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When it comes to finding the perfect name for a baby, it can seem impossible. With so many options out there, it can be hard to figure out where to even start. One common theme over the decades is people choosing their favorite athletes as inspiration. When someone is in the news enough, their name sticks in your head pretty easily.

Here are some athletes whose fame and accomplishments inspired spikes in baby names over the years, courtesy of Names.org. The numbers of babies with their name spans the athletes career.

Iker Casillas (10,000 Baby Names)

Soccer player Iker Casillas plays as goalkeeper for the Portuguese club Porto and the Spain national team. He is considered one of the best goal keepers of all time and earned the nickname “Saint Iker.” Before his fame, the name Iker barely hit the radar when it came to baby names. However after his first World Cup appearance, his name started to boom. Following more World Cups, and becoming the Porto Team Captain, there was a huge spike in babies being named Iker.

Laila Ali (31,000 Baby Names)

Laila Ali was an undefeated boxer and the daughter of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali. Just from the beginning of her career, babies named Laila spiked. She won the Super Middleweight titles in 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2007 which only increased her fame, and thus increased the names of Laila babies. Her name peaked in 2008 before it started a slow decrease.

Jalen Rose (35,000 Baby Names)

In the 1990s, Jalen Rose was a huge name to follow. Rose was a member of the Fab Five that reached the 1992 and 1993 basketball championship. He was drafted in the NBA in 1994 and played for six teams during his career. Slowly, babies named Jalen became increasingly popular. While playing for the Indiana Pacers in 2000, he helped them win the NBA finals. This was the height of his name, where 3,513 baby boys born were named Jalen.

Peyton Manning (44,000 Baby Names)

Payton Manning was the National Football League quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Bronocs and is considered one of the best quarterbacks of all time. He was the first pick in the NFL Draft of 1998, the MVP of the Super Bowl in 2007, and made three other Super Bowl appearances in 2010, 2014, and 2016. During these various accomplishments throughout his career, influxes of baby named Payton increased. At the height of his name in 2007, 3,317 babies were named Payton.

Mia Hamm (58,000 Baby Names)

Mia Hamm was the soccer icon that played forward for the US Women’s National Team from 1987 to 2004. She was the face of the first professional women’s soccer league in the US (2001-2003) and the first woman inducted into the World Football Hall of Fame. She also competed in the Olympics several times and brought home the gold. After her first World Cup Semi-Finals in 1995, the name Mia really started to take off. Throughout her career the name Mia continued to be popular each year.

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