Former England cricket captain Alastair Cook has been knighted and Gareth Southgate, Harry Kane and Richard Johnson honoured in the Queen's New Year Honours list.
Cook is the first England cricketer to receive a knighthood since Ian Botham in 2007 and it comes after the 34-year-old called time on his international career with a record 12,472 Test runs and 33 Test centuries for his country.
The left-handed opener was previously awarded an MBE and CBE while captaining his country for a record 59 times, and now has a knighthood to go in his collection.
"It's a fitting tribute to a man who has led with distinction on and off the pitch, ever since he made his England debut," said England and Wales Cricket Board chairman Colin Graves.
"The statistics across that time tell the story of his special ability - as do the winners' medals and Ashes trophies - but he is also someone who's been a great role model for our sport.
"We're very fortunate to have had Alastair in English cricket and we're very grateful for his contributions to the game."
Kane & Southgate rewarded for World Cup run
England manager Gareth Southgate has been handed an OBE and World Cup golden boot winner Harry Kane an MBE after leading the Three Lions to the semi-finals in Russia this summer.
"I'm an incredibly proud Englishman so having had the opportunity to have represented my country as a player more than 50 times and then to manage the team at a World Cup has been an absolute privilege," Southgate said.
25-year-old England captain Kane admitted the award came as a huge surprise.
"We got a letter to the house. Kate [his fiancee] opened the letter. It was before the Southampton game," said Kane.
"Normally we'd talk a little but she would never call me just before the match. I had a missed call and she texted me 'could you answer?'
"I thought something was wrong! But Kate was excited and told me that we'd had a letter from the Queen saying we'd get an MBE."
Tour de France winner and BBC Sports Personality of the Year Geraint Thomas was given an OBE after his glorious year - to go along with the MBE he won after the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
"This is an amazing honour," said 32-year-old Thomas. "2018 will always be a year I remember for everything I achieved around both the Dauphine and especially the Tour.
"This is the icing on the cake and I am so grateful to everyone who played a part in helping me get recognised once again."
Jumps jockey Richard Johnson, the man who perennially finished behind AP McCoy before being crowned champion in 2016, gets an OBE, along with former Manchester United goalkeeper and Northern Ireland football manager Harry Gregg.