Next year will see all of Club England's teams recognised with a series of awards
The Football Association has announced details of the inaugural England Awards which will be held at St. George’s Park on Sunday 3 February 2013.
The Senior England Men’s team will be in attendance at the annual ceremony ahead of their high-profile fixture against Brazil, which takes place three days later at Wembley.
Sponsored by Vauxhall, the event will be one of the key highlights of The FA’s 150th anniversary year.
Men’s, women’s and disability players from all Club England’s 24 teams will be recognised with a series of awards putting all national development teams in the spotlight.
There will also be a special lifetime achievement award and England fans will decide the high-profile Player of the Year categories with voting opening on www.TheFA.com next month.
The eleven categories are:-
Senior Men’s Player of the Year (voted for by the public via TheFA.com)
Senior Women’s Player of the Year (voted for the public via TheFA.com)
England Men’s U21 Player of the Year (voted for by the public via TheFA.com)
England Women’s U23 Player of the Year
England Men’s Youth Player of the Year
England Women’s Youth Player of the Year
Disability Player of the Year
Club England Team of the Year
England National Game Player of the Year
FA Chairman David Bernstein will choose and present the Lifetime Achievement Award.
And in memory of Daily Star chief sports writer Brian Woolnough, who passed away in September, The FA and Football Writers’ Association will jointly select the Brian Woolnough Writers’ Award.
This will be presented to the outstanding journalist covering England over the previous 12 months.
Lead England partner Vauxhall will sponsor the Awards and the event will have a strong charitable association with the Bobby Moore Fund for Cancer Research.
Next February will mark 20 years since the death of England’s World Cup-winning captain. The FA have been long-term supporters of the BMF and will also be making a financial donation to the charity.
BMF Founder Stephanie Moore MBE said: “I wish The Football Association well for their 150th anniversary and annual England Awards.
“As the national game, we should all come together to celebrate this landmark occasion. In my role with the Bobby Moore Fund, 2013 will also be a crucial year for our fundraising and awareness work in the fight against bowel cancer.
“It was 20 years ago next February that Bobby died and the football family across the nation have done so much to keep his memory alive and do so much good.
“His contribution to English football was unrivalled and it is great that there will be the opportunity across the year to remember him. I look forward to collaborating with The FA in this special anniversary year.”
The FA’s 150th anniversary will feature significant fixtures across all Club England teams.
The Men’s Senior team will take on Brazil, Republic of Ireland and Scotland (in a restaging of the first-ever international match) as well as FIFA World Cup 2014 Qualifiers.
Meanwhile the Women’s Seniors will head to the UEFA European Championship in Sweden, the Men’s Under-21s compete in their fourth straight European Championships in Israel and the U20s travel to Turkey for the FIFA U20 World Cup.
Club England Managing Director Adrian Bevington said: “With the opening of St. George’s Park, The FA England Awards will help to promote the excellent work being put in by players and coaches at all levels of the national-team set-up.
“Playing for England is the pinnacle for all involved in football and it will be great to have opportunity to celebrate this achievement at our new national football centre.
“The fact our fans can have a say, with some invited to the actual event, is very fitting and we also look forward to working closely with the Bobby Moore Fund.”
Previously, England fans have voted for the England Player of the Year Award via www.TheFA.com and past winners are:
2003 David Beckham
2004 Frank Lampard
2005 Frank Lampard
2006 Owen Hargreaves
2007 Steven Gerrard
2008 Wayne Rooney
2009 Wayne Rooney
2010 Ashley Cole
2011 Scott Parker
