518 journalists from 111 countries voted: Argentina Men’s Football Team named Best Team of 2024 and Paris 2024 Olympics, Best Press Facilities
Back-to-back Copa América champions, Argentina Men’s Football Team, have been voted as the AIPS Best Team of the Year 2024, while the Paris 2024 Olympic Games scooped the AIPS Best Press Facilities accolade. This is the result of the poll by the International Sports Press Association (AIPS), where a panel of 518 journalists from 111 countries voted.
Football dominated the closely contested Best Team category, which saw La Albiceleste receive 579 points to win the award for a third time in a row, beating Euro 2024 champions Spain (552 points) and Real Madrid (532 points), winners of the Champions League, LaLiga, the European Super Cup, the Spanish Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup in 2024.
Paris 2024 Olympics amassed a total of 1507 points in the poll for the Best Press Facilities, followed by UEFA Euro 2024 with 714 points and Wimbledon with 321 points in third.
BEST TEAM OF THE YEAR In 2024, Argentina successfully kept their place as the number one ranked men’s football team in the world after producing a string of impressive performances to win a record 16th Copa América title and maintain their lead in the CONMEBOL qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 26.
Thanks to a late extra-time goal from substitute Lautaro Martínez, the reigning world champions ended Colombia’s 28-match unbeaten run in the 2024 Copa América final at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium on 15 July to claim its third straight major title. Martínez was the top scorer of the tournament with five goals while Emiliano Martínez was the best goalkeeper.
Two months later La Albiceleste would see their own 12-game unbeaten run come to a dramatic end as Colombia secured a 2-1 victory in the World Cup qualifiers. In spite of suffering two defeats and a draw in the 2024 schedule of the qualifiers, Argentina still sit comfortably at the top of the table with 25 points through 12 matches.
Below are the Top 10
1. Argentina Men’s Football Team – Football – 579
2. Spain Men’s Football Team – Football – 552
3. Real Madrid Men’s Football Club – Football – 532
4. USA Men’s Basketball Team – Basketball – 360
5. Barcelona Women’s Football Club – Football – 278
6. Italy Women’s Volleyball Team – Volleyball – 219
7. Boston Celtics – Basketball –184
8. USA Women’s Gymnastics Team – Gymnastics – 172
9. Manchester City Men’s Football Club – Football – 170
10. Denmark Men’s Handball Team – Handball – 165
BEST PRESS FACILITIES The unique award for the Best Press Facilities of the Year went to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which celebrated the return to “normal” three years after Tokyo 2020 took place behind closed doors in 2021 because of the Covid pandemic.
In an effort to make Paris 2024 the most sustainable Olympic Games ever, organisers introduced innovative solutions that still ensured adequate working conditions for the members of the media.
From the three-level Main Press Centre, located at the Palais des Congrès de Paris, through the Transport Connect to the press areas of the stunning competition venues, most of the 5,733 accredited written and photographic press seemed satisfied with the services provided.
Below are the Top 5
1. Paris 2024 Olympic Games – 1507
2. UEFA Euro – Football – 714
3. Wimbledon – Tennis – 321
4. European Athletics Championships – Athletics – 287
5. Formula One World Championship – Formula 1 – 248
AIPS Members from the following 111 countries participated in the Best of 2024 poll: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Rep., Chile, China, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, DR Congo, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Great Britain, Greece, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Ivory Coast, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Republic Of Korea, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Senegal, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sudan, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Togo, Trinidad And Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, USA, Venezuela and Yemen
