2025 ESPY Awards: Complete list of winners and nominees

The biggest names in sports gathered at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on July 16, 2025, for the 2025 ESPY Awards to celebrate the top athletic achievements of the past year.

The event was hosted by comedian Shane Gillis. The ESPN-presented show, ESPY Awards, recognized individual and team excellence across multiple sports. The night also honored the athletes and figures who made an impact beyond the scoreboard.

2025 ESPY Awards recognized global icons like Simone Biles and Shohei Ohtani and also rising stars such as Ilona Maher and Caitlin Clark. Special awards were presented to figures like Oscar Robertson and Alex Morgan.

Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles was leading the 2025 ESPYs nominations with three nods. However, Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, fresh off an MVP season and NBA Championship win, took home Best Athlete in Men's Sports. On the women's side, Olympic gymnast Simone Biles picked up both Best Athlete in Women's Sports and Best Championship Performance at the 2025 ESPYs.

Diana Taurasi and Alex Morgan received the 2025 ESPY Icon Award for their contribution to women's sports. A complete list of winners and nominees at the 2025 ESPYs follows.

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Complete list of winners and nominees at the 2025 ESPY Awards

Below is a complete breakdown of every category, nominee, and winner from the 2025 ESPY Awards:

Best Athlete – Men's Sports

Winner: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder

Nominees:

• Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills
• Saquon Barkley – Philadelphia Eagles
• Shohei Ohtani – Los Angeles Dodgers

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Best Athlete – Women’s Sports

Winner: Simone Biles – Gymnastics

Nominees:

• Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone – Track & Field
• Gabby Thomas – Track & Field
• A’ja Wilson – Las Vegas Aces

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Best Championship Performance

Winner: Simone Biles – 2024 Olympics Women’s All-Around

Nominees:

• Stephen Curry – U.S. Men’s Olympic Basketball Team
• Freddie Freeman – World Series MVP
• Rory McIlroy – Masters win completing career Grand Slam

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Best Play

Winner: Saquon Barkley’s backwards hurdle – NFL (11/3/24)

Nominees:

• Tyrese Haliburton Game-Winner – NBA Finals Game 1
• Sabrina Ionescu’s Logo 3 – WNBA Finals Game 3
• Trinity Rodman’s OT Goal – 2024 Olympics

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Best Breakthrough Athlete

Winner: Ilona Maher – Rugby

Nominees:

• Cooper Flagg – Duke Men’s Basketball
• Chloe Humphrey – North Carolina Women’s Lacrosse
• Paul Skenes – Pittsburgh Pirates

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Best Record-Breaking Performance

Winner: Alexander Ovechkin – Washington Capitals

Nominees:

• Geno Auriemma – UConn Huskies
• Caitlin Clark – Indiana Fever
• Kevin Durant – Olympic Basketball

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Best Comeback Athlete

Winner: Suni Lee – Gymnastics

Nominees:

• Gabe Landeskog – Colorado Avalanche
• Mallory Swanson – USWNT / Chicago Red Stars
• Lindsey Vonn – Skiing

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Best Team

Winner: Philadelphia Eagles – NFL

Nominees:

• Florida Panthers – NHL
• Los Angeles Dodgers – MLB
• New York Liberty – WNBA
• Ohio State Buckeyes – NCAA Football
• Oklahoma City Thunder – NBA
• North Carolina Tar Heels – NCAA Women’s Lacrosse
• United States Women’s National Team – Soccer
• UConn Huskies – Women’s Basketball

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Best College Athlete – Men's Sports

Nominees:

• Cooper Flagg – Duke Basketball (Winner)
• Wyatt Hendrickson – Oklahoma State Wrestling
• Travis Hunter – Colorado Football
• CJ Kirst – Cornell Lacrosse

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Best College Athlete – Women’s Sports

Winner: JuJu Watkins – USC Basketball

Nominees:

• Olivia Babcock – Pitt Volleyball
• Kate Faasse – North Carolina Soccer
• Gretchen Walsh – Virginia Swimming

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Best Athlete with a Disability

Nominees:

• Noah Elliott – Snowboarding (Winner)
• Ezra Frech – Track & Field
• Tatyana McFadden – Track & Field
• Grace Norman – Paratriathlon

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Best NFL Player

Winner: Saquon Barkley – Philadelphia Eagles

Nominees:

• Josh Allen – Buffalo Bills
• Lamar Jackson – Baltimore Ravens
• Patrick Surtain II – Denver Broncos

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Best MLB Player

Nominees:

• Freddie Freeman – Los Angeles Dodgers
• Aaron Judge – New York Yankees
• Shohei Ohtani – Los Angeles Dodgers (Winner)
• Tarik Skubal – Detroit Tigers

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Best NHL Player

Nominees:

• Leon Draisaitl – Edmonton Oilers (Winner)
• Connor Hellebuyck – Winnipeg Jets
• Nikita Kucherov – Tampa Bay Lightning
• Cale Makar – Colorado Avalanche

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Best NBA Player

Nominees:

• Giannis Antetokounmpo – Milwaukee Bucks
• Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder (Winner)
• Nikola Jokic – Denver Nuggets
• Jayson Tatum – Boston Celtics

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Best WNBA Player

Winner: Caitlin Clark – Indiana Fever

Nominees:

• Napheesa Collier – Minnesota Lynx
• Breanna Stewart – New York Liberty
• A’ja Wilson – Las Vegas Aces

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Best Driver

Nominees:

• Joey Logano – NASCAR
• Álex Palou – IndyCar
• Oscar Piastri – Formula 1
• Max Verstappen – Formula 1 (winner)

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Best UFC Fighter

Nominees:

• Dricus Du Plessis
• Merab Dvalishvili (Winner)
• Kayla Harrison
• Islam Makhachev

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Best Boxer

Nominees:

• Naoya Inoue
• Claressa Shields
• Katie Taylor (Winner)
• Oleksandr Usyk

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Best Soccer Player

Nominees:

• Aitana Bonmatí – Spain
• Christian Pulisic – U.S. (Winner)
• Alexia Putellas – Spain
• Lamine Yamal – Spain

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Best Golfer

Nominees:

• Nelly Korda
• Rory McIlroy
• Scottie Scheffler (Winner)
• Maja Stark

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Best Tennis Player

Nominees:

• Carlos Alcaraz
• Coco Gauff (Winner)
• Aryna Sabalenka
• Jannik Sinner

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Special honors

• Icon Award: Diana Taurasi and Alex Morgan
• Arthur Ashe Award for Courage: Oscar Robertson
• Jimmy V Award for Perseverance: Katie Schumacher-Cawley
• Pat Tillman Award for Service: David Walters and Erin Regan
• Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award: Sloane Stephens
• Gatorade Players of the Year: Jane Hedengren and Cameron Boozer
• Capital One Cup Winners: Ohio State (Men) and North Carolina (Women)

The 2025 ESPY Awards are being hosted by comedian Shane Gillis. His monologue spanned POTUS Donald Trump, the Epstein case, WNBA players, and more. It is drawing mixed reactions from the internet. Below are some quotes from his monologue from the 2025 ESPYs:

"There was supposed to be an Epstein joke here, but it got deleted, must have probably deleted itself, right? Probably never existed. Actually. Let's move on as a country and ignore that."

"Joe Rogan actually wanted me to be here to host this award show so that I could capture Adam Silver because Joe thinks he is an alien and Donald Trump wanted me to be here to capture Juan Soto for the same reason."

Gills also said:

"I see a lot of you don't like me and that's okay. That's it for me. That went about exactly how we all thought it was going to go. I don't know why this happened."

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Where was the 2025 ESPYs telecast?

• Event date: Wednesday, July 16, 2025
• Time: 8 p.m. ET (airs at 8 p.m. PT)
• Event place: The Dolby Theatre (Los Angeles)
• TV: ABC
• Where to stream: ESPN+

The 2025 ESPYs served as a celebration of athletic achievement across various categories.

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