Muhammad Ali has died aged 74

4 June 2016

Muhammad Ali has died aged 74.

Muhammad Ali

The three-time world heavyweight boxing champion and sports legend - who was born Cassius Marcellus Clay - passed away at a hospital in Phoenix, Arizona, after being taken ill on Thursday (02.06.16), which has been confirmed by the family's spokesperson.

Muhammad - who was nicknamed The Greatest after beating Sonny Liston in 1964, which led him to gain his first world title - had been suffering from a respiratory illness, which was worsened by his ongoing battle with Parkinson's disease.

Meanwhile, arrangements for the father of nine - who had daughters Laila, Rasheda, Hana, , Maryum, Jamillah, Khaliah and Miya and sons Asaad Muhammad Ali Junior, Miya - is set to take place in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky.

And fans of the retired star - who decided to quit the ring in 1981 after winning 56 of his 61 fights - have taken to social media to pay tribute to the icon.

David Beckham shared a picture of Muhammad after a sporting event with a statement Muhammad coined. The post read: "Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they've been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It's an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It's a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.(sic)."

The former England football captain also shared a photo of him shaking Muhammad's hand on Instagram with the caption: "The Greatest ther will ever be .... The biggest and the best .... Rest In Peace (sic)."

And fellow boxer Floyd Mayweather said: "There will never be another Muhammad Ali. The black community all around the world, black people all around the world, needed him. He was the voice for us. He's the voice for me to be where I'm at today."

Whilst Olympic gymnast tweeted credits Muhammad as his only source of inspiration throughout his sporting career.

He wrote: "I never really had a role model to aspire to be like. Bu I took so much inspiration from learning Muhammad Ali's story #RIPMuhammadAli (sic)."