Alessia Russo and her England team-mates may have lost 1-0 to Spain, but their achievement was judged greater than Man City’s men who landed the treble by winning the FA Cup, Premier League and Champions League.
Third spot went to Carlos Alcaraz thrashing Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon men’s final.
A third of those polled thought this year was better for sport than 2022, when Argentina won the men’s World Cup and the Lionesses won the Euros.
Bookmaker BoyleSports, which ran the poll, said: “The Lionesses’ quest for glory stands out as a key moment. They may not have the trophy but their performances in the tournament were first class.”
Other notable moments, according to those polled, include Ronnie O’Sullivan becoming the oldest winner of the snooker UK Championship – to add to already being the youngest.
And Mary Earps‘ expletive-filled reaction to her penalty save in the World Cup finals – as a side note the goalkeeper was also voted sportsperson of the year by respondents.
Wrexham getting their Hollywood ending by winning the National League to secure promotion to League Two was popular too.
As was England’s Jonny Bairstow’s controversial stumping during the second Ashes Test at Lord’s by Australia’s Alex Carey.
While LeBron James becoming the NBA’s all-time highest scorer and Frankie Dettori’s winning the Champion Stakes in his final run at Ascot both received plenty of votes.
The study found those polled watched a total 248 hours of sport on TV during 2023 and attended an average of five live events in person.