The 8 Best Old School Wheaties Athlete Boxes

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For some, Wheaties might just be a healthy, non-sugary cereal brand, but in sports culture, the cover of a Wheaties box is reserved for the most elite athletes, serving as a barometer of greatness that kids can stare at as they munch their breakfast. Only the greatest and most accomplished sports stars in the world are allowed to grace the cover of General Mills' wholesome flagship breakfast cereal. For Olympian Misty May-Treanor, who won her third gold medal in beach volleyball at the 2012 Summer Olympics, it meant the world: "For me, that was an iconic box that I never dreamed I would be on when I was reaching for that Mary Lou Retton box when I was younger," she told Forbes. 

In a way, getting your picture on a box of Wheaties is one of the few markers of sports triumph that's settled outside of competition. Gold medal-winning Olympian Dan O'Brien told FiveThirtyEight, "I look at going on the Wheaties box as becoming a member of a really cool club or fraternity." It's almost as if appearing front and center on a Wheaties box is like making it into a general sporting hall of fame. Only the brightest stars are allowed, and every cover cements a world-class athlete's legendary legacy. To highlight some of the all-timers, we hand-picked eight of the best old school Wheaties athlete boxes.

Wheaties weren't playing around when the brand landed its first cover athlete: Lou Gehrig. One of the biggest sports stars in the world at the time, the Major League Baseball Hall of Famer appeared on the Wheaties box in 1934, again in 1992, and once more for the 75th anniversary of the cereal in 1999.

The 1991 and 1992 Pittsburgh Penguins dominated the National Hockey League, winning two Stanley Cups under the guidance of two future Hall of Famers, Jaromír Jágr and Mario Lemieux. Before the two hockey stars and nine of their teammates were featured on the front of a Wheaties box, you'd have to go back over 60 years to the 1930s to find the first time a hockey player appeared on one: Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings player Marty Barry. 

In 1986, hot off the Chicago Bears dominant victory in Super Bowl XX, marking the franchise's first championship win in 25 years, Walter "Sweetness" Payton became the first Black athlete to star on the front cover of a Wheaties box; a trading card portrait of baseball catcher Roy Campanella appeared on a 1952 box. Stories of Payton's kindness to fans and long list of charitable activities made him an obvious choice.

Mary Lou Retton inspired millions of little girls to try gymnastics when she became the first gymnast, and thus the first female gymnast, to be on the front of a Wheaties box. She'd go on to appear on the cereal box again in 1999 and 2009, with the same iconic photo capturing the unforgettable moment she stuck her landing on an injured knee and became the first female gymnast from outside Eastern Europe to win the singles all-around gold medal at the 1984 Olympics.

In 1956, Wheaties placed its first Olympian, gold-medal-winning track and field athlete Bob Richards, on the cover. From there, a historical sports tradition was born, and few Olympic classes captured the hearts of Americans more than 1996's, featuring record-setting sprinter Michael Johnson, swimmers Amy Van Dyken and Tom Dolan, world champion decathlete Dan O'Brien, and the U.S. women's gymnastics team, which included Kerri Strug. 

Football might be the most popular sport in America today, but back in 2004, an individual football player only made it onto a Wheaties box every year or two. Prior to future National Football League Hall of Famer Peyton Manning being featured on the front of one, Emmitt Smith, the all-time leading rusher in NFL history, was on a Wheaties box in 2002. 

In 1999, for the 75th anniversary of Wheaties, Muhammad Ali appeared on his first cover of a Wheaties box. As a former gold medal Olympian, heavyweight boxing champion of the world, and one of the most celebrated athletes ever, it was long overdue. Of course, he has a witty quote about finally making the cut, telling the New York Times, ”It's a pretty picture. That's when I weighed 212 pounds, and now I weigh 250. I'm still pretty though, right?” He'd grace the box again in 2012 and in 2021 for the Wheaties 100th anniversary celebration. 

Wheaties has championed every type of sporting star, from hockey to Olympic gymnastics, from Lou Gehrig to Muhammad Ali, to the most iconic cover athlete in Wheaties history: Michael Jordan. The basketball superstar (and steakhouse chain owner) is seen above showing off the front of his debut 1988 Wheaties box. He has gone on to become the most-depicted Wheaties athlete with 19 total boxes, most recently gracing the orange box for cereal brand's 100th anniversary in 2021.