2001 FIFA Awards
The 2001 FIFA World Player Gala (now called the Best FIFA Football Awards) was an international football award ceremony by the sport's governing body FIFA. Six awards were presented in 2001, the Best FIFA Men's Player, Best FIFA Women's Player, the FIFA Fair Play Award, the Top Team and Mover of the Year Awards, and the FIFA Presidential award.
Best Player Award (men): The 2001 winner of the FIFA best male player award was Luís Figo from Portugal. In the same year, the winner of the 2001 Ballon d'Or was Michael Owen.
Best Player Award (women): The FIFA female best player award was first presented in 2001. The inaugural winner was US player Mia Hamm.
Fair Play Award: This award recognizes behavior that promotes the spirit of fair play and compassion. The winner in 2001 was the Italian Paolo Di Canio, for a situation where he took the ball out of play with his hands, when opposing goalkeeper Paul Gerrard was injured on the ground.
Team of the Year: The team of the year award is usually given to the men's national team that finishes on top of the FIFA World Rankings. However, in 2001 (and also in 2000), a different scoring system was used, and the award was given to Honduras based on points scored in their seven best matches of the year. France finished on top of the World Rankings, breaking a seven year run by Brazil. France had been in pole position ever since dislodging Brazil from the top spot in May 2001, and at the FIFA World Player Gala ceremony they were presented with a diploma for the top-ranked team.
Team of the Year: The team of the year award is given to the men's national team that finishes on top of the FIFA World Rankings. In 2001, the winner was France. Brazil was the top-ranked team for the years from 1994 until 2006 (except in 2001).
Best Mover of the Year: This award is for the men's team who made the best progress up the FIFA world rankings over the course of the year. The winner in 2001 was Costa Rica.
FIFA Presidential award: This award was presented by Sepp Blatter to individuals or groups who distinguish themselves in the world of football. The inaugural winner in 2001 was Marvin Lee from Trinidad and Tobago.
Related Pages
- FIFA Awards
- FIFA World Cup Awards
- Best FIFA Men's Player
- FIFA Fair Play Award
- Team & Mover of the Year Awards
- 2001 Ballon d'Or
- 2001 - The Year in Sport
- Football Awards Lists
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