradley 🇺🇸
 * Amy Alcott 🇺🇸
 * Patty Sheehan 🇺🇸
 * Betsy King 🇺🇸
 * Beth Daniel 🇺🇸
 * Juli Inkster 🇺🇸
 * "Mrs. Doubtfire" = Colin Montgomerie
 * "Prince Bashful" (ハニカミ王子) = Ryo Ishikawa 🇯🇵
 * "The Small Unit" = Chez Reavie 🇺🇸

Gymnastics

 * "Nastia" = Anastasia Liukin 🇺🇸 (Russian diminutive)

Jockeys/Trainers

 * "Bo-rail" = Calvin Borel 🇺🇸 flat (from his penchant for steering his mounts close to the rail)
 * "C-Team" = Felix Coetzee flat and Tony Cruz, trainer and former jockey 🇭🇰 (with Cheng Keung-fai, owner)
 * "The Long Fellow" = Lester Piggott 🇬🇧 flat

Ice hockey

 * "(The) Rocket" = Maurice Richard, Canadian ice hockey player
 * "747" = Marc Crawford, Canadian ice hockey player
 * "Ace" = Garnet Bailey, Canadian ice hockey player
 * "AK-27" = Alexei Kovalev, Russian winger
 * "Alexander the Great" =
 * Alexander Mogilny, Russian winger
 * Alexander Ovechkin, Russian winger
 * "The A-Train" = Anton Volchenkov, Russian ice hockey player
 * "Big Bird" = Larry Robinson, Canadian defenceman
 * "Kovy" =
 * Ilya Kovalchuk, Russian winger
 * Alexei Kovalev, Russian winger
 * "Sammy" = Sergei Samsonov, Russian winger

Judo

 * "Rusty" = Rena Kanokogi 🇺🇸

Karate

 * "Master Ishii" = Kazuyoshi Ishii 🇯🇵

Mixed martial arts

 * "The Bear" = Mark Smith 🇺🇸

Union

 * "Billy Whizz" = Jason Robinson, fullback and wing 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿
 * "Robbo" = Jason Robinson, fullback and wing 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "The Fun Bus" = Jason Leonard, Prop 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "Shaggy" = Will Greenwood, Centre 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "Pitbull" = Brian Moore, Hooker 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "Pine Tree" = Colin Meads, Lock 🇳🇿


 * "The Beaver" = Stephen Donald, Fly Half / Centre 🇳🇿


 * "The Judge" = Paul Rendall, Prop 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "Squeaky" = Rob Andrew, Fly Half 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿


 * "Alfie" = Gareth Thomas, Centre/Wing 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿


 * "The Iron Duke" = Bobby Windsor, Hooker 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿


 * "Uncle Fester" = Keith Wood, Hooker


 * "Judith" = Craig Chalmers, Fly Half


 * "The Great White Shark" or "JJ" = John Jeffrey, Flanker

League

 * "Chariots Offiah" = Martin Offiah, British international

Skateboarding

 * "Bam" = Brandon Margera 🇺🇸
 * "Bucky" = Charles Lasek 🇺🇸
 * "P-Rod" = Paul Rodriguez Jr. 🇺🇸

Track and field

 * "Emperor" = Haile Gebrselassie, long distances 🇪🇹
 * "The fastest man on no legs" = Oscar Pistorius, paralympic sprinter 🇿🇦
 * "Linford's lunchbox" = Linford Christie, sprinter 🇬🇧 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (given to him by the British media in reference to the bulge of Christie's genitalia in his Lycra shorts, despised by Christie)
 * "Little Emperor" = Haile Gebrselassie, long distances 🇪🇹
 * "Oz" = Oscar Pistorius, paralympic sprinter 🇿🇦
 * "Lightning Bolt" = Usain Bolt, Olympic sprinter 🇯🇲
 * "Stella the Fella" = Stella Walsh, sprinter 🇵🇱
 * "Wonder Boy" = So Wa Wai, paralympic sprinter 🇭🇰

Triathlon

 * "The Chrissinator" = Chrissie Wellington 🇬🇧
 * "Muppet" = Chrissie Wellington 🇬🇧


 * "The Grip" = Mark Allen 🇺🇸
 * "The Man" = Dave Scott 🇺🇸

Volleyball

 * "Iron Hammer" = "Jenny" Lang Ping 🇨🇳 indoor
 * "Six Feet of Sunshine" = Kerri Walsh 🇺🇸 beach

Diving

 * "The Princess of Diving" = Guo Jingjing, 🇨🇳

Sailing

 * "Bertie" = Stanley Reed,
 * "Tahiti Bill" = Bill Howell, 🇦🇺

Surfing

 * "The Black Night" = Mickey Dora, 🇺🇸
 * "Da Cat" = Mickey Dora, 🇺🇸
 * "Eppo" = Michael Eppelstun, 🇦🇺
 * "The father of surfing" = Duke Kahanamoku,
 * "Mickey" = Miklos Dora, 🇺🇸
 * "Midget"" = Bernard Farrelly, 🇦🇺
 * "Miki" = Mickey Dora, 🇺🇸
 * "Mr. Malibu" = Mickey Dora, 🇺🇸
 * "Mr. Pipeline" =
 * Butch Van Artsdalen, 🇺🇸
 * Gerry Lopez, 🇺🇸
 * "The Wounded Seagull" = Mark Richards, 🇦🇺

Swimming

 * "The Albatross" = Michael Groß, 🇩🇪
 * "The Baltimore Bullet" =Michael Phelps, 🇺🇸Harris, Nick. "'Baltimore Bullet' has history in his sights". Baltimore Sun.
 * "The golden couple (of British disability swimming)" = Sascha Kindred 🇬🇧 and Nyree Lewis 🇬🇧
 * "The Lochtenator" =Ryan Lochte, 🇺🇸Suz. "'Oh Ryan...". The Swim Aids. 2008-08-20.
 * "Lucy" = Liu Zige, 🇨🇳 (given by her coach Ken Wood as he cannot pronounce her name properly)

Other

 * "Cliff" = Griff Sanders, 🇬🇧 lawn bowler (alternative name, used by friends)
 * "DeG" = Patrick de Gayardon, 🇫🇷 skydiver and wingsuit flying pioneer
 * "Iron Lady" = Wendy Chai, 🇲🇾 ten-pin bowler
 * "Magic" = Joel Johnson, 🇺🇸 radio-controlled car racer
 * "Master Masami" (正美先生) = Masami Hirosaka, 🇯🇵 radio-controlled car racer
 * "Miss Ping" = Leah Neuberger, 🇺🇸 table tennis player
 * "Re-Pete" = Pete Fusco, Jr., 🇺🇸 radio-controlled car racer
 * "Super Dan" = Lin Dan, 🇨🇳 badminton player
 * "Tim" = Joseph Boggan, 🇺🇸 table tennis player
 * "White Warrior(s)" = Fung Ying Ki, Yu Chui Yee, Fan Pui Shan, Kwong Wai Ip, Chan Kam Loi, Hui Charn Hung, Yan Yun Tai and Chan Wing Kin, Chan Yui Chong, Wong Kit Mui; 🇭🇰 wheelchair fencers