Who are the 10 biggest athletes currently playing in Miami?

The Miami sports scene has always been among the most vibrant in the country. 

From Pat Riley’s Miami Heat being the talk of the town to the Miami Dolphins making Darius Rucker cry, there’s always something prominent happening in the Miami sports scene.

With all that in mind, who are the most notable athletes in the city?

Here are the 10 biggest athletes currently playing in South Beach.

10 biggest athletes currently playing in Miami

One of the best soccer players in the world, Suarez has spent the past season-plus in MLS with Inter Miami. Suarez, a six-time domestic league champion, totaled 20 goals and nine assists in 27 matches (21 starts) for Inter Miami in 2024. The 38-year-old previously played eight seasons in LaLiga for Barcelona (six seasons) and Atlético Madrid (two seasons), winning a combined five championships.

Selected in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M, Achane has been a consistent catalyst for Miami’s offense. Splitting reps with Raheem Mostert at running back, Achane has rushed for an average of 854 yards and seven touchdowns on 5.6 yards per carry over the first two years of his career. Meanwhile, Achane recorded 78 receptions (third on the Dolphins) for 592 yards (fourth) and six touchdown catches (tied for second) last season. His 12 touchdowns from scrimmage were four more than anyone else on the team.

He sneaks behind the secondary, finds the end zone and does “The Waddle.” In his four years in the NFL (2021-24), Waddle has been one of the better wide receivers in the sport, averaging 77 receptions for 1,032 yards and five touchdowns per season. He led the NFL with 18.1 yards per reception in 2022 and signed a three-year, $84.8 million extension with the Dolphins last offseason.

After being under center the past two seasons for the Georgia Bulldogs, Beck has taken his talents to South Beach. Across his 27 starts for Georgia from 2023-24, which saw the Bulldogs go 24-3, Beck averaged 3,713 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns, nine interceptions and a 156.2 passer rating per season, while completing 68.4% of his passes. The senior quarterback joins a Miami Hurricanes team that just missed the College Football Playoff in 2024.

After spending the first six seasons of his NHL career with the Calgary Flames, Tkachuk was traded to the Florida Panthers in 2022 and helped them get over the hump. They reached the Stanley Cup Final in back-to-back seasons and won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history in the 2023-24 season. Tkachuk, a two-time All-Star, totaled 26 goals and 62 assists last season, with the left wing having already tallied 22 goals this season as of Feb. 26. 

Adebayo, a five-time All-Defensive selection and three-time All-Star, has been a rock for the Heat since becoming a full-time starter in the 2019-20 season. Part of two teams that have reached the NBA Finals, Adebayo can put the ball on the floor and create havoc on the defensive end. He has averaged 18.4 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.2 steals per game, while shooting 53.7% from the field, over the past six seasons. With Jimmy Butler now gone, Adebayo is even more essential to Miami’s hopes of being a contender again in the near future.

Although the Dolphins’ drought without a playoff win now stands at 25 years, and injuries — specifically head-related — have slightly held back Tagovailoa, the young signal-caller has been good when healthy. In 2022, Tagovailoa led the NFL with a 105.5 passer rating, which he followed up by throwing for a league-high 4,624 yards in 2023. Last season, he led all quarterbacks with a 72.9% completion percentage. Tagovailoa begins a four-year, $212.4 million contract next season.

One could argue that Hill, a five-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowler, has played his best football across his three seasons in Miami. After a six-year stint with the Kansas City Chiefs, Hill set career highs in receiving yards in both 2022 (1,710) and 2023 (1,799) with the Dolphins. He also led the NFL as a whole in both receiving yards and touchdown receptions (13) in 2023. Despite a handful of career-low marks while dealing with an injury, the soon-to-be 31-year-old still posted 81 receptions for 959 yards and six touchdowns last season.

Herro is having arguably the best season of his NBA career. When Butler was in and out of the rotation due to suspensions (and has since been traded), Herro stepped up for the Heat. Herro, who earned his first All-Star nod, is averaging a personal-best 24 points, 5.6 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game so far this season. The 2021-22 NBA Sixth Man of the Year has continually been able to score in isolation and drain shots from the perimeter; he’s averaging 19.1 points per game for his career and posted 20-plus points per game in each of the past four seasons.

One of the greatest humans to ever kick a soccer ball has been playing the global game in the 305 with Inter Miami over the past two years. Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner, two-time UEFA Men’s Player of the Year and 12-time domestic league champion, appeared in six games for Inter Miami in 2023, followed up by totaling 20 goals and 11 assists in 19 matches in 2024. Of course, Messi, who won 10 championships playing for Barcelona in LaLiga and won back-to-back titles in his two seasons playing for Paris SG in Ligue 1, led Argentina to the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup Championship.

Honorable mentions

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