UEFA Team of the Year

Selection process

Until 2011, the writers at the website had constructed a short-list of sixty footballers and coaches who have performed well in European club competitions, domestic competitions and international tournaments for that particular year. Users then cast their vote of a line-up consisting of eleven players (including a goalkeeper, four defenders, four midfielders, and two forwards) and a coach based on who they believed excelled in European football. After the selection is made, the user also has to select one of the players to be the captain of their team.

The format of the vote was changed in 2012 – now users first choose their preferred formation (4–4–2, 3–5–2, 3–4–3, 4–3–3 or 5–3–2), and then choose the relevant number of players for each position. The voters have a choice between 4 goalkeepers, 12 defenders, 12 midfielders and 12 forwards. The voting for best coach was discontinued.

After the votes are cast, they are tallied and the final team is announced on the UEFA website.

Appearance records

The player with the most appearances in the team is Cristiano Ronaldo, having appeared eleven times. Second is Lionel Messi, having appeared eight times. Joint third are Iker Casillas, Carlos Puyol, Andrés Iniesta and Sergio Ramos, who all have six appearances each. The most consecutive appearances in the team is ten for Cristiano Ronaldo (2007–2016), followed by Iker Casillas with six (2007–2012), and both Thierry Henry (2001–2005) and Lionel Messi (2008–2012) with five.

The teams with the most player appearances (not including manager appearances) are Barcelona with 44, Real Madrid (39), followed by Bayern Munich (20) and Milan (18). Barcelona has been the team with the most players selected in a single season with six players in 2009 and 2010. The only other teams with more than three players in one season are Bayern Munich, with four players in 2013 and five in 2014, and Real Madrid, with four players in 2003, 2012–2014 and 2016.

The manager with the most appearances is José Mourinho, with four appearances (one with Inter Milan, two with Porto and one with Chelsea). He is followed by Alex Ferguson, who has three appearance

Team of the Year 2001

Coach: Gérard Houllier: Liverpool

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2002

Coach: Şenol Güneş: Turkey

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2003

Coach: José Mourinho: Porto

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2004

Coach: José Mourinho: Chelsea / Porto

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2005

Coach: José Mourinho: Chelsea

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Team of the Year 2006

Coach: Frank Rijkaard: Barcelona

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2007

Coach: Alex Ferguson: Manchester United

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2008

Coach: Alex Ferguson: Manchester United

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Team of the Year 2009

Coach: Pep Guardiola: Barcelona

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2010

Coach: José Mourinho: Inter Milan/ Real Madrid

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2011

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Voting for a coach ended this year.

Team of the Year 2012

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2013

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2014

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Players who played for two teams during the voting year have the club they transferred to during a transfer window listed second.

Team of the Year 2015

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Team of the Year 2016

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UEFA Ultimate Team of the Year

In November 2015, UEFA published their Ultimate Team of the Year, composed of the 18 players (11 starters and 7 substitutes) with the all-time most appearances in the UEFA Team of the Year, since its inception in 2001.