Bruno Fernandes and Khadija Shaw named PFA Players of the Year
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes was named the Professional Footballers’ Association Player of the Year and Manchester City forward Khadija Shaw won the PFA Women’s Player of the Year at the PFA awards on 25 August 2026. Nico O’Reilly and Olivia Smith collected the men’s and women’s PFA Young Player of the Year honours respectively.
Fernandes set a new Premier League assists record with 21 assists during the 2025-26 campaign, surpassing Thierry Henry and Kevin De Bruyne, and also scored nine goals as Manchester United recovered from a difficult first half of the season to finish third under Michael Carrick and secure a return to the Champions League. He is Manchester United’s first PFA Player of the Year since Wayne Rooney in 2009-10 and adds the PFA prize to his Football Writers’ Association Footballer of the Year award from May. Fernandes said: "It is obviously a very proud moment. They are the ones you go on the pitch against and it’s probably not easy to vote for someone you play against, so it is a very good moment."
Shaw, 29, won the PFA Women’s Player of the Year for a second time after previously claiming the trophy in 2023-24; she scored 21 goals, secured a third consecutive Golden Boot and helped Manchester City to their maiden Women’s Super League title. Shaw was also recognised by the Football Writers’ Association during the same period.
Olivia Smith was awarded the PFA Women’s Young Player of the Year for the second season running, having won the 2025 crown for her exploits at Liverpool before continuing her form in the capital. Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly was named the men’s PFA Young Player of the Year after an outstanding campaign; he said: "I had a great season. I’m very proud of the season I had. I won two trophies with my club and managed to play at the World Cup with my country. I’m over the moon how it turned out." O’Reilly was also included in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year alongside City teammates Erling Haaland, Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo.
Arsenal supplied five players to the PFA Premier League Team of the Year: David Raya, Gabriel, William Saliba, Jurriën Timber and Declan Rice. Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United and Brentford’s Igor Thiago completed the eleven.
The PFA WSL Team of the Year featured three Manchester City players — Khadija Shaw, Kerstin Casparij and Yui Hasegawa — while Mariona Caldentey, last year’s PFA Women’s Player of the Year, was joined by Arsenal players Emily Fox and Alessia Russo. Tottenham defender Toko Koga and Manchester United’s Jess Park were included, as were Chelsea’s Hannah Hampton, Ellie Carpenter and Lauren James.
Hayden Hackney, now of Everton, was named the Championship PFA Players’ Player of the Year for his performances for defeated play-off finalists Middlesbrough. Dom Ballard collected the League One award after a goal-laden season at Leyton Orient, having scored a jaw-dropping effort for new club Bristol City at the weekend; Swindon striker Aaron Drinan won the League Two award and Lily Crosthwaite of Birmingham took the WSL2 player accolade.
Sir Kenny Dalglish and Karen Carney received the PFA merit awards in recognition of their contribution to football; Dalglish enjoyed a success-laden playing career with Celtic and Liverpool, is Scotland’s most capped performer with 102 appearances, is 75 years old and confirmed in June he was undergoing treatment for cancer, and went on to manage Liverpool to three league titles before masterminding Blackburn’s Premier League triumph. Carney played 144 times for England, was part of the Lionesses squad which finished third at the 2015 World Cup, came through the ranks at Birmingham, won the quadruple with Arsenal in 2007 and a league and FA Cup double with Chelsea in 2018.