Messi's move to PSG to win more titles: Sportsmen with multiple titles; LeBron James, Roger Federer, Lionel Messi & Raphael Nadal

The ultimate achievement for a sportsman is winning titles. It's the absolute test of mettle for any champion. There have been many champions in history from Pele to Muhammed Ali to Micheal Phelps. These sportsmen have dominated their sports, often earning the titles of undisputed champions and winning numerous titles. 

In recent times, there have been people of this ilk too. LeBron James, Roger Federer,  Lionel Messi, and Raphael Nadal are some of the most consistent champions in the 21st century, winning numerous titles and trophies. It would be an exercise in futility to try to compare these greats, least of all because they compete in different sports with different dynamics but also because they are all world-class achievers by any yardstick. So, we'll look over their impressive records to see how much each has achieved. 

LeBron James has won 4 rings (an award for the NBA Finals MVP), with the latest coming in the 2020 NBA Finals with the Los Angeles Lakers. His 3 previous rings came at Miami Heats (2012 & 2013) and with the Cleveland Cavaliers (2016). LeBron is the only player in history to have won MVP rings with 2 different franchises (a record set in 2016) and also the only player to win with 3 different franchises (2020). He sits 2nd on the list of players with the most rings, behind only Micheal Jordan who won 6 with the Chicago Bulls. Jordan won his 6 rings in 6 NBA Finals (6-0) compared to LeBron's 10 NBA Finals with 4 rings (4-6).

Roger Federer is a Swiss tennis player that has been at the apex of lawn tennis for a long time. His rivalry with Raphael Nadal has defined a generation in the Open Era of tennis. Federer has won a record 20 Grand Slam titles (same as Nadal & Djokovic), has appeared in a record 31 Grand Slam finals, 23 consecutive Grand Slam semi-finals, and 36 consecutive Grand Slam quarter-finals. He is the only tennis player to win 5 consecutive US Open titles (2004 - 2008), going on 40-matches unbeaten streak between those years. He has won a Career Grand Slam (all 4 majors at least once) and a Career Grand Slam across 3 different surfaces (hard, grass & clay).

Lionel Messi is regarded by some as the greatest ever football player. The Argentine has been hugely successful with FC Barcelona,  winning a record 6 Ballon d'Or titles alongside numerous other individual titles and records. Messi has won 10 La Liga titles, 4 UEFA Champions League titles, 7 Copa del Rey titles, 7 Spanish Super Cups, 3 UEFA Super Cups and 3 FIFA Club World Cups. On the international scene, he has also won the FIFA U-20 World Cup (2005), Olympic Gold (2012) and Copa America (2021). Messi has scored 777 career goals, 315 career assists (the most by any player) and is the only player to have won 6 European Golden Boots. He joined Paris Saint-Germain this summer after 21 years with FC Barcelona. 

Raphael Nadal is one of the greatest tennis players of all time and the Open Era too. The Spaniard is dubbed the 'King of Clay' due to his prolific streak on the hardcourt. Nadal has won a record 20 Grand slam titles (tied with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic) and 36 Masters 1000 titles (tied with Djokovic). Nadal has won the Career Grand Slam (winning all 4 majors at least once) and the Career Golden Slam (winning all 4 majors and Olympic Gold at least once), achieving this feat as the youngest player to do so at 24 years, 3 months, 10 days. The Spaniard has appeared in 28 Grand Slam finals, appeared in at least 5 finals across all majors, and won multiple titles on hard, grass, and clay courts.