Summary
- World Press Photo is adding Nature and Sports Awards to its 2027 contest.
- Each field will receive three awards, with no separate entry process.
- The jury will select winners from eligible Singles and Stories submissions across all regions.
- Entries open on 1 December 2026.
Nature and sports photography are gaining dedicated recognition once again at the 2027 World Press Photo Contest, with six new awards and an important distinction for anyone planning to enter.
On 13 October 2026, the organization announced the Nature Award and Sports Award, each recognizing three winners. These are not new entry categories: the jury will select all six awards from eligible Singles and Stories submissions across the contest’s regions.
Why nature and sport are coming back into focus
There is a clear reason for the change. Since World Press Photo adopted regional judging in 2022 and moved away from subject-based categories, nature and sports work has featured less consistently among the winners. Exhibition audiences and industry partners have asked for these fields to be more visible again.
The regional model is not being reversed. Instead, the additional awards recognize two forms of visual journalism that often demand sustained access, subject knowledge and rigorous reporting. The 2026 World Press Photo of the Year by Carol Guzy offered another reminder of how much the journalistic meaning of a single frame can matter.
Nature Award: people, animals and ecosystems
The Nature Award focuses on relationships between humans, animals and the ecosystems they share. Work may explore coexistence, ecological restoration, adaptation and tensions between wildlife and human activity. Visual strength needs to be matched by context and storytelling.
There is an important boundary: global environmental crisis reporting, including the climate crisis and severe pollution, is not included in this dedicated Nature Award simply because it concerns the environment. Such projects remain eligible across the established Singles, Stories and Long-Term Projects categories. That distinction matters for photographers working on long-term environmental reporting.
Sports Award: beyond the decisive moment
The Sports Award will recognize action and emotion alongside stories about sport’s wider place in society: communities, cultural traditions, protests, political tensions and everyday sporting life. An iconic moment at a major stadium does not automatically outweigh a carefully reported story about a grassroots club.
That is a different approach from dedicated sports competitions such as the 2027 World Sports Photography Awards, with their separate sporting categories. At World Press Photo, sport remains part of the wider world of photojournalism and documentary storytelling.
How and when to enter
The 2027 jury will select three Nature Award and three Sports Award recipients from eligible Singles and Stories entries submitted across all regions. Photographers will not need to submit separate applications for the two additional awards.
Entries for the 2027 World Press Photo Contest open on 1 December 2026. The organization says full eligibility and entry details will be published on 3 November 2026. Photographers should not assume that previous years’ shooting windows or technical submission requirements will remain unchanged until the 2027 rules are published.
The official explanation of the new awards also presents illustrative photographic work and outlines the scope of each distinction.
What we think
Bringing nature and sports back into clearer view is a sensible correction. The regional judging system had a serious rationale: making room for a broader geographic range of visual reporting. But when certain kinds of photography repeatedly disappear from the winning selection, audiences end up seeing only part of the work photojournalists actually produce.
We particularly welcome the focus on the relationship between people and nature rather than wildlife spectacle alone. A photographer documenting coexistence with large mammals or the management of a protected habitat has a clearer avenue for recognition. The boundary between nature reporting and coverage of the climate crisis, however, deserves careful attention from entrants.
In sport, it is equally encouraging that the new award extends beyond the spectacular peak of competition. Life around a local club, the people in the stands and social conflicts expressed through sport may tell stronger stories than a victory shot. The jury’s challenge will be to recognize that reporting without compromising on documentation and storytelling.
Frequently asked questions
Do photographers need to apply separately for the Nature and Sports Awards?
No. The jury will choose six winners from eligible Singles and Stories entries submitted through the regular regional contest process.
Can climate-crisis reporting compete for the Nature Award?
Global environmental crisis reporting, including the climate crisis and severe pollution, falls outside the dedicated Nature Award. It can still be considered in the contest’s established categories, subject to the entry rules.
When do entries open?
Entries open on 1 December 2026, with full eligibility and submission details scheduled for 3 November 2026.
