The ESPYS 2026 are one of the biggest nights on the sports calendar. It’s a chance to honor the year’s top athletes, unforgettable performances, and championship moments while bringing together stars from the worlds of sports, music, film, and television. The 2026 ESPYS will be broadcasting live from the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center tonight, and we will share all the winners and highlights in our ESPYS Awards 2026 winners list below for all your ESPYS Award spoilers.
A Night to Celebrate Sports
The ESPYS Awards 2026 will be a star-studded ceremony all about celebrating major sports achievements, revisiting some unforgettable moments, and bringing together the sports industry’s fan favorites and biggest stars. It will be hosted by comedian and “Saturday Night Live” star Marcello Hernández.
This will be a fun night of musical performances, speeches, and just a celebration of everything we love about sports. Who wins at the ESPYS Awards 2026 tonight? Find out below in our Live Winners recap!
WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD: THIS LIVE POST WILL BE UPDATED THROUGHOUT THE SHOW, SO DO NOT KEEP READING IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO READ SPOILERS.
July 15 Live Results – ESPYS Awards
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The ESPYS 2026 Kick Off
We start the night with the Savannah Bananas performing “Show Starts Now.” They are then joined by DJ Khaled. Lots of action to kick off tonight’s show. Marcello Hernandez comes down in a robe, like a boxer. Time for his monologue. Now time for the winners to be crowned!
Best Championship Performance
- Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks – Winner
- Aerin Frankel, USA Women’s Hockey
- Connor Hellebuyck, USA Men’s Hockey
- Teagan Kavan, Texas Longhorns Softball
Best Breakthrough Athlete
- Macklin Celebrini, San Jose Sharks
- Alysa Liu, Figure Skating – Winner
- Drake Maye, New England Patriots
- Fernando Mendoza, Indiana Football
Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award
This award was given to Stephen Curry. We watch a touching video showing him and his wife’s story. He then gives a touching acceptance speech.
Performance Time on The ESPYS
A break from the winners, as we have Slick Rick making his way to the stage. Another performance to keep the night fun and entertaining.
Best College Athlete, Men’s Sports
- Cameron Boozer, Duke Basketball
- Fernando Mendoza, Indiana Football – Winner
- Mitchell Mesenbrink, Penn State Wrestling
- Donavan Phillip, NC State Soccer
Best College Athlete, Women’s Sports
- Olivia Babcock, Pittsburgh Volleyball
- Lauren Betts, UCLA Basketball – Winner
- Madison Taylor, Northwestern Lacrosse
- Faith Torrez, Oklahoma Gymnastics
Jimmy V Award for Perseverance
Another special award for the night, as Justin Verlander presents the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance at tonight’s ESPYS 2026 to Jim Abbott. He gave a very long speech.
Best Single-Game Performance
- Tyce Armstrong, Baylor Baseball — hit three grand slams in a single game, tying a record set 50 years ago
- Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat — scored 83 points for the Miami Heat in a 150–129 win against the Washington Wizards, recording the second-highest single-game total in NBA history
- Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame Basketball — broke the NCAA record for most steals (16) in a game
- Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers — pitched six scoreless innings, struck out 10 batters, and hit three home runs – Winner
Break Time
It’s time for a break from the awards, as we have rapper Ghostface Killah do a short performance. Then Oz the Mentalist takes the stage and does a magic trick with the audience and blows them away!
Best Play
- Golden Goal for Gold! — Olympic Women’s Hockey
- Golden Goal for Gold! — Olympic Men’s Hockey
- UConn stuns Duke with Braylon Mullins’ buzzer-beating 3 — NCAA Men’s March Madness
- OG Anunoby’s Tip-In — NBA Finals – Winner
- Caleb Williams Game-Tying TD vs. Rams — NFL
2026 Pat Tillman Award for Service
We have another special honor being handed out, as US Coast Guard rescue swimmer Scott Ruskan receives the 2026 Pat Tillman Award for Service at the ESPYS 2026. Ruskan received the award after he saved 165 children during the deadly Texas Hill Country floods.
Best Record-Breaking Performance
- Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns — broke the NFL single-season sack record – Winner
- Megan Grant, UCLA Softball — broke the NCAA single-season softball home run record
- Johannes Høsflot Klæbo, Cross-Country Skier — first athlete to win six golds at Winter Games
- Sabastian Sawe, Long-Distance Runner — first to finish a marathon in under two hours
Best WNBA Player
- Napheesa Collier, Minnesota Lynx
- Allisha Gray, Atlanta Dream
- Alyssa Thomas, Phoenix Mercury
- A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces – Winner
Best NBA Player
- Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks – Winner
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder
- Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
- Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
Best NFL Player
- Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns (now Los Angeles Rams) – Winner
- Drake Maye, New England Patriots
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks
- Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
Best Soccer Player
- Temwa Chawinga, KC Current
- Ousmane Dembélé, PSG/France
- Lionel Messi, Inter Miami CF – Winner
- Alexia Putellas, Spain/Barcelona
Billie Jean King Youth Leadership Award
The honorees for this award are Kelis Armstrong from Texas, Julia Howe from California, and Samuel Phillips from California.
Arthur Ashe Award for Courage
Robin Roberts, the 2013 recipient of this award, presents the winner for 2026. This one goes to former NBA star Jason Collins, who is being honored posthumously.
Best Athlete, Men’s Sports
After a small performance from De La Soul, we are back with another award winner.
- Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams
- Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks – Winner
- Lionel Messi, Inter Miami CF
- Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers
Best Athlete, Women’s Sports
- Hilary Knight, Hockey
- Nelly Korda, Golf
- Mikaela Shiffrin, Ski
- A’ja Wilson, Las Vegas Aces – Winner
Best Team
- Las Vegas Aces, WNBA
- Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB
- Indiana Hoosiers, NCAA Football
- Carolina Hurricanes, NHL
- New York Knicks, NBA – Winner
- Texas Longhorns, NCAA Softball
- Seattle Seahawks, NFL
- Team USA Men’s Hockey
- Team USA Women’s Hockey
That’s it for tonight! We end the night with a performance by Fat Joe. What did you think of tonight’s show?
