Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year

The Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year is an annual award honoring the achievements of individual men from the world of sports. It was first awarded in 2000 as one of the seven constituent awards presented during the Laureus World Sports Awards.^[1] The awards are presented by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, a global organisation involved in more than 150 charity projects supporting 500,000 young people.^[2] The first ceremony was held on 25 May 2000 in Monte Carlo, at which Nelson Mandela gave the keynote speech.^[3] As of 2020^[update], a shortlist of six nominees for the award comes from a panel composed of the "world's leading sports editors, writers and broadcasters".^[1] The Laureus World Sports Academy then selects the winner who is presented with a Laureus statuette, created by Cartier, at the annual awards ceremony held in various locations around the world.^[4] The awards are considered highly prestigious and are frequently referred to as the sporting equivalent of the "Oscars".^[5][6][7]

Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year
Mondo Duplantis, 2025 winner
Awarded for	"The sportsman who best demonstrates supreme athletic performance and achievement"[1]
Location	Madrid (2025)
Presented by	Laureus Sport for Good Foundation
First award	2000
Currently held by	Mondo Duplantis
Most awards	Novak Djokovic Roger Federer (5 awards each)
Most nominations	Tiger Woods Lionel Messi (8 nominations each)
Website	Official website

The inaugural winner of the award was the American golfer Tiger Woods who finished the 1999 season with eight wins, a feat not achieved since 1974, including the PGA Championship.^[8][9] He went on to become the most dominant player of his era,^[10] earning a second Laureus Award the following year, and five further nominations between 2002 and 2008. The 2003 winner of the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year was the American road cyclist Lance Armstrong. He had been nominated the previous year, and earned further nominations in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Following Armstrong's 2013 admission of doping,^[11] all his Laureus awards and nominations were rescinded.^[12] Tennis players dominate the winners list, with eleven awards, while athletes and Formula One drivers have won four times, and golfers twice. Excluding Armstrong, the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year has been won by just nine individuals since its inception. Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic hold the record for the most awards with five each.^[13] Lionel Messi and Tiger Woods have the nominations record (8).

List of winners and nominees

Novak Djokovic (top) and Roger Federer (bottom) have won the award a record five times.

Lionel Messi, who won the award in 2020 and 2023, is the only awardee to play in a team sport.^[14]

Key

*	Indicates individual whose award or nomination was later rescinded

Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year winners and nominees

Year	Image	Winner(s)	Nationality	Sport	Nominees	Refs
2000		Tiger Woods	USA	Golf	Andre Agassi ( USA) – tennis Maurice Greene ( USA) – athletics	[15][16]
2001		Tiger Woods	USA	Golf	Steve Redgrave ( GBR) – rowing Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One Ian Thorpe ( AUS) – swimming Pieter van den Hoogenband ( NED) – swimming	[17][18]
2002		Michael Schumacher	GER	Formula One	Lance Armstrong* ( USA) – cycling Maurice Greene ( USA) – athletics Ian Thorpe ( AUS) – swimming Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[7][19]
2003		Lance Armstrong*	USA	Cycling	Ole Einar Bjørndalen ( NOR) – biathlon Ronaldo ( BRA) – football Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[20][21]
2004		Michael Schumacher	GER	Formula One	Lance Armstrong* ( USA) – cycling Roger Federer (  SUI) – tennis Michael Phelps ( USA) – swimming Valentino Rossi ( ITA) – MotoGP Jonny Wilkinson ( GBR) – rugby union	[22][23]
2005		Roger Federer	SUI	Tennis	Lance Armstrong* ( USA) – cycling Hicham El Guerrouj ( MAR) – athletics Michael Phelps ( USA) – swimming Valentino Rossi ( ITA) – MotoGP Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One	[24][25]
2006		Roger Federer	SUI	Tennis	Fernando Alonso ( ESP) – Formula One Lance Armstrong* ( USA) – cycling Ronaldinho ( BRA) – football Valentino Rossi ( ITA) – MotoGP Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[26][27]
2007		Roger Federer	SUI	Tennis	Fernando Alonso ( ESP) – Formula One Fabio Cannavaro ( ITA) – football Asafa Powell ( JAM) – athletics Michael Schumacher ( GER) – Formula One Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[28][29]
2008		Roger Federer	SUI	Tennis	Tyson Gay ( USA) – athletics Kaká ( BRA) – football Michael Phelps ( USA) – swimming Kimi Räikkönen ( FIN) – Formula One Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[30][31]
2009		Usain Bolt	JAM	Athletics	Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One Rafael Nadal ( ESP) – tennis Michael Phelps ( USA) – swimming Cristiano Ronaldo ( POR) – football Valentino Rossi ( ITA) – MotoGP	[32][33]
2010		Usain Bolt	JAM	Athletics	Kenenisa Bekele ( ETH) – athletics Alberto Contador ( ESP) – cycling Roger Federer (  SUI) – tennis Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Valentino Rossi ( ITA) – MotoGP	[34][35]
2011		Rafael Nadal	ESP	Tennis	Kobe Bryant ( USA) – basketball Andrés Iniesta ( ESP) – football Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Manny Pacquiao ( PHI) – boxing Sebastian Vettel ( GER) – Formula One	[36][37]
2012		Novak Djokovic	SRB	Tennis	Usain Bolt ( JAM) – athletics Cadel Evans ( AUS) – cycling Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Dirk Nowitzki ( GER) – basketball Sebastian Vettel ( GER) – Formula One	[38][39]
2013		Usain Bolt	JAM	Athletics	Mo Farah ( GBR) – athletics Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Michael Phelps ( USA) – swimming Sebastian Vettel ( GER) – Formula One Bradley Wiggins ( GBR) – cycling	[40][41]
2014		Sebastian Vettel	GER	Formula One	Usain Bolt ( JAM) – athletics Mo Farah ( GBR) – athletics LeBron James ( USA) – basketball Rafael Nadal ( ESP) – tennis Cristiano Ronaldo ( POR) – football	[42][43]
2015		Novak Djokovic	SRB	Tennis	Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One Renaud Lavillenie ( FRA) – athletics Marc Márquez ( ESP) – MotoGP Rory McIlroy ( NIR) – golf Cristiano Ronaldo ( POR) – football	[44][45]
2016		Novak Djokovic	SRB	Tennis	Usain Bolt ( JAM) – athletics Stephen Curry ( USA) – basketball Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Jordan Spieth ( USA) – golf	[46][47]
2017		Usain Bolt	JAM	Athletics	Stephen Curry ( USA) – basketball Mo Farah ( GBR) – athletics LeBron James ( USA) – basketball Andy Murray ( GBR) – tennis Cristiano Ronaldo ( POR) – football	[48][49]
2018		Roger Federer	SUI	Tennis	Mo Farah ( GBR) – athletics Chris Froome ( GBR) – cycling Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One Rafael Nadal ( ESP) – tennis Cristiano Ronaldo ( POR) – football	[13][50]
2019		Novak Djokovic	SRB	Tennis	Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One LeBron James ( USA) – basketball Eliud Kipchoge ( KEN) – athletics Kylian Mbappé ( FRA) – football Luka Modrić ( CRO) – football	[51][52]
2020		Lewis Hamilton	GBR	Formula One	Eliud Kipchoge ( KEN) – athletics Marc Márquez ( ESP) – MotoGP Rafael Nadal ( ESP) – tennis Tiger Woods ( USA) – golf	[53]
		Lionel Messi	ARG	Football
2021		Rafael Nadal	ESP	Tennis	Joshua Cheptegei ( UGA) – athletics Armand Duplantis ( SWE) – athletics Lewis Hamilton ( GBR) – Formula One LeBron James ( USA) – basketball Robert Lewandowski ( POL) – football	[54]
2022		Max Verstappen	NED	Formula One	Tom Brady ( USA) – American football Novak Djokovic ( SRB) – tennis Caeleb Dressel ( USA) – swimming Eliud Kipchoge ( KEN) – athletics Robert Lewandowski ( POL) – football	[55]
2023		Lionel Messi	ARG	Football	Stephen Curry ( USA) – basketball Armand Duplantis ( SWE) – athletics Kylian Mbappé ( FRA) – football Rafael Nadal ( SPA) – tennis Max Verstappen ( NED) – motor racing	[56][57]
2024		Novak Djokovic	SRB	Tennis	Armand Duplantis ( SWE) – athletics Erling Haaland ( NOR) – football Noah Lyles ( USA) – athletics Lionel Messi ( ARG) – football Max Verstappen ( NED) – motor racing	[58][59]
2025		Mondo Duplantis	SWE	Athletics	Carlos Alcaraz ( ESP) – tennis Léon Marchand ( FRA) – swimming Tadej Pogačar ( SLO) – cycling Max Verstappen ( NED) – motor racing	[60]

Statistics

Statistics are correct as of 2025 nominations.

Multiple titles # Athlete Years 5 Roger Federer 2005–2008, 2018 Novak Djokovic 2012, 2015–2016, 2019, 2024 4 Usain Bolt 2009–2010, 2013, 2017 2 Tiger Woods 2000–2001 Michael Schumacher 2002, 2004 Rafael Nadal 2011, 2021 Lionel Messi 2020, 2023

Multiple nominations # Athlete Years 8 Tiger Woods 2000–2003, 2006–2008, 2020 Lionel Messi 2010–2013, 2016, 2020, 2023–2024 7 Roger Federer 2004–2008, 2010, 2018 Usain Bolt 2009–2010, 2012–2014, 2016–2017 Lewis Hamilton 2009, 2015–2016, 2018–2021 Rafael Nadal 2009, 2011, 2014, 2018, 2020–2021, 2023 6 Michael Schumacher 2001–2005, 2007 Novak Djokovic 2012, 2015–2016, 2019, 2022, 2024 5 Valentino Rossi 2004–2006, 2009–2010 Michael Phelps 2004–2005, 2008–2009, 2013 Cristiano Ronaldo 2009, 2014–2015, 2017–2018 4 Sebastian Vettel 2011–2014 Mo Farah 2013–2014, 2017–2018 LeBron James 2014, 2017, 2019, 2021 Max Verstappen 2022–2025 3 Eliud Kipchoge 2019–2020, 2022 Stephen Curry 2016–2017, 2023 Armand Duplantis 2021, 2023–2024 2 Maurice Greene 2000, 2002 Ian Thorpe 2001–2002 Fernando Alonso 2006–2007 Marc Márquez 2015, 2020 Robert Lewandowski 2021–2022 Kylian Mbappé 2019, 2023

Winners by nationality Country Win­ners Nomi­nations   SUI 5 7  SRB 5 6  JAM 4 8  GER 3 10  USA 2 29  ESP 2 14  ARG 2 8  GBR 1 15  NED 1 4  SWE 1 4  ITA 0 6  POR 0 5  FRA 0 4  AUS 0 3  BRA 0 3  KEN 0 3  NOR 0 2  POL 0 2  CRO 0 1  ETH 0 1  FIN 0 1  MAR 0 1  NIR 0 1  PHI 0 1  SLO 0 1  UGA 0 1

Winners by sport Sport Win­ners Nomi­nations Tennis 12 23 Athletics 5 27 Formula One 5 24 Football 2 24 Golf 2 10 Swimming 0 10 Basketball 0 8 MotoGP 0 8 Cycling 0 5 American football 0 1 Biathlon 0 1 Boxing 0 1 Rowing 0 1 Rugby union 0 1