Rory McIlroy is the favourite to win the Sports Personality of the Year Award, with the BBC revealing their six-person shortlist on Thursday morning.
The Ryder Cup winner – who has never claimed the SPOTY prize despite multiple nominations – has been given odds of 8/13 by Paddy Power.
That puts him ahead of Lionesses star Chloe Kelly, who is 10/3 after winning the European Championship, and Formula One king Lando Norris on 7/2.
Lionesses goalkeeper Hannah Hampton is in the mix on 20/1 while Luke Littler is 25/1 after claiming the World Darts Championship aged 17.
England Women’s Rugby star Ellie Kildunne has been assigned outside odds of 66/1 after winning the World Cup.
You will be able to vote for your winner during the BBC’s broadcast on December 18, presented from Salford.
In 2023 McIlroy snubbed the ceremony after being nominated and he claimed in January last year that the award was ‘not what it once was’ and admitted he ‘forgot’ he was on the shortlist.
On the back of a Ryder Cup victory in Rome that year, he raised eyebrows by neither attending the ceremony nor recording a video message for the broadcast.
‘I forgot I was nominated, so that’s how much I think about it. It’s a popularity contest and I think it’s just not really what it once was,’ he said.
He stands a good chance of finally claiming the top gong after battling through adversity and abuse alongside his wife Erica to secure a record-breaking Ryder Cup win on American soil in September.
The Northern Irishman went close in 2014 but he was beaten in the public vote by Lewis Hamilton, who had won his second of seven Drivers’ Championships.
But he faces stiff competition from the Lionesses duo Kelly and Hampton and recent history has smiled kindly on Sarina Wiegman’s stars.
Beth Mead lifted the prize in 2022 and Mary Earps built on that success in 2023.
Norris comes in at third favourite after claiming his first F1 Drivers’ Championship for McLaren at the Abu Dhabi GP on Sunday.
Alex Kay-Jelski, director of BBC Sport, said: ‘This has been a breathtaking year for sport, driven by athletes whose performances belong in the history books.
‘Each one has delivered moments of pure brilliance that have defined 2025.
‘It’s been incredible to watch, and I can’t wait to honour their achievements, and to see who the nation chooses as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2025.’
On the night, the BBC will also hand out multiple other prizes.
There will be the Team of the Year, Young Sports Personality of the Year, Coach of the Year, Lifetime Achievement and the Helen Rollason Award for ‘outstanding achievement in the face of adversity’.
The ceremony will be held on a Thursday this year. Traditionally it was always held on a Sunday but in 2023 it was held on a Tuesday, leaving people questioning its relevance.
SPOTY dates back to 1954 and has been won by names such as Andy Murray, Hamilton, and Emma Raducanu in recent years.
No golfer has won the prize since Sir Nick Faldo claimed it in 1989.
