Tuesday night saw the celebration of not just another 12 months across all British sports but 70 years of the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award and the full list of winners for 2023 is much longer than just one name.
A total of eight different awards were handed on out the glamorous night over Salford Quays’ MediaCityUK hub, with some big characters and lesser-known faces receiving some much-deserved recognition for their contribution to sport over the past year.
The Manc had the honour of going along this year and it was plain to see just by chatting to some of the nominees, past winners, former athletes and other guests how special an occasion the annual award ceremony is — especially now it’s back here in Manchester for the foreseeable.
This year’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year award winners
Let’s start off with our winner of the titular award itself:
Sports Personality of the Year 2023 — Mary Earps
It couldn’t have been anyone else really, could it? Mary ‘Queen of Stops’ Earps rounded a huge year or so for her and women’s football in general with yet another personal accolade that she was quick to insist wouldn’t have been possible without her teammates and the support from her family.
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Here’s what the Manchester United keeper and Lionesses hero had to say after lifting the iconic piece of silverware:
Your 2023 Sports Personality of the Year and @Lionesses hero, Mary Earps, with a New Year’s message we can all get behind. 👏❤️
Young Sports Personality of the Year — Mia Brookes
The Young ‘SPOTY’ award for 2023 went to snowboarding superstar Mia Brookes, who became the youngest world champion in snowboarding history when she won slopestyle gold in February, Britain’s first-ever in the event, before adding to that a silver at the World Cup in Laax and a big air bronze in Chur back in October.
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Still only 16, the Cheshire-born athlete has quite the career ahead of her.
At the age of 16, she was the youngest ever snowboard world champion, and now Mia Brookes is the Young Sports Personality of the Year 🏆
This year’s Lifetime Achievement award went to none other than footballing legend King ‘Kenny’ Dalglish, who was recognised for his decades of dedication to the sport, English football, work with Liverpool and crucial role at the club in the wake of the Hillsborough disaster.
An icon in Merseyside and across the North West in general, he’s one of the greatest players the UK has ever produced and although his speech was filled with plenty of humour, there was also plenty of emotion on stage as he touched on his past teammates, loved ones and gratitude for the award.
In a similar vein, British athletics legend Fatima Whitbread also took home the Helen Rollason Award, an accolade awarded to individuals for outstanding achievement in the face of adversity: something the champion javelin thrower knows all about as she continues her incredible campaign for children.
Speaking passionately about the award named after the BBC Sports presenter and friend, as well as her experience of the care home system, calling for “fundamental change” to ensure the next generation is “safer, happier and healthier”. Hear, hear.
Next up on the night was a multi-discipline award recognizing remarkable work in the community through sport and that honour went to none other than one Des Smith, the chairman of Sheffield Caribbean Sports Club: a safe haven for young people which offers five cricket teams and eight junior football sides as well as netball and hockey teams.
Throughout his time running the club, he has strived to improve race relations and understanding through the club, as well as helping educate locals on the importance of the Windrush generation. An emotional moment for everyone.
Our Unsung Hero award winner is holding back the tears 🥹
Having helped found the Sheffield Caribbean Sports Club in 1986, Des Smith has made it his life's mission to support and raise up the people within his community.#BBCSPOTYpic.twitter.com/cSxzBLqWC4
Manchester City pick up another treble at the Sports Personality of the Year Awards
Last but not least, it was no surprise to see Manchester City‘s incredible treble-winning campaign recognised at SPOTY 2023 and it was only fitting that such a feat was met with yet another trio of trophies.
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Taking home Club of the Year and Team of the Year, as well as Erling Haaland predictably winning World Sports Star for his own record-breaking season, you could say there was quite a big blue moon over Salford Quays on the night.
The annual Manchester Remembers Foundation charity football match has shut down
Danny Jones
The annual Manchester Remembers charity football match has been cancelled for 2025, and unfortunately, the wider Foundation has also shut downfor the foreseeable.
Set up back in 2020, the Manchester Remembers charity game was created to help raise funds for the families of those lost in the tragic 2017 Manchester Arena attack, raising nearly £200,000 in donations for multiple organisations.
It has been a truly treasured community event across Greater Manchester, welcoming thousands to the likes of Manchester City Academy Stadium and Oldham Athletic‘s Boundary Park, as well as spotlighting local musicians and notable figures volunteering their help for a deeply important cause.
However, the Foundation is now set to hang up its boots. Confirming the news over the bank holiday weekend, founders Aaron Lee and Paul Corrigan shared “a difficult statement to make and a decision not taken lightly.”
— The McrRemembers Foundation™️⚽️🐝 (@McrRemembers) May 3, 2025
As explained in the lengthy and emotional post, it is with a “heavy heart” that this year’s charity match has now been officially cancelled, and tickets already purchased up to this point are now being refunded.
Having played a small part in helping spread awareness around the game and the Foundation since it began, we were gutted to learn of this sad news.
The 2025 MCR Remembers game was scheduled to take place this June at a new venue for the event, Bury FC’s home ground at Gigg Lane, but following what they have labelled “a lack of support” from Greater Manchester leaders and “influential people needed to carry the event forward.”
Lee – a former police officer turned firefighter who was one of the emergency responders on 22 May, 2017 – went on to share a follow-up video reflecting on the announcement.
As he puts in the piece to camera, he says that even if those who had been reached out to in recent times were to suddenly respond, that it is “sadly too late.”
Taking time to thank not only past sponsors, managers, ex-pros and celebrity players who have been part of the event in the past, but everyone who bought tickets to the event(s) over the past few years, stating simply: “We cant thank you enough.”
Lee, who was given both a Chief Fire Officers Commendation and British Citizen Award in 2024, went on to address those “so-called leaders and influential people” in a subsequent post, adding: “All we needed was a bit of help. But we were ignored. Thanks for the memories.”
Unsurprisingly, the comments on social media have been awash with messages of love, support and sadness upon learning of this year’s cancellation and the end of The Manchester Remembers Foundation after more than half a decade.
There is some hope, though, as he ends the video by saying, “Who knows if this is the end or not? […] I dare say we’ll be back at some point.” We can only keep our fingers crossed he’s right and the MCR Remembers charity game won’t be shut down for good.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Manchester Remembers Foundation
Sport
25,000 free footballs are being given away across the UK
Danny Jones
A total of 25,000 free footballs are up for grabs this month as part of a new scheme from Barclays, who are giving them away to mark a special anniversary.
The British multinational universal bank, which boasts over 850 branches and more than 48 million customers worldwide, has been supporting the beautiful game for a quarter of a century now and has been the primary Premier League sponsor since the 2001/02 season.
Approaching 25 years helping fund and promote English football, they’ve come up with a new initiative to celebrate, simply called the ‘Lost Ball Project‘.
We’ve all seen scenes like these before.
Credit: Barclays (supplied)
Tapping into the national and generational memory of losing a ball to a pond, up a tree, over a fence or on a roof and so on, Barclays are making up for those heartbreaking little losses – one ball at a time.
Lost Ball will see the bank give away 25k footballs across the UK, with Barclays customers able to claim a free ball for themselves or someone else who has lost theirs.
Already up and running, the scheme is off to a flyer and free footies will be available until Thursday, 22 May, so we wouldn’t wait around.
The bank has played an integral role throughout the British football pyramid for decades now, sponsoring to only the Premier League but also the WSL, Barclays Women’s Championship; the Northern Irish Women’s Football Association, Scottish Women’s Championship and the Scottish Women’s League One
They’ve even put together this emotive, albeit a bit tongue-in-cheek video:
As they put it, the mission of the Lost Ball Project is simple: “Let’s keep the nation playing the beautiful game. Because there’s no football without grassroots football.”
In addition to backing established leagues, they have continued to support the country’s footballing community at large, especially in terms of the women’s game.
For instance, the Barclays Girls’ Football School partnership with The FA has seen the number of participating schools rise from 3,000 in 2019 to 20,000 in 2024, helping more than 2.5 million schoolgirls access football.
Important work done from the ground up.
Credit: Supplied
Barclays’ Group Head of Sponsorship, Tom Corbett, said in a statement: “We are immensely proud of our pioneering work and funding to grassroots football over the past 25 years.
Giving away 25,000 balls to replace our customers’ ‘Lost Balls’ means they will never be without the one thing you need to be able to play the game we’ve supported at Barclays for all these years.”
If you bank with the group, you can find out how to claim your free football HERE.
Danny Jones -
20th December 2023 
