Golfer Rory McIlroy has been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025 after clinching the career Grand Slam and playing a key role in Europe\u2019s Ryder Cup win.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 36-year-old from Northern Ireland accomplished golfing immortality in April when he won the Masters at Augusta National to complete the set of all four majors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He became just the sixth man – and first European – to achieve the Slam, joining Americans Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, and South Africa\u2019s Gary Player, in achieving the feat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Having gained the US Open, The Open and US PGA Championship by 2014, McIlroy had to wait another 11 years to make his \u201cdreams come true\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He then played a key role in Europe\u2019s first Ryder Cup win in the United States since 2012, contributing three and a half points to his team\u2019s triumph.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McIlroy also happy his home crowd by winning the Irish Open for a second time, with further successes at the Players Championship and the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, before topping off a stellar year with his seventh Race to Dubai title.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWow,\u201d McIlroy said after receiving the award. \u201cFirst of all, I would like to congratulate all of the other finalists. I know how much hard work and dedication it takes, so it is a pleasure to just be in this room. I feel truly honoured to just be a part of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c2025 has been the year I made my dreams come true. From Augusta to the Ryder Cup and everything in between. It\u2019s the year dreams are made of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England rugby union player Ellie Kildunne came second, with Formula 1 driver Lando Norris in third.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Just minutes before collecting his individual award, McIlroy – along with Tommy Fleetwood – collected the Team of the Year award after Team Europe were honoured for their Ryder Cup success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
England forward Chloe Kelly, Lionesses goalkeeper Hannah Hampton and darts player Luke Littler were also shortlisted for the award by a panel of experts, with the winner decided by a public vote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
McIlroy is just the third golfer to win Sports Personality, after Dai Rees in 1957 and Nick Faldo in 1989.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Holywood-born McIlroy is the third Northern Irishman to win the award, following boxer Barry McGuigan in 1985 and jockey Sir AP McCoy in 2010.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have a lot of people to thank,\u201d said McIlroy. \u201cFirstly, the public, my family, my mum and my dad. They sacrificed so much for me. I wouldn\u2019t be here without them, so thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy wife Erica and my daughter Poppy, they are what holds me together. My rock. They couldn\u2019t be here tonight but I can\u2019t wait to get back tomorrow and celebrate this with them. I love you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd to the BBC for hosting these awards. It has always been something growing up that I watched on TV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was always a big part of the run-up to Christmas, so I am very honoured to get my hands on this trophy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHopefully I can challenge to get it again next year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Team Europe saying off competition from England\u2019s Euro 2025-winning women\u2019s football team and England\u2019s Women\u2019s Rugby World Cup champions to win Team of the Year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The year McIlroy\u2019s dreams came true<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n McIlroy\u2019s long wait to complete a career Grand Slam could not have concluded in a more dramatic fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having let a four-shot lead slip at the 2011 Masters, history threatened to repeat itself in April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He held a two-shot lead going into the final round this time, but memories of recent near-misses came flooding back when his advantage was wiped out on the first with a double bogey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Three birdies in seven holes gave McIlroy a four-shot lead going into the back nine before he dropped four shots in as many holes from the 11th.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, the drama was far from finished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having missed a putt in regulation to get his hands on the coveted green jacket, McIlroy was taken to a sudden-death play-off after his Ryder Cup team-mate Justin Rose birdied six of his final eight holes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With the agony of past heartbreak flooding back, McIlroy held his nerve to birdie the first play-off hole and win his first Masters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n McIlroy let out a huge roar before collapsing to the ground and weeping tears of joy at the end of an extraordinary day of sporting theatre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA lot of pent-up emotion came out on the 18th green. A moment like that makes all the years and all the close calls worth it,\u201d said McIlroy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the Ryder Cup, McIlroy contributed three-and-a-half points from five matches as Europe won on American soil for the first time in 13 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The 36-year-old bore the brunt of verbal abuse from a hostile crowd throughout the event at Bethpage Black in New York – and hit out at \u201cunacceptable and abusive behaviour\u201d after his wife Erica was hit by a drink thrown by an American fan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Having won six times in his eight Ryder Cup appearances, the world number two is being tipped to captain the side in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI would love to be the European team captain at some point,\u201d said McIlroy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBut that will be when I\u2019m not good enough to make the team, or I make way for the new generation to come along.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Source: BBC <\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Golfer Rory McIlroy has been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025 after clinching the career Grand Slam and playing a key role in Europe\u2019s Ryder Cup win. The 36-year-old from Northern Ireland accomplished golfing immortality in April when he won the Masters at Augusta National to complete the set of all four majors….<\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10450,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[2344,2343,73,134],"class_list":["post-10449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other","tag-bbc-sports-personality-of-the-year-2025","tag-rory-mcilroy","tag-slsports","tag-sports-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t