THE SHORTLIST FOR the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2026 has been announced, with no Irish connection among this year’s shortlisted titles.
This year’s shortlist of five is:
‘This Is Not About Running’ – Mary Cain.
‘The Power Within’ – Sophie Power.
‘The Impossible Job’ – William Ralston.
‘The Fall and Rise of the Molkky Bar Kids’ – Neil Squires.
‘The Chain’ – Bradley Wiggins.
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Wiggins’ book will be in contention for the overall prize, having already been awarded Sports Book of the Year in 2025 by The Guardian, Waterstones and The Daily Telegraph. The former cyclist has previously had two autobiographies published.
🏆 THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2026 SHORTLIST IS HERE!
Five books. Five authors. One prestigious prize.
📚 This Is Not About Running - Mary Cain
📚 The Power Within - Sophie Power
📚 The Impossible Job - William Ralston
📚 The Fall and Rise of the Molkky Bar Kids - Neil Squires
📚 The Chain - Sir Bradley Wiggins
Our judging panel has read the longlist and selected these five outstanding titles. Now, the final deliberations begin to decide who will be crowned the 2026 winner.
Who gets your vote?
@runmarycain I @ultra_sophie I @_WilliamRalston I @squiresneil1 I @SirWiggo
— William Hill Sports Book Of The Year (@BookiePrize) October 29, 2026
In 2024, the award went to Irish tennis player Conor Niland for The Racket, a ‘warts and all’ portrayal of the lower reaches of the circuit on which he collaborated with Irish sportswriter Gavin Cooney, formerly of The 42.
The 2025 winner was Pippa York (formerly Robert Millar) for The Escape, about their cycling career and transition, with the help of Kilkenny native David Walsh as ghostwriter.
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William Hill Sports Book of the Year shortlist unveiled
THE SHORTLIST FOR the William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2026 has been announced, with no Irish connection among this year’s shortlisted titles.
This year’s shortlist of five is:
Wiggins’ book will be in contention for the overall prize, having already been awarded Sports Book of the Year in 2025 by The Guardian, Waterstones and The Daily Telegraph. The former cyclist has previously had two autobiographies published.
In 2024, the award went to Irish tennis player Conor Niland for The Racket, a ‘warts and all’ portrayal of the lower reaches of the circuit on which he collaborated with Irish sportswriter Gavin Cooney, formerly of The 42.
The 2025 winner was Pippa York (formerly Robert Millar) for The Escape, about their cycling career and transition, with the help of Kilkenny native David Walsh as ghostwriter.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
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