1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
In focus
GazaAfghanistanUkraine
Latest audioLatest videos
Live TV
Muhammad Ali is embraced by Pele
Image: Richard Drew/AP Photo/picture-alliance

Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali is widely regarded as the best boxer of all time. He played a played a major role in the 1960s US civil rights movement, opposed the Vietnam War, and refused to be drafted into the US military.

Skip next section All Content on this topic

All Content on this topic

George Forman (L) hits Michael Moorer with his right. The fight saw Foreman (46 years old at the time) become world heavyweight champion again.

Boxing legend George Foreman dies aged 76

Two-time world heavyweight champion, Olympic gold medalist, and entrepreneur George Foreman has died at the age of 76.
SportsMarch 22, 202501:48 min
Muhammad Ali vs George Foreman in 1974 during the 'Rumble in the Jungle'

DR Congo: Keeping the 'Rumble in the Jungle' legacy alive

October 30 marks 50 years since the iconic 'Rumble in the Jungle', where Muhammad Ali faced George Foreman in Kinshasa.
SportsOctober 30, 202402:07 min
A mannequin wearing Muhammad Ali "Thrilla in Manila" fight-worn Everlast boxing trunks

Muhammad Ali's 'Thrilla in Manila' trunks up for auction

The trunks, worn by the boxing icon during his historic fight with Joe Frazier, are poised to sell for $6 million.
SportsApril 5, 2024
Ali Kushayb at the ICC

ICC holds first-ever Darfur trial

Ali Muhammad Ali Abd-Al-Rahman is accused of 31 counts of war crimes as the alleged leader of a feared militia
ConflictsApril 5, 2022
A scene from 'One Night in Miami': Actors portraying Malcolm X, Cassius Clay, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke at a bar

The iconic figures in 'One Night in Miami'

"One Night in Miami" imagines what happened on the night Malcolm X, Cassius Clay, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke met in 1964
CultureJanuary 15, 2021
USA Muhammad Ali Liston Knockout in Maine

The greatest boxers of all time

Mike Tyson, Joe Louis and of course Muhammad Ali — our list of the greatest boxers ever.
SportsNovember 24, 202011 images
Olympische Momente Galerie

When sport and politics meet

There is a long history of political protests in sports. Here are a few of them.
SportsDecember 16, 201911 images
Mahatma Gandhi

Partition of India: The way forward

Indna and Pakistan continue to be hostile towards each other despite some efforts to improve bilateral ties.
SocietyAugust 14, 20177 images
Flagge Pakistan und Indien

The anniversary of hatred

Belligerence, animosity and a deep mistrust have defined Indian-Pakistani relations since 1947, says DW's Shamil Shams.
PoliticsAugust 14, 2017
Faith Ringgold, American People Series #20: Die, 1967

How the Black Power movement shaped art history

Tate Modern shines a light on a previously overlooked era in American art history and asks: What is Black art?
CultureJuly 12, 20177 images
Muhammad Ali Walking into a gym in 1966, Copyright: Thomas Hoepker

Why Muhammad Ali was a work of art

He wasn't just an athlete. On what would've have been his 75th birthday, we look at Muhammad Ali as a photo muse.
CultureJanuary 17, 2017
Beerdigung Muhammad Ali Kentucky Louisville Boxhandschuhe

WorldLink: When one door closes

Unpack 2016 with DW's senior Brussels correspondent Bernd Riegert - why, after 25 years in journalism, is he thinking of becoming a bot? Plus, we look back on some of our favorite stories of the year, from memories of Muhammad Ali to music for the dying, from spiritual awakening and rap to a museum of broken relationships. 
SocietyDecember 30, 201655:00 min
Brasilien Olympische Spiele in Rio - Michael Phelps Schwimmer USA (picture-alliance/AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

The top ten Google searches in sports of 2016

In 2016 some sports figures were among the most searched, two of them made the cut even after their deaths.
SportsDecember 28, 201610 images
Drive it

50 years of Kinshasa

Five decades have elapsed since Leopoldville was renamed Kinshasa.
June 30, 20169 images
Boxing gloves at burial of Muhammed Ali

Interfaith service held for Muhammad Ali

Dignitaries and fans from around the world have paid tribute to the late boxing legend Muhammad Ali.
June 11, 2016
external

@dwnews - Muhammad Ali remembered across Africa

June 10, 201602:38 min
Beerdigung Muhammad Ali Kentucky Louisville

Muhammad Ali laid to rest in Louisville

The life of boxing legend Muhammad Ali has been celebrated in his hometown, Louisville, Kentucky
June 10, 2016
Boxing legend Muhammad Ali stepps down to the ring on June 11, 2005, in Washington, DC after congratulated his daughter Laila who won with a 3 round TKO against Erin Toughill for the WBC/WIBA Super Middleweight Championship Bout. Photo by Olivier Douliery/ABACA. Copyright: picture alliance/abaca(O. Douliery

Rights and resistance

This week: We look back on the life of Muhammad Ali, we reflect on the 40th anniversary of the Soweto uprising and find out why Jordanians are marking the centenary of the Arab Revolt with a train trip back in time. Also: We'll hear about the power of seeds in Palestinian farmlands, how Vietnamese pupils are dealing with the legacy of war and how aboriginal musicians in Canada are branching out.
June 10, 201654:59 min
27th May 1963: Supremely confident American boxer Cassius Clay holds up five fingers in a prediction of how many rounds it will take him to knock out British boxer Henry Cooper. (Photo by Kent Gavin/Keystone/Getty Images)

Looking back on the life of Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali's popularity transcended class and culture. But his influence reached well beyond the world of boxing.
June 10, 201609:46 min
The casket carrying Muhammad Ali's body

Thousands gather to bid Muhammad Ali farewell

A leading Muslim scholar has esteemed Muhammad Ali as "a gift to his people, his religion, his coutry and the world."
June 9, 2016
Muhammad Ali boxing club

DR Congo remembers Muhammad Ali

Congolese fans of Muhammad Ali will commemorate the boxing champion and the legendary ‘Rumble in the jungle’.
June 9, 2016
Mohammad Ali painting by Andy Warhol, Copyright: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Ilnitsky

Muhammad Ali's 8 best culture moments

The star boxer was a celebrity who was also involved in creative endeavors - from music to movies and even high art.
June 9, 2016
Russland, Ausstellung Mohammad Ali

Muhammad Ali's 9 best culture moments

The star boxer was a celebrity who was also involved in creative endeavors - from music to movies and even high art.
CultureJune 9, 20168 images
Muhammad Ali

Muhammad Ali died from 'septic shock'

Boxing icon Muhammad Ali died from "septic shock due to unspecified natural causes," according to a family spokesman.
June 5, 2016
Boxer Muhammad Ali mit Joe Frazier und George Foreman

Muhammad Ali's greatest fights

Muhammad Ali had more than a few memorable bouts like the "rumble in the jungle" or the "thrilla in Manilla."
June 4, 201612 images
USA Boxer Muhammad Training in Florida

World honors Muhammad Ali with tributes

Muhammad Ali's enormous impact on global society is evident in the flow of tributes from all corners of the globe.
June 4, 2016
external

Muhammad Ali dies aged 74

Ali, one of the greatest athletes of the 20th century, was the first three-time world champion. He had a number of legendary fights, including 'the Rumble in the Jungle' against George Foreman.
June 4, 201602:17 min
Oelmaier Tobias Kommentarbild App

Imperfect, but still the greatest

Tobias Oelmaier
He was so unique that it is hard to imagine anybody ever filling Muhammad Ali's shoes, writes DW's Tobias Oelmaier.
June 4, 2016
Deutschland Boxer Muhammad Ali in Berlin

Muhammad Ali: Simply the best

No heavyweight boxer before or after his career was as skilled, elegant and fleet of foot as Muhammad Ali in his prime.
June 4, 2016
Muhammad Ali Bildergalerie

Muhammad Ali: Portraits of a master

Muhammad Ali has passed away at the age of 74. In 2015, a Berlin gallery hosted an exhibition of photos of him.
CultureJune 4, 20169 images
Muhammad Ali 2011

Muhammad Ali dies

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali has died in hospital in Arizona at the age of 74.
June 4, 2016
Muhammad Ali 2014

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali seriously ill in hospital

The 74-year-old former world heavyweight champion has been hospitalized in a US hospital with a respiratory ailment.
June 4, 2016
Muhammad Ali looks down from a balcony at friends while attending a celebration for his 70th birthday at the Muhammad Ali Center on Saturday, Jan. 14, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. Ali turns 70 Tuesday (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Boxing legend Ali 'in great spirits'

Muhammad Ali has been released from the hospital after treatment for a urinary tract infection.
January 7, 2015
George Foreman Muhammad Ali 1997

40 Years Ago – Rumble in the Jungle

On October 30, 1974, Muhammad Ali beat world champion George Foreman and regained his heavyweight title. The "Rumble in the Jungle" in what was then Zaire went down in sporting history.
October 30, 201410 images
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Photo: Radio Pakistan / DW)

Secular or theocratic?

Did Pakistan's founder Jinnah want an Islamic or a secular state? The question is divisive as ever.
December 26, 2013

Religious festivals in Pakistan

"All Pakistanis celebrate the birthday of Muhammad Ali Jinnah on December 25. To battle the cold weather we burn wood, turn on the electric or gas heater and eat dry fruits, drink tea, green tea and coffee."
December 21, 2012

Boxer Ali to Accept German Peace Prize

March 14, 2005

Leipzig Gets Boost from The Greatest

Leipzig’s Olympic bid, so often associated with scandal and corruption lately, got a vote of confidence from one of the sporting world’s most respected statesmen on Friday as Muhammad Ali stopped by to give his blessing.
November 29, 2003