Alcaraz, Sabalenka, Norris, McIlroy, Kroos & Yamal among winners at Laureus World Sports Awards
MADRID, April 20, 2026 – The greatest names in sport gathered tonight in the heart of Madrid as the winners of the Laureus World Sports Awards were revealed at a spectacular red-carpet event watched by millions of sports fans across the globe.
Among the winners were the tennis stars who finished 2025 as the World No.1 in the women’s and men’s games – Aryna Sabalenka and Carlos Alcaraz; after sweeping six titles across the world of football, Paris Saint-Germain continued their winning streak with the Laureus World Team of the Year Award and Formula One’s Lando Norris took the stage for a breakthrough win. The 2025 Masters champion Rory McIlroy claimed a victory far longer in the making. There was a third Laureus for Chloe Kim, snowboarder supreme, and a first for Gabriel Araújo, a three-time world champion in Para Swimming.
The Laureus World Sports Awards is the greatest show in sport, and the red carpet was full of superstars from across sport and entertainment, who shared images and clips with fans on social media. Guests included Nominees for this year’s Awards and Members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, the all-time legends who vote for the winners each year. For the first time in Laureus history, the show was hosted by two athletes, both former Laureus winners: Novak Djokovic and Eileen Gu.
Added to the list of those honoured this year are three additional recipients of the Laureus, the statuette awarded to the winner in each category, and the prize the greatest athletes in the world value above all other Awards: Nadia Comăneci, 50 years on from the Perfect 10 that made sporting history, Lamine Yamal, a world star at the other end of his journey, plus Toni Kroos after a career spent as a serial winner for Real Madrid.
The city of Madrid was the sporting capital of the world on a day that also saw the start of play at tennis’s Madrid Open, and five months before Formula One returns to the city for the first time since 1981. It was fitting that one of the big winners of the night was a Spanish sporting superstar.
Carlos Alcaraz was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year after a landmark season. He regained the World No.1 spot at year’s end after two Grand Slam singles titles, at the French and US Opens, plus another final, at Wimbledon. The Roland Garros final against Jannik Sinner – also nominated for this Award – will go down as one of the greatest matches of all time. That is the mark of a Laureus winner – the combination of elite achievement and the creation of moments that last forever and inspire sports fans for generations to come. For Alcaraz, it furthers his own Laureus story and puts him in exalted company.
Alcaraz won the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award in 2023 and follows the Big Three of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal (Spain’s only previous winner) and Novak Djokovic as winners of this Award. At 22, he becomes the youngest winner of the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award.
There was a one-two for tennis as Aryna Sabalenka received the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award following another year defined by the sustained excellence necessary to claim the greatest prize in sport. From January 1 to December 31, she did not relinquish the top spot in the world rankings. Sabalenka defended her title at the US Open and was a finalist in Australia and France, where she ended the 26-match Roland Garros winning streak of Iga Świątek in the semi-finals. There were also WTA 1000 wins in Miami and – for a third time – in Madrid, the city where she tonight joined a list of tennis players to have received the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year Award, including Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati, Justine Henin and Naomi Osaka.
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year, Aryna Sabalenka, said: “Winning the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award is really special for me. Honestly, it’s a bit crazy to hear my name next to so many legends. To be recognised by the Laureus Academy means a lot, because they truly understand what it takes to get here.
“For me, it’s not just about the wins - it’s about everything behind it. The hard moments, the pressure, the team, the work every single day. That’s why this award feels different. When I look at the list of past winners like Serena Williams, Lindsey Vonn, Simone Biles, it’s really inspiring. Some of them I watched growing up, some I’ve competed against, and all of them pushed the sport forward in their own way. If I can inspire even a few people the same way, that would mean everything to me. This award is a reminder to keep going, keep improving, and stay true to myself.”
Paris Saint-Germain are the winners of the Laureus World Team of the Year Award after claiming six titles across 2025. The pièce de résistance was their first Champions League crown, won in unforgettable fashion with a 5-0 demolition of Internazionale in Munich.
They were also represented by nominations in the Sportsman (Ousmane Dembélé) and Breakthrough (Désiré Doué) categories and become the fifth club football team to win the Laureus, after Manchester United (2000), Barcelona (2012), Bayern Munich (2014, 2021) and Real Madrid (2025).
What lifts these teams above those who end each season as champions? They are the ones who are remembered forever. When we think of club football in 2025, we will think of PSG, winners of Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, the Trophée des Champions, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup, the FIFA Intercontinental Cup – and now the prize that confirms their legacy, the Laureus.
In Formula One, Lando Norris ended 2025 a world champion for the first time and in 2026 he added to his Drivers’ Championship the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award. His seven wins included his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, the jewel-in-the-crown race in Monaco and the season opener in Australia. To his early-season dominance, he had to add nerve and resilience in the closing stages, as he fought off both his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri and the defending champion, Max Verstappen. He shared the final podium of the season with them in Abu Dhabi after producing a champion’s performance when the stakes were at their highest – the definition of a global breakthrough for an athlete we will be watching for years to come. Norris is the third British driver to win the Laureus Breakthrough of the Year Award, following Lewis Hamilton (2008) and Jenson Button (2010).
Golfing icon Rory McIlroy received the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award after completing the career Grand Slam 11 years after his last Major win. The Northern Irishman’s history of heartbreak at Augusta National had become the stuff of sporting legend. In 2025, he rewrote that script, taking sports fans on the kind of final-round roller-coaster that had previously left them sick to their stomachs and this time finding a thrilling finish in a playoff against Justin Rose. McIlroy became the sixth golfer to complete the Grand Slam – and then defended his title in 2026, a feat only achieved previously by Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. In 2012, his countryman Darren Clarke won this Laureus and McIlroy also received the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award.
Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award winner Rory McIlroy said: “Winning my second Laureus Award is a huge honour, both personally and for golf. To have the sport recognised on a global stage like this, alongside so many great athletes, means a lot. There are certain moments in your career that stay with you, and winning The Masters is one I’ll carry with me forever. To then have a year like that recognised by Laureus is very special.
“Completing the career Grand Slam was incredibly emotional. It’s something I’ve been chasing for a long time, and it probably means more because of everything that came before it — the near misses, the setbacks, and the questions along the way. That’s a big part of the journey, and I’m grateful that this award recognises that. I also want to congratulate all of the nominees, especially those in my category. There are some amazing stories there, and I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from them.
“I know the Laureus Awards were founded by Johann Rupert, who I’m fortunate to know, so that makes this even more meaningful. I also believe strongly in what Laureus stands for and the idea, as Nelson Mandela said, that sport has the power to change the world.”
For the first time, the Laureus Academy presented a new Award: the Laureus World Young Sportsperson of the Year Award. The inaugural winner was Lamine Yamal, FC Barcelona’s prodigious 18-year-old forward who maintained his spectacular trajectory, winning the Kopa Trophy for football’s best young talent for the second time – an unprecedented achievement. Even in a team as talented as the treble-winning Blaugrana of 2024-25, Lamine is undisputably first among equals and adds a second Laureus to his 2025 Breakthrough of the Year statuette.
Two-time Olympic champion Chloe Kim, a defining figure in action sports, took home the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award following another season of boundary-pushing performances that reaffirmed her status as the most influential snowboarder of her generation. In a community of athletes who compete at high speed, high altitude and high risk, it takes something truly spectacular to soar above all others and claim this Laureus.
A third world championship and an eighth X Games gold – which brought her level with former Laureus winner Shaun White as the most decorated half pipe competitor in X Games history –were the highlights for Kim, who wins the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award for the third time. Only Kelly Slater (four) has won more.
Brazil’s Gabriel Araújo was honoured with the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award after three gold medals at the World Para Swimming Championships. His wins in the 50m and 100m backstroke and 200m freestyle matched exactly his performance at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Araújo is the fourth Para swimmer to win this Award, following his fellow Brazilian Daniel Dias, Natalie du Toit and Yuyan Jiang.
The Laureus Sport for Good Award celebrates one of more than 300 Laureus-supported programmes worldwide that embody the Laureus mission: to change the world through the power of sport. Sharing the stage with the greatest athletes in the world were representatives of Fútbol Más, an organisation whose programmes support young people across Latin America, Africa and Europe, fostering resilience, community leadership and social belonging through football.
Nominees for the Laureus World Sports Awards are decided by the world’s media, and the winners are voted on by the 69 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy – the ultimate sporting jury. This year the Academy also included additional discretionary Awards.
The Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award has been awarded only three times before: to Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah (2021), American footballer JJ Watt (2018) and the Refugee Olympic Team (2017). Joining those illustrious competitors this year is Toni Kroos, who retired in 2024 after a career spent compiling one of the most impressive trophy hauls in modern football. Kroos was already a World Cup winner with Germany and had won the UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup with Bayern Munich before he joined Real Madrid in 2014. As half of a beautifully symbiotic midfield pairing with Luka Modrić, Kroos then added four La Liga titles and a further five Champions Leagues, among many more trophies. He retired a legend at the Bernabéu and is now a worthy recipient of the Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award.
The highest honour the Laureus World Sports Academy can bestow is the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award and this year that honour was given to Nadia Comăneci, 50 years after she scored the first Perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics history. She won three gold medals at those 1976 Games and a further two four years later. In 2000, she became a founder Member of the Laureus World Sports Academy and has played a vital role in the growth of the Laureus movement, travelling across the world to visit programmes which support diverse communities, using sport to improve outcomes and opportunities for at-risk young people. She becomes the 20th recipient of the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award and the first gymnast to be honoured.
The full list of Winners is:
Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award: Carlos Alcaraz
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award: Aryna Sabalenka
Laureus World Team of the Year Award: Paris Saint-Germain
Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award: Lando Norris
Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award: Rory McIlroy
Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award: Gabriel Araújo
Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award: Chloe Kim
Laureus World Young Sportsperson of the Year Award: Lamine Yamal
Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award: Toni Kroos
Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award: Nadia Comăneci
Laureus Sport for Good Award: Fútbol Más
The Laureus World Sports Awards is the greatest show in sport, and the red carpet was full of superstars from across sport and entertainment, who shared images and clips with fans on social media. Guests included Nominees for this year’s Awards and Members of the Laureus World Sports Academy, the all-time legends who vote for the winners each year. For the first time in Laureus history, the show was hosted by two athletes, both former Laureus winners: Novak Djokovic and Eileen Gu.
Added to the list of those honoured this year are three additional recipients of the Laureus, the statuette awarded to the winner in each category, and the prize the greatest athletes in the world value above all other Awards: Nadia Comăneci, 50 years on from the Perfect 10 that made sporting history, Lamine Yamal, a world star at the other end of his journey, plus Toni Kroos after a career spent as a serial winner for Real Madrid.
The city of Madrid was the sporting capital of the world on a day that also saw the start of play at tennis’s Madrid Open, and five months before Formula One returns to the city for the first time since 1981. It was fitting that one of the big winners of the night was a Spanish sporting superstar.
Carlos Alcaraz was named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year after a landmark season. He regained the World No.1 spot at year’s end after two Grand Slam singles titles, at the French and US Opens, plus another final, at Wimbledon. The Roland Garros final against Jannik Sinner – also nominated for this Award – will go down as one of the greatest matches of all time. That is the mark of a Laureus winner – the combination of elite achievement and the creation of moments that last forever and inspire sports fans for generations to come. For Alcaraz, it furthers his own Laureus story and puts him in exalted company.
Alcaraz won the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award in 2023 and follows the Big Three of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal (Spain’s only previous winner) and Novak Djokovic as winners of this Award. At 22, he becomes the youngest winner of the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award.
There was a one-two for tennis as Aryna Sabalenka received the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award following another year defined by the sustained excellence necessary to claim the greatest prize in sport. From January 1 to December 31, she did not relinquish the top spot in the world rankings. Sabalenka defended her title at the US Open and was a finalist in Australia and France, where she ended the 26-match Roland Garros winning streak of Iga Świątek in the semi-finals. There were also WTA 1000 wins in Miami and – for a third time – in Madrid, the city where she tonight joined a list of tennis players to have received the Laureus Sportswoman of the Year Award, including Serena Williams, Jennifer Capriati, Justine Henin and Naomi Osaka.
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year, Aryna Sabalenka, said: “Winning the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award is really special for me. Honestly, it’s a bit crazy to hear my name next to so many legends. To be recognised by the Laureus Academy means a lot, because they truly understand what it takes to get here.
“For me, it’s not just about the wins - it’s about everything behind it. The hard moments, the pressure, the team, the work every single day. That’s why this award feels different. When I look at the list of past winners like Serena Williams, Lindsey Vonn, Simone Biles, it’s really inspiring. Some of them I watched growing up, some I’ve competed against, and all of them pushed the sport forward in their own way. If I can inspire even a few people the same way, that would mean everything to me. This award is a reminder to keep going, keep improving, and stay true to myself.”
Paris Saint-Germain are the winners of the Laureus World Team of the Year Award after claiming six titles across 2025. The pièce de résistance was their first Champions League crown, won in unforgettable fashion with a 5-0 demolition of Internazionale in Munich.
They were also represented by nominations in the Sportsman (Ousmane Dembélé) and Breakthrough (Désiré Doué) categories and become the fifth club football team to win the Laureus, after Manchester United (2000), Barcelona (2012), Bayern Munich (2014, 2021) and Real Madrid (2025).
What lifts these teams above those who end each season as champions? They are the ones who are remembered forever. When we think of club football in 2025, we will think of PSG, winners of Ligue 1, the Coupe de France, the Trophée des Champions, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup, the FIFA Intercontinental Cup – and now the prize that confirms their legacy, the Laureus.
In Formula One, Lando Norris ended 2025 a world champion for the first time and in 2026 he added to his Drivers’ Championship the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award. His seven wins included his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, the jewel-in-the-crown race in Monaco and the season opener in Australia. To his early-season dominance, he had to add nerve and resilience in the closing stages, as he fought off both his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri and the defending champion, Max Verstappen. He shared the final podium of the season with them in Abu Dhabi after producing a champion’s performance when the stakes were at their highest – the definition of a global breakthrough for an athlete we will be watching for years to come. Norris is the third British driver to win the Laureus Breakthrough of the Year Award, following Lewis Hamilton (2008) and Jenson Button (2010).
Golfing icon Rory McIlroy received the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award after completing the career Grand Slam 11 years after his last Major win. The Northern Irishman’s history of heartbreak at Augusta National had become the stuff of sporting legend. In 2025, he rewrote that script, taking sports fans on the kind of final-round roller-coaster that had previously left them sick to their stomachs and this time finding a thrilling finish in a playoff against Justin Rose. McIlroy became the sixth golfer to complete the Grand Slam – and then defended his title in 2026, a feat only achieved previously by Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods. In 2012, his countryman Darren Clarke won this Laureus and McIlroy also received the Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award.
Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award winner Rory McIlroy said: “Winning my second Laureus Award is a huge honour, both personally and for golf. To have the sport recognised on a global stage like this, alongside so many great athletes, means a lot. There are certain moments in your career that stay with you, and winning The Masters is one I’ll carry with me forever. To then have a year like that recognised by Laureus is very special.
“Completing the career Grand Slam was incredibly emotional. It’s something I’ve been chasing for a long time, and it probably means more because of everything that came before it — the near misses, the setbacks, and the questions along the way. That’s a big part of the journey, and I’m grateful that this award recognises that. I also want to congratulate all of the nominees, especially those in my category. There are some amazing stories there, and I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from them.
“I know the Laureus Awards were founded by Johann Rupert, who I’m fortunate to know, so that makes this even more meaningful. I also believe strongly in what Laureus stands for and the idea, as Nelson Mandela said, that sport has the power to change the world.”
For the first time, the Laureus Academy presented a new Award: the Laureus World Young Sportsperson of the Year Award. The inaugural winner was Lamine Yamal, FC Barcelona’s prodigious 18-year-old forward who maintained his spectacular trajectory, winning the Kopa Trophy for football’s best young talent for the second time – an unprecedented achievement. Even in a team as talented as the treble-winning Blaugrana of 2024-25, Lamine is undisputably first among equals and adds a second Laureus to his 2025 Breakthrough of the Year statuette.
Two-time Olympic champion Chloe Kim, a defining figure in action sports, took home the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award following another season of boundary-pushing performances that reaffirmed her status as the most influential snowboarder of her generation. In a community of athletes who compete at high speed, high altitude and high risk, it takes something truly spectacular to soar above all others and claim this Laureus.
A third world championship and an eighth X Games gold – which brought her level with former Laureus winner Shaun White as the most decorated half pipe competitor in X Games history –were the highlights for Kim, who wins the Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award for the third time. Only Kelly Slater (four) has won more.
Brazil’s Gabriel Araújo was honoured with the Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award after three gold medals at the World Para Swimming Championships. His wins in the 50m and 100m backstroke and 200m freestyle matched exactly his performance at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Araújo is the fourth Para swimmer to win this Award, following his fellow Brazilian Daniel Dias, Natalie du Toit and Yuyan Jiang.
The Laureus Sport for Good Award celebrates one of more than 300 Laureus-supported programmes worldwide that embody the Laureus mission: to change the world through the power of sport. Sharing the stage with the greatest athletes in the world were representatives of Fútbol Más, an organisation whose programmes support young people across Latin America, Africa and Europe, fostering resilience, community leadership and social belonging through football.
Nominees for the Laureus World Sports Awards are decided by the world’s media, and the winners are voted on by the 69 members of the Laureus World Sports Academy – the ultimate sporting jury. This year the Academy also included additional discretionary Awards.
The Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award has been awarded only three times before: to Liverpool legend Mohamed Salah (2021), American footballer JJ Watt (2018) and the Refugee Olympic Team (2017). Joining those illustrious competitors this year is Toni Kroos, who retired in 2024 after a career spent compiling one of the most impressive trophy hauls in modern football. Kroos was already a World Cup winner with Germany and had won the UEFA Champions League and the FIFA Club World Cup with Bayern Munich before he joined Real Madrid in 2014. As half of a beautifully symbiotic midfield pairing with Luka Modrić, Kroos then added four La Liga titles and a further five Champions Leagues, among many more trophies. He retired a legend at the Bernabéu and is now a worthy recipient of the Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award.
The highest honour the Laureus World Sports Academy can bestow is the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award and this year that honour was given to Nadia Comăneci, 50 years after she scored the first Perfect 10 in Olympic gymnastics history. She won three gold medals at those 1976 Games and a further two four years later. In 2000, she became a founder Member of the Laureus World Sports Academy and has played a vital role in the growth of the Laureus movement, travelling across the world to visit programmes which support diverse communities, using sport to improve outcomes and opportunities for at-risk young people. She becomes the 20th recipient of the Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award and the first gymnast to be honoured.
The full list of Winners is:
Laureus World Sportsman of the Year Award: Carlos Alcaraz
Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year Award: Aryna Sabalenka
Laureus World Team of the Year Award: Paris Saint-Germain
Laureus World Breakthrough of the Year Award: Lando Norris
Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award: Rory McIlroy
Laureus World Sportsperson of the Year with a Disability Award: Gabriel Araújo
Laureus World Action Sportsperson of the Year Award: Chloe Kim
Laureus World Young Sportsperson of the Year Award: Lamine Yamal
Laureus Sporting Inspiration Award: Toni Kroos
Laureus Lifetime Achievement Award: Nadia Comăneci
Laureus Sport for Good Award: Fútbol Más
