James Milner completed the 2026 New York City Marathon in 3:09:04, averaging roughly 7:13 per mile over one of the world’s most demanding major-marathon courses. For a first attempt at 40, following a career built on extraordinary Premier League longevity, it was an outstanding performance.
Milner isn’t the only major football name to carry elite-level fitness into distance running. Luis Enrique, Arjen Robben, Aaron Ramsey and Raúl González have all completed a marathon in under three hours, a standard that requires holding an average pace of approximately 6:52 per mile.
Luis Enrique recorded the fastest time among that famous quartet. The former Real Madrid, Barcelona and Spain midfielder ran 2:57:58 at the 2007 Florence Marathon. Long before his restless approach to football became part of his identity as a coach, he had already shown that his appetite for physical challenges extended well beyond the pitch.
Robben joined the sub-three-hour club at the 2023 Rotterdam Marathon. One year after finishing the same race in 3:13:40, the former Bayern Munich and Netherlands winger returned and ran 2:58:33. It was a dramatic improvement from a player already regarded as one of football’s greatest right wingers.
Ramsey and Raúl followed remarkably similar paths. Ramsey ran 3:00:30 in London before breaking the barrier with a 2:59:20 in Stockholm. Raúl improved from 3:26:05 in New York to 2:59:25 in Madrid, cutting more than 26 minutes from his previous best.
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The former Real Madrid midfielder who outran them all
The fastest time among the players featured here belongs to a less internationally celebrated name.
Alberto Rivera, a former midfielder for Real Madrid, Real Betis, Levante and Sporting Gijón, completed the 2023 Valencia Marathon in 2:25:32. He averaged approximately 5:33 per mile for the full 26.2 miles.
Rivera’s performance was nearly 23 minutes faster than Alexei Smertin’s 2:48:17, which has often been presented as the leading marathon time by a former top-level footballer. It was also more than half an hour faster than the three-hour mark reached by Luis Enrique, Robben, Ramsey and Raúl.
The result didn’t arrive without years of distance-specific work. Rivera ran 2:30:53 in Seville in 2022, improved to 2:27:28 on the same course the following year and then lowered his best again in Valencia. He was 45 when he ran 2:25:32.
Smertin is second among the players covered here, while former Lyon and Nice winger Anthony Mounier ran 2:54:27 in Valencia in 2025. Luis Enrique, Robben, Ramsey and Raúl complete a notable collection of recognizable football figures who have broken three hours.
Their progression also shows why a long professional career doesn’t automatically translate into a fast marathon. Robben needed a second attempt to break three hours. Ramsey missed the mark before reaching it in Stockholm. Raúl took more than 26 minutes off his earlier time. Marathon performance demanded a different kind of preparation from the repeated bursts, changes of direction and recovery periods of football.
Milner’s 3:09:04 remains exceptional, particularly after he said complications from knee surgery had caused nerve damage that left him unable to lift his foot for around six months. But the benchmark in this group belongs to Rivera, whose 2:25:32 places him in a different category from even football’s most famous marathon runners.
