MVP awards:
what does it take to win?
NFL
NBA
MLB
NHL
We’ve analysed every Most Valuable Player award for the most popular US sports to work out what the winners have in common
MVP award-winners:
8
There have been multiple MVP awards distributed in the history of the NFL. The most prestigious is the one conferred by the Associated Press (AP), which was established in 1957.
11
24
3
A panel of 50 sportswriters vote at the end of the regular season, with the winner announced on the eve of the Super Bowl.
What position have past MVPs played?
Quarterback
45
18
Running back
Other
This includes all of the 8 most recent winners and 13 of the last 14.
Over two-thirds of the players to have received an MVP award in the NFL have been quarterbacks.
How old have past MVPs been?
While 2 of the last 3 MVPs have been in their early 20s, the average age of an award winner to date is just under 30.
Under 25 25 to 26 27 to 28 29 to 30 31 to 32 33 to 34 35 or older
14
10
7
Which conference has produced the most MVPs?
Since the league was restructured in 2002, the AFC has provided five more MVPs than the NFC.
AFC
1
North
West
East
5
South
TOTAL
4
NFC
2
0
12
The NFC East is the only division not to have a player receive the award.
Analysis covers the 1957 to 2020 NFL seasons.
Calculated using each player’s age at the end of the regular season.
How much does team performance influence the MVP award?
Since the 2002 restructure, only four MVP awards have been won by players whose team did not have the best record in their division.
MVP’s team had the best record in their ...
Conference
Division
68.4%
78.9%
13/19
15/19
Since 1956, the NBA has awarded the Maurice Podoloff Trophy to the best-performing player in the regular season.
Originally decided by a vote of NBA players, the recipient has been chosen by a panel of writers and broadcasters since the early 1980s.
Center
Shooting guard
Power forward
27
9
However the era of the Center appears to be over … in 2020-21, Nikola Jokic became the first Center to win the award since Shaquille O’Neal in 1999-00.
Centers have won the MVP award over twice as many times as players in any other position.
Point guard
Small forward
22 to 23 24 to 25 26 to 27 28 to 29 30 to 31 32 to 33 34 to 35
6
20
MVPs tend to be in their mid-to-late 20s, with exactly two-thirds having been aged 28 or under at the end of the regular season
The last player to win the award in their 30s was Steve Nash in 2005-06.
Since the current divisions were established in 2004-05, the Western Conference has produced 3 more MVPs than the Eastern.
Eastern
Northwest Pacific Southwest
Atlantic Central Southeast
3 5 2 10
0 5 2 7
Western
The Atlantic Division is the only one of the current six yet to produce an MVP.
Since the 2004-05 restructure, only two MVP awards have been won by players whose team did not have the best record in their division.
70.6%
88.2%
12/17
15/17
Analysis covers the 1955-56 to 2020-21 NBA seasons.
Each of the two constituent leagues - the American League and the National League - has its own MVP award.
Votes are cast at the end of the regular season but the award winners are not announced until after the postseason has concluded.
Battery
Outfield
Infield
Pitcher
20.9%
12.1%
37.4%
Catcher
8.8%
41.8%
First baseman
Second baseman
Third baseman
Shortstop
17.0%
6%
10.4%
8.2%
Under 25 25 to 26 27 to 28 29 to 30 31 to 32 33 to 34 35 and older
36
26
30
37
Over a third of MVPs were already in their 30s when they received the award, with the average age of a winner a shade over 29.
Which division has produced the most MVPs?
Since the current structure was established in 1994, teams in the Western divisions have produced the most MVPs overall.
American League
14 10
In both leagues it is the Eastern division which has seen the fewest MVPs.
National League
Central
7 11
6 6
Analysis covers the 1931 to 2020 MLB seasons.
MVP’s team finished 1st in their division
Since 1994 the National League has selected almost twice as many MVPs from a team that did not win its division: a total of 11 compared to just 6 in the American League.
77.8%
59.3%
21/27
16/27
The Hart Memorial Trophy has been awarded to the most valuable player in the NHL since 1923.
… although they are getting younger, as the last 15 MVPs have had an average age of 25 years and 4 months.
Votes are cast by members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association at the end of the regular season, with a winner selected from three finalists after the playoffs.
Winger
51
13
25
Interestingly, right wingers have won 17 MVP awards and left wingers only 7.
Over half of all MVP awards to date have been won by centers, and either a winger or a center has claimed the award in 17 of the last 18 seasons.
21 or under 22 to 23 24 to 25 26 to 27 28 to 29 30 to 31 32 to 33 34 and older
The average MVP was a shade under 30 at the end of the season ...
There have been 45 MVP awards under the current conference system, with the Western conference producing 3 more winners than the East.
However when we split these into three ‘eras’ of 15 seasons each, we can see that the Eastern conference has been more dominant in recent years
1974-75 to 1988-89
1989-90 to 2003-04
2004-05 to 2019-20
Total
21
Since the Eastern and Western Conferences were created in 1974-75, only 40% of MVPs were at the team with the best record in their conference.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Lower
Excludes 2020-21 when the conferences were temporarily suspended.
Analysis covers the 1923-24 to 2020-21 NHL seasons.
Goaltender
Defense
