Carlos Alcaraz has been awarded the 2025 Stefan Edberg Sportsmanship Award, his second time receiving the honor and a fitting recognition of the way he carries himself both as the world’s best player and as one of tennis’s most respected figures.
At just 22, the Spaniard closed the season as ATP World No. 1 after a remarkable year that saw him win eight titles, including Roland Garros and the US Open, and finish with a 71-9 record.
What made this sportsmanship award particularly special was the voting panel: for the first time, the winner was chosen exclusively by the 29 men who have reached the top ranking, a group that includes Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, and the rest of tennis royalty. To be picked by that jury speaks volumes.
Alcaraz earned the honor through a series of quiet, instinctive acts of fairness that stood out even in a year full of highlight-reel winners.
The moment everyone remembers came in the fourth round at Roland Garros against Ben Shelton. On a crucial point, his racket slipped from his hand mid-swing, grazed the ball, and flew onto Shelton’s side of the court.
Most players would have let the umpire decide, but Alcaraz immediately signaled the fault himself and gave away the point. “I would have felt guilty if I hadn’t said anything,” he explained afterward. It was the kind of gesture that wins admiration from opponents, officials, and fans alike.
That was only one example. Throughout 2025 he shared umbrellas with ball kids in the rain, helped opponents up after falls, stayed patient and engaging in every press conference, and sent messages of support to injured peers.
His joy for the game never comes at anyone else’s expense. Peers describe him simply as grounded and genuinely kind, qualities that feel rare when a player is also capable of dismantling the best in the world with ferocious, smiling tennis.
He beat out a strong shortlist that included Felix Auger-Aliassime, 2024 winner Grigor Dimitrov, and 2022 recipient Casper Ruud.
Only seven men before him have won the award more than once; at 22, Alcaraz is by far the youngest ever to reach two. Federer still holds the record with thirteen, Nadal has five, Stefan Edberg himself five, but the young Spaniard has already joined that exclusive club.
His first Stefan Edberg trophy came in 2023, the year he announced himself to the world with that epic Wimbledon final against Djokovic.
Dimitrov interrupted the sequence by winning in 2024, yet Alcaraz reclaimed it in 2025 with a season that combined dominance and decency in equal measure.
As he heads into 2026 chasing the Australian Open title that would complete his career Grand Slam, this award is a reminder that greatness in tennis is measured not only in trophies and rankings but in the respect you earn from the people who know the sport best.