Patrick Mahomes named to Sports Illustrated 2024 Power List

At this stage of his career, perhaps the best single word to try to encapsulate all that is Patrick Mahomes is to say he's "transcendent." It's a word that only applies to the face of a particular sports—someone whose achievements aren't just elite for a short spell but could stand the test of time. At the same time, there has to be something "beyond" about them, in a way that moves their recognizability outside the scope of their single sport or silo.

Patrick Mahomes is definitely transcendent.

Given the way that Mahomes is seemingly everywhere these days, his inclusion on a list like Sports Illustrated's Top 50 Most Influential Figures in Sports feels obvious—a must-have if any such rankings are ever going to exist.

Interestingly enough, SI's list of the most influential figures in sports isn't made of up of athletes—at least not primarily. It's a shocking insight at first before you realize that the business of sports and brands is so much bigger than the players who play them. In the end, the actual movers and shakers who are also still the "doers" on the field make up very few actual athletes. That's what makes Mahomes' inclusion here so impressive.

As the face of the most popular sport in America, it's not surprising to see Mahomes honored here.

What makes Mahomes so transcendent, you ask? He's a a household name by his mid-twenties, a 3x Super Bowl champ by his late-twenties, and an investor and philanthropist with his hand in so. many endeavors that it's hard to keep count. In short, Mahomes is Midas—if his touch is involved, its' going to turn golden.

On the field, and this is his unique power as an athlete, Mahomes has become the face of the most popular sport in America and has done so with unmatched domination and imagination. Think of the number of teams searching for even reliably good quarterback play. Then imagine the Kansas City Chiefs having the one figure who is erasing and rewriting NFL record books with every passing year.

Mahomes is even unkind to the history of his own sport. The likes of Marino and Elway, Montana and Favre (and soon Manning and Brady) are all being forgotten with each new year as the stats they once led and records they once held fall by the wayside. All the while, Mahomes is doing so with the sort of laugh-out-loud heroics that seem Paul Bunyan-esque for those who miss a moment.

A franchise that hadn't earned a Super Bowl victory in a half-century has somehow sprung alive in a flyover state as a ubiquitous globally known brand. The Chiefs have gone global in so many ways, which is why Mahomes was given the single biggest contract in the history of team sports at 10 years, $500 million—another example of his ability to shape the landscape of sports and sports business.

Beyond the field, Mahomes’ brand and power extends to his work as a philanthropist and businessman. Through his 15 and the Mahomies Foundation, he’s positively impacted underserved communities, focusing on health and wellness, education, and athletics. His voice in social justice conversations, particularly in getting out the vote, has made him a prominent figure beyond sports. It also doesn't hurt him to own stakes in teams in MLB (the Kansas City Royals), MLS (Sporting KC), and NWSL (KC Current). There's also the Formula 1 investment (Alpine) along with a Miami pickleball team and numerous sports-centric endeavors like Whoop, Hyperice, and Throne Sport Coffee.

Additionally, Mahomes' marketability is unmatched with high-level endorsements from major brands like Adidas, State Farm, BOSS, Coor's Light, Subway, Head & Shoulders, T-Mobile and Oakley. It's enough to keep Mahomes as an ever-present figure, and it shows why he's someone around whom the culture of football and American sports is going to prominently feature him for years to come.