25 Athletes We Know Way Too Much About

Raise your hand if you've ever regretted wasting time reading way too much about your favorite athlete.

OK, so now that almost all hands are up, don't beat yourself up, because it's way too popular.

How popular? Well, based on the knowledge we have of the athletes on this list, we'd say it's about as common as creeping on Facebook to check out your ex's photos. Busted!

25. Jose Canseco

Thanks to his book Juiced, Canseco made headlines post-baseball by ratting out everyone he could think of that may have used steroids.

With his many other ventures which have involved stints on a reality dating show, a spot on the reality series The Surreal Life and time in the ring as a celebrity boxer, we just can't avoid the guy.

Want to know something even more embarrassing? We knew all that stuff off the top of our head...sad.

24. Anna Kournikova

Thanks to holding down the title as the sexiest athlete alive during her tennis career, it was pretty tough not hearing about Kournikova and everything going on in her life.

Now that she's out of the limelight and away from the court, you can bet we still find ourselves reading about the alleged off-again/on-again rumors of her relationship with pop singer Enrique Iglesias.

Here's to hoping we'll someday figure out if she's single or not.

23. Dennis Rodman

You have to admit that Rodman's quite the character.

From his bad boy days in Detroit with the Pistons to his "Worm" days with the Spurs and Bulls when he was dying his hair and repping some serious tats, and all the way to his filing for bankruptcy recently, he's always done some memorable stuff.

When you toss in the fact that he was married to ultra-hottie Carmen Electra for a year in the late 90's, you find out why we know as much as we do about Rodman.

22. Tony Romo

When you're the starting quarterback of "America's Team," it's almost impossible to hide from the public eye.

Add in the fact that that starting quarterback also happens to have a certain confidence on the field, and rolls with hot blondes off of it, and it's easy to see why Romo's all over the headlines.

Besides his play, this, this and lastly this is exactly why we love to see what Romo-cop's up to.

21. Leryn Franco

For someone whose only finished first in her event three times in her entire career (none since 2004, and never in the Olympics), we sure do know a lot about this Paraguayan javelin thrower.

Well, based on the way she looks in a bikini, we guess there's a very good reason for blowing up Google search to find out as much as humanly possible!

20. Mike Tyson

"Iron Mike" used to be all up in the news for the wrong reasons.

Sure, we all know he gained fame as an accomplished boxer back in the day, but then he got shipped off to jail for rape charges before making a comeback as both a boxer and entertainer—though the whole boxing comeback didn't really work out.

Now finding a niche as a B-level actor/comedian with cameo roles in The Hangover films and on celebrity roasts, Tyson proves he's still got it—just not in the ring.

19. Danica Patrick

There's no one on the planet that can make a flame-retardant suit as hot as this racing chick does, and that's why we love her so much.

She may have her moments, but the fact she's never finished higher than a 26th-place finish yet we still know her better than a guy like Jimmy Johnson's a little bizarre.

We blame the GoDaddy commercials.

18. Ryan Lochte

Thanks to his superb Olympic showing, Lochte's one of the newer additions to the list. But that doesn't mean it's a little bit annoying.

Sure, he draws a lot of the attention on himself by flashing his grill, medals and Olympic rings tat anytime he gets a chance, but you can't tell us you haven't been intrigued enough to search more info on this gold medal-winning swimmer.

17. Brett Favre

It was always a little overwhelming how much love the media had for Favre during his playing days, but towards the later part of his career a couple years ago, it was just bonkers how much we found out about him.

From the performance he had on Monday night following his dad's death, to his wife fighting—and beating—breast cancer and then, of course, the fact his favorite wideout while in Minnesota (Percy Harvin) was about the same age as his oldest daughter.

What are we missing? Oh right; that whole Jenn Sterger incident. Yeah, we'd say we know a bit too much about ol' No. 4. 

16. Serena Williams

Bet you know what Serena spelled backwards is. Why do we ask that? Because the first thing that should come to mind is "Aneres," which, of course, is Williams' fashion company.

See, the fact that we know that, among other things, about one of the greatest women's tennis players ever is a little weird.

15. Alex Rodriguez

Even with his admission of using PEDs, A-Rod will still go down as one of the greatest ballplayers to ever strap on a cup.

But thanks to his dating resume, his love for himself and his well-publicized postseason slumps, we tend to blow everything he does a little out of proportion.

Even when he wasn't playing in New York, the fact we heard all about him makes you either love or hate the guy.

14. Lance Armstrong

Oh Lance.

His life was like a Hollywood movie.

Athlete overcomes cancer. Dominates his sport like no other by winning seven Tour de France titles. He starts his own nonprofit encouraging awareness and donations for cancer.

But as we know, all was not a storybook ending.

With him recently resigning from Livestrong, we imagine we'll be finding out even more about him.

13. Maria Sharapova

Sharapova's definitely one of the luckiest chicks on the planet. 

Blessed with world-class athleticism—proven by her current No. 2 world ranking and four Grand Slam titles—and the looks of a supermodel, we're all intrigued by her moves.

It definitely helps that she's posed for Sports Illustrated's swimsuit edition and that she keeps her private life quiet, making us think—OK, pray—that we have a chance with her.

12. Sean Avery

We're not sure what makes Avery so appealing to everyone?

It could be that he's dated girls like Elisha Cuthbert and Hilary Rhoda, but the fact that we know he interned at the fashion mag Vogue is a little much.

He used to be someone who played hockey, but with him currently out of the league, he's kind of just become an unfortunate afterthought and more of a guy who just loves attention. 

Maybe that's our answer right there?

11. Michael Jordan

Why do we know so much about Jordan? Simple. He's the best basketball player of our generation, and maybe ever.

OK, so the fact we know everything about him might be a little excessive, but it's not our fault he likes to gamble, date hot chicks, own a basketball team and still use his celebrity as an endorser of a ton of products!

You know what they say, "I wanna be like Mike!"

10. Derek Jeter

He's the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees and has the nickname "The Captain," not to mention quite the list of former girlfriends, DJ's all but the unofficial mayor of New York City.

Jeter's so appealing because he's so damn private, never showing his hand on who he's dating or what he does in his downtime.

For a guy that's in the center of the universe, it's surprising he's not in the news even more than he is.

9. David Beckham

Beck's is in the news not only because of his skills on the pitch, but for his trendy lifestyle off of it. For God's sake, he married a Spice Girl named "Posh!"

His fame may have reached its peak in '08 when he first came across the pond to suit up for the L.A. Galaxy for a reported $50 million per year—which was falsely identified—but over the course of his career with England's national team, Manchester United and stint with Real Madrid, we know all about him.

8. Chad Ochocinco

Whether you refer to him as Johnson or Ochocinco these days, No. 85 is still all over the news thanks to his extremely overactive Twitter account.

Currently a free agent, Ochocinco has settled down a little bit, but thanks in large part to his huge personality on the field, and off it with reality TV shows and media soundbites, there's not much he has left as a secret.

7. Kobe Bryant

Man, it's hard to ignore the Mamba.

Playing in the glitz and glam of L.A. has always just seemed to fit Kobe perfectly, hasn't it? It's the perfect place for his celebrity and, along with his success and the tradition of the Lakers, makes him the toast of the town.

Though you know pretty much everything about Bryant, we must remind you that though he doesn't have a single acting credit to his name, he does have this ridiculous attempt at hip hop from 2000.

6. Tiger Woods

Even before the infamous night of Dec. 8. 2009, we're guessing you knew all you ever needed to about Tiger.

That's usually the case when a guy is chasing Jack Nicklaus' record for most Major titles and holds down the No. 1 world golf ranking for as long as he did.

As one of the highest-paid athletes (according to Forbes) and an image rebuilt after all his sex-capades, everyone should just accept to hear about Eldrick whether you like it or not.

5. Tom Brady

He's got a supermodel wife. Multiple Super Bowl wins. And one of the best mane's a guy could have—sadly, since retired.

What else can be said about Brady that you don't already know about him?

Though he tries to keep his life extremely private and tries to maintain focus on just football, it's tough when every time he's out of his house, he's being photographed, or when he can't even cut a rug without being talked about.

4. Cristiano Ronaldo

His well-documented "sadness" that he mentioned earlier this year—for whatever reasons—caused a stir, but Ronaldo's so well-known not only because of his incredible soccer skills, but also for his womanly adventures with really attractive ladies.

As arguably the most talented soccer player in the world and just starting to reach the peak of his career, we're guessing you'll be reading lots about this guy a little more than you'd like to admit.

3. Terrell Owens

Much like the aforementioned Ochocinco, T.O. was a spotlight whore during his playing days and has found himself on the outside looking in on the league.

From his reality show, his overly dramatic interviews and his "I love me some me" persona, there's never a topic the media doesn't let us avoid when it comes to him.

It's actually a little surprising we haven't heard more about him with all the free time he has now.

2. Tim Tebow

We all know the magic he did with last year's Broncos in leading them not only to the playoffs, but to a win over the visiting Steelers.

Or how every incomplete pass Mark Sanchez has, Tebow's name comes up as the replacement.

But in between the Heisman and national championships, Timmy's activism and strong faith is all over the news, and we're reminded every single day about what a great guy he is.

Just imagine what it'd be like if he ever made it to a Pro Bowl or actually won a Super Bowl?

1. LeBron James

Bron Bron's been all up in the news since he was 16 years old, so who else can hold down our top spot?

Sure, there's been plenty of phenoms before and after him, but he's lived up to all the hype, handled the criticism and, when you think about it, has probably exceed the expectations.

In the growing world of digital media and real-time news, LBJ is constantly wrapped up in it, and now that he's got one title under his belt, the question quickly changed to how, "How many can he win?"

We're not good at predictions—if we were, we wouldn't constantly lose at the sportsbook—so regardless of whether or not he hosts the Larry O'Brien Trophy again in his career, he's easily on pace to become the most well-known athlete ever.