The BBC Sports Personality Team of the Year Award[1] is an award given annually as part of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony each December. Currently, the award is given to the British team that "has achieved the most notable performance in British sport".[2] The award's recipient is decided by a panel of over 30 sporting journalists, each of whom vote for their top two choices. Their first preference is awarded two points and their second preference is awarded one point; the winning team is the one with the largest point total. In the case of a points tie, the team chosen as first preference by the most panelists is the winner. If this is also a tie, the award is shared.[2] In the past, the winner of the Team of the Year Award has been chosen by public vote[3] and picked by listeners of Radio 5 Live.[4]
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.[5] 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.[6] Liverpool F.C. have won the award three times.[7] 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,[8] and by the England national rugby union team and the British men's 4 x 400 m relay team in 1991.[9] 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 2000; the British representatives at the 2000 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. Football has had the highest representation among the winners, with 12 recipients. The most recent award was presented in 2011 to the England cricket team.[10]
Contents |
This table lists the total number of awards won by nations that the teams have represented.
| Nation | Number of wins.[nb 3] |
|---|---|
| England | 24 |
| United Kingdom | 20 |
| Europe | 5 |
| Scotland | 2 |
| Ireland | 1 |
| Canada | 1 |
| West Indies | 1 |
This table lists the total number of awards won by the teams sporting discipline.
| Sporting profession |
Number of wins[nb 3][nb 4] |
|---|---|
| Football | 12 |
| Rugby union | 9 |
| Golf | 6 |
| Cricket | 5 |
| Athletics | 3 |
| Equestrianism | 3 |
| Rowing | 3 |
| Figure skating | 2 |
| Horse racing | 2 |
| Motor racing | 2 |
| Rugby league | 2 |
| Cycling | 1 |
| Hockey | 1 |
| Swimming | 1 |
| Tennis | 1 |
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