Photo Credit: Alan Shearer image – Getty Images
From Shearer to Fernandes: Complete List of Premier League Player of the Season Winners (1995-2026)
The Premier League is today the most watched and commercially successful football league in the world, but its journey started with a historic breakaway.

On February 20, 1992, the 22 clubs in the old First Division resigned from the Football League to form the FA Premier League in search of greater control over TV and commercial rights. The new competition kicked off on August 15, 1992, with Sheffield United’s Brian Deane scoring its first-ever goal in a 2-1 win over Manchester United.

Although the league started in 1992, the official Player of the Season award was only introduced two years later. Blackburn Rovers legend Alan Shearer became the first winner in the 1994/95 season after firing his team to the title.

Since then, the award has tracked the evolution of the league — from Manchester United and Arsenal’s dominance in the early years to the rise of Manchester City and Liverpool’s resurgence, with icons like Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney, Luis Suarez, Mohamed Salah, Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland all claiming the prize.

Full List of Winners:
• 1994/95 – Alan Shearer (Blackburn Rovers) • 1995/96 – Peter Schmeichel (Manchester United) • 1996/97 – Juninho (Middlesbrough) • 1997/98 – Michael Owen (Liverpool) • 1998/99 – Dwight Yorke (Manchester United) • 1999/00 – Kevin Phillips (Sunderland) • 2000/01 – Patrick Vieira (Arsenal) • 2001/02 – Freddie Ljungberg (Arsenal) • 2002/03 – Ruud van Nistelrooy (Manchester United) • 2003/04 – Thierry Henry (Arsenal) • 2004/05 – Frank Lampard (Chelsea) • 2005/06 – Thierry Henry (Arsenal) • 2006/07 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United) • 2007/08 – Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United) • 2008/09 – Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United) • 2009/10 – Wayne Rooney (Manchester United) • 2010/11 – Nemanja Vidic (Manchester United) • 2011/12 – Vincent Kompany (Manchester City) • 2012/13 – Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur) • 2013/14 – Luis Suarez (Liverpool) • 2014/15 – Eden Hazard (Chelsea) • 2015/16 – Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) • 2016/17 – N’Golo Kante (Chelsea) • 2017/18 – Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) • 2018/19 – Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool) • 2019/20 – Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) • 2020/21 – Ruben Dias (Manchester City) • 2021/22 – Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) • 2022/23 – Erling Haaland (Manchester City) • 2023/24 – Phil Foden (Manchester City) • 2024/25 – Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) • 2025/26 – Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
Five players have won the award twice: Thierry Henry, Cristiano Ronaldo, Nemanja Vidic, Kevin De Bruyne and Mohamed Salah. Ronaldo remains the only player to win it in consecutive seasons (2006/07 and 2007/08).

The latest name to join the prestigious list is Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes, named the 2025/26 Player of the Season — more than three decades after Shearer first lifted the award.
SOURCE: Punch Newspapers / punchng.com