Rory McIlroy will be feeling confident when he sits in the audience at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards tonight. We’ll know this simply because he’s in the room, and because it’s an honor that still has enough meaning and prestige that if you have a good chance of winning, you want to be there.
Others may disagree. McIlroy was one of them in the past. But for some, bashing the Sports Personality of the Year competition is more of an annual ritual than the award itself, an opportunity to launch a vicious attack on the BBC.
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McIlroy has had a phenomenal year, a dream year, with two successes at the Masters and Ryder Cup so surprising that they might have been scripted. Nothing to object to.
Rory McIlroy has never won a SPOTY title but has his best chance this year after winning the Masters (Getty)
He won the Masters but did so in a gut-wrenching final round that showcased his weaknesses and the strength to overcome them, qualities that make him such a lovable, inspiring champion. Leading Team Europe to an away Ryder Cup victory against an American crowd at Bethpage Black further bolstered his credentials and claimed he will be a standout this season.
For McIlroy, there’s also a sense that if he doesn’t get crowned “The Spot” this year, when will he? Now that he has completed the Grand Slam of his golf career, people may recognize his legacy and past achievements. Of course, given that Andy Murray has won SPOTY three times and Lewis Hamilton twice, few would argue that McIlroy is not among the greats of British sport over the past 20 years.
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So, sure, the Northern Irishman probably should have won, but it was also a public vote, decided on the night, and the history of the award can teach us that it’s rarely that simple.
At this point, it’s worth considering what might happen if McIlroy loses, or rather, what the reaction will be depending on who he might lose to. this daily mail It has been announced that SPOTY will be “tainted” if McIlroy does not win the award this year.
Why? Yes, McIlroy’s achievements are the most convincing. Yes, his victory at Augusta and Team Europe’s achievement at Bethpage Black stirred emotion and created unforgettable drama. But increasingly, the biggest factor in SPOTY voting may be the gulf between sports behind paywalls and those open to the widest possible audience, and McIlroy is on one side of that line through no fault of his own.
That’s why Chloe Kelly or Hannah Hampton (unless they vote evenly) will likely emerge as McIlroy’s biggest threat after the Lionesses pull off another major win. That’s why Ellie Kildunne is a great outside contender and why her world champion Red Roses could beat the European Ryder Cup teams and Lionesses to become Team of the Year.
England win Women’s World Cup in front of a sold-out Twickenham and millions at home (Getty)
Sports ultimately work best when it brings people together. Its power is greatest when it uplifts and inspires. Ultimately, the most talked-about moment of 2025 was Hampden’s saves from Aitana Bonmati and Mariona Caldentey, with Kelly converting the penalty into the back of the net to help the Lions win another European Cup and become the first English football team to win a major tournament abroad. A victory with the power to impact society saw the Red Rose lift the World Cup at a sell-out Twickenham, a dominant and elated team celebrating how they were breaking barriers while displaying strength and athleticism in all shapes and sizes.
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An accusation often leveled at the BBC is that the decline in live sports means it loses other events that have always had that magic, such as the Masters. But in turn, the decision to use the Women’s European Championship and the Women’s Rugby World Cup as a platform has also led to record numbers of viewers, particularly women. The success of the Lionesses or the Red Roses can now become a national event like men’s football or men’s rugby. It’s as if, after decades of marginalization and pandering to male audiences, making live sports accessible and making these athletes visible has brought new fans and interest to a wider audience.
England’s Euro 2025 final victory over Spain is the most talked about moment of the year (Getty)
This should be cause for celebration. But then again, this is the BBC. To some, even the all-female line-up for tonight’s event, which includes Gabby Logan, Clare Balding and Alex Scott, is proof that an organization and the SPOTY Awards have become over-woke and lost their luster. You can perhaps imagine, then, what the reaction would be if Kelly or Hampton followed in the footsteps of Beth Mead in 2022 and Mary Earps in 2023 and won, even if more than 16 million people watched the Lionesses’ latest championship win.
How the votes are divided between Kelly and Hampton will be another factor, as two members of the same team are finalists for the first time. Why both? That may be down to England’s confusing summer survival and Kelly’s rather strange role in it, with the star producing the biggest moments yet failing to start a game. Hampton was crucial to keeping the Lionesses alive throughout, and the goalkeeper was unlucky not to win Player of the Match at Euro 2025 – of course she is an England player.
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The truth is, any of the six players on the final list deserved to win. These include two individual world champions, one crowned at the beginning of the year and the other less than two weeks ago, Luke Littler and Lando Norris, both of whom are also hugely popular. But, a year into his life, it should be McIlroy. However, if the public decides to crown someone else, that does not make it a scandal or bring a “stain” to the award.
