# BBC Sports Team of the Year Award

The BBC Sports Team of the Year Award is an award given annually as part of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony each December. Currently, the award is given "for the team in an individual sport or sporting discipline that has achieved the most notable performance in the calendar year to date. The team should have significant UK interest or involvement".

## Nomination procedure

From 2012 the award's recipient is decided by an expert panel selected by the BBC. For some years before 2012 a panel of over 30 sporting journalists, each of whom voted for their top two choices and followed a defined set of voting criteria. Before that, the winner of the Team of the Year Award has been chosen by public vote and picked by listeners of Radio 5 Live.

## History

The Team of the Year Award was first presented in 1960, six years after the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award was introduced. The first recipient of the award was the Cooper Formula One Racing team. The England national rugby union team and the Ryder Cup team have won the award the most times; both teams have won five times and have shared the award on one of those occasions. Liverpool F.C. have won the award four times. The award has been shared on two occasions—by the British women's 4 x 400 m relay team and the British Ryder Cup team in 1969, and by the England national rugby union team and the British men's 4 x 400 m relay team in 1991. Teams have varied greatly in size. The smallest winning team has been two members; the figure skating duo of Torvill and Dean in 1982 and 1983, and the Olympic men's coxless rowing pair of Steve Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent in 1992 and 1996. The largest winning team was in 2012; the British representatives at the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Six nations have been represented by the award-winning team. Teams representing Great Britain have won the award the most times, having had twenty-three recipients, three of which shared the award. Excluding the 2000 British Olympic and Paralympic teams, which fielded competitors in many Paralympic and Olympic sports, the remainder of the winning teams have represented 15 sporting disciplines. Although dominated by teams from England or representing Great Britain, the award has been won twice by Scottish teams; Celtic in 1967, after they became the first British football club to win the European Cup, and the 1990 Grand Slam winning Scotland rugby union squad.
Football has had the highest representation among the winners, with 15 recipients. The most recent award was presented in 2022 to the England women's national football team.

## By year

* † Denotes joint winners.
BBC Sports Personality Team of the Year Award winners :
| Year | Nation | Winner | Sport |
| 1960 | United Kingdom | Cooper motor racing team | Motor racing |
| 1961 | England | Tottenham Hotspur F.C. | Football |
| 1962 | United Kingdom | BRM motor racing team | Motor racing |
| 1963 | West Indies | West Indies cricket team | Cricket |
| 1964 | England | England under-17 football team | Football |
| 1965 | England | West Ham United F.C. | Football |
| 1966 | England | England football team | Football |
| 1967 | Scotland | Celtic F.C. | Football |
| 1968 | England | Manchester United F.C. | Football |
| 1969$^†$ | United Kingdom | Women's 4 x 400 m relay team | Athletics |
| 1969$^†$ | United Kingdom | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 1970 | Canada | Nijinsky horse racing team | Horse racing |
| 1971 | United Kingdom | British Lions rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1972 | United Kingdom | Olympic three-day event team | Equestrianism |
| 1973 | England | Sunderland A.F.C. | Football |
| 1974 | United Kingdom | British Lions rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1975 | United Kingdom | Men's Swimming team | Swimming |
| 1976 | United Kingdom | Olympic modern pentathlon team | Modern Pentathlon |
| 1977 | England | Liverpool F.C. | Football |
| 1978 | United Kingdom | Davis and Wightman Cup tennis teams | Tennis |
| 1979 | United Kingdom | Showjumping team | Equestrianism |
| 1980 | England | England rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1981 | England | Bob Champion and Aldaniti | Horse racing |
| 1982 | United Kingdom | Torvill and Dean | Figure skating |
| 1983 | United Kingdom | Torvill and Dean | Figure skating |
| 1984 | United Kingdom | Olympic Showjumping team | Equestrianism |
| 1985 | Europe | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 1986 | England | Liverpool F.C. | Football |
| 1987 | Europe | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 1988 | United Kingdom | Olympic hockey team | Hockey |
| 1989 | United Kingdom | Men's athletics squad | Athletics |
| 1990 | Scotland | Scotland rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1991$^†$ | England | England rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1991$^†$ | United Kingdom | Men's 4 x 400 m relay team | Athletics |
| 1992 | United Kingdom | Olympic rowing pairs | Rowing |
| 1993 | England | England rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1994 | England | Wigan R.L.F.C. | Rugby league |
| 1995 | Europe | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 1996 | United Kingdom | Olympic rowing pairs | Rowing |
| 1997 | United Kingdom | British Lions rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 1998 | England | Arsenal F.C. | Football |
| 1999 | England | Manchester United F.C. | Football |
| 2000 | United Kingdom | Olympic and Paralympic teams | — |
| 2001 | England | Liverpool F.C. | Football |
| 2002 | Europe | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 2003 | England | England rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 2004 | United Kingdom | Olympic men's coxless four | Rowing |
| 2005 | England | England cricket team | Cricket |
| 2006 | England | St Helens R.F.C. | Rugby league |
| 2007 | England | England rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 2008 | United Kingdom | Olympic cycling team | Cycling |
| 2009 | England | England cricket team | Cricket |
| 2010 | Europe | Ryder Cup team | Golf |
| 2011 | England | England cricket team | Cricket |
| 2012 | United Kingdom | Olympic and Paralympic teams | — |
| 2013 | United Kingdom Republic of Ireland | British & Irish Lions rugby union team | Rugby Union |
| 2014 | England | England women's rugby union team | Rugby union |
| 2015 | United Kingdom | Great Britain Davis Cup team | Tennis |
| 2016 | England | Leicester City F.C. | Football |
| 2017 | England | England women's cricket team | Cricket |
| 2018 | England | England netball team | Netball |
| 2019 | England | England cricket team | Cricket |
| 2020 | England | Liverpool F.C. | Football |
| 2021 | England | England football team | Football |
| 2022 | England | England women's football team | Football |
| 2023 | England | Manchester City F.C. | Football |
| 2024 | England | Wigan R.L.F.C. | Rugby league |

## By nation

This table lists the total number of awards won by nations that the teams have represented.
Winners by nation :
| Nation | Number of wins |
| England | 31 |
| United Kingdom | 26 |
| Europe | 5 |
| Scotland | 2 |
| Republic of Ireland | 1 |
| Canada | 1 |
| West Indies | 1 |

## By sport

This table lists the total number of awards won by the teams sporting discipline.
Winners by sport :
| Sporting profession | Number of wins |
| Football | 16 |
| Rugby union | 11 |
| Cricket | 6 |
| Golf | 6 |
| Athletics | 4 |
| Equestrianism | 3 |
| Rowing | 3 |
| Rugby league | 3 |
| Figure skating | 2 |
| Horse racing | 2 |
| Motor racing | 2 |
| Tennis | 2 |
| Cycling | 1 |
| Hockey | 1 |
| Netball | 1 |
| Swimming | 1 |