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Harry Kane, Gareth Southgate, Alastair Cook Headline Sporting New Year Honours
December 29, 2018
England manager Gareth Southgate and team captain Harry Kane have both been recognised in the Queen's New Year Honours list among a number of sporting stars.
Per BBC Sport, Kane has been made an MBE after he won the Golden Boot at the FIFA World Cup, while Southgate will receive an OBE after steering the Three Lions to the semi-finals in Russia; it was the team's best performance at the tournament since 1990.
The Tottenham Hotspur striker posted the following on Twitter when the news was announced, while the England account relayed quotes from Southgate:
Harry Kane @HKaneI'm very passionate about our country and very patriotic so to get an MBE makes me immensely proud. It has been a great year for club and country. It shows hard work pays off but I couldn't do it without the teammates, family & friends I've got around me. Thank you. 🙌 #NYHonours https://t.co/ek9giBw2ci
Also in football, the Premier League's outgoing executive chairman Richard Scudamore was awarded a CBE, while former Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein has been given an MBE.
Harry Gregg, the former Manchester United goalkeeper who survived the 1958 Munich air disaster, has been recognised with an OBE:
Simon Peach of the Press Association listed those from the footballing world who had been given accolades in the 2018 Honours list:
Away from football, a number of other British sporting stars were granted honours. One of the most notable recognitions belongs to former England cricket captain Alastair Cook, who received a knighthood.
Cook retired earlier in the year having played more Tests, scored more runs and made more centuries than any other England player. The former batsman walked away from the sport sixth on the all-time list of run-scorers in Test matches overall.
The opening batsman was also able to finish his career in style, as he scored a century in his last innings in his final Test against India at The Oval:
Former England rugby captain Bill Beaumont, who led England to a Five Nations Grand Slam in 1980 and also skippered the British & Irish Lions, has been knighted. Meanwhile, Commonwealth Games Federation president Louise Martin has been made a dame.
Geva Mentor helped England win gold in the Commonwealth Games in netball in 2018 and has earned a CBE for her services to the sport:
Elsewhere, cyclist Geraint Thomas sees an incredible 2018 capped off with an OBE. The Team Sky star became the first Welshman ever to win the Tour de France and was also recently crowned as BBC's Sports Personality of the Year.
"This is an amazing honour," said Thomas, per BBC. "2018 will always be a year I remember for everything I achieved around both the Dauphine and especially the Tour. This is the icing on the cake and I am so grateful to everyone who played a part in helping me get recognised once again."