Behind the Shield, a seven-part docuseries following the 2025 U.S. Men’s Lacrosse U20 group, gained the 2026 Cynopsis Sports Award within the Best Sports Team/Event/Competition Documentary or Docuseries class.
There had been greater than 30 classes on this 12 months’s Cynopsis Sports Awards, recognizing an distinctive group of organizations, groups and people driving innovation, creativity and affect throughout the sports activities business.
Behind the Shield earned prime honors in a extremely aggressive class that included ESPN with the ACC Network’s We’re #1! collection; ESPN, NFL Films, Skydance Sports, Words + Pictures and 2PM Productions for The Kingdom; and Esports Foundation/This Machine for Esports World Cup: Level Up.
“To win this award against organizations like ESPN, NFL Films, Skydance Sports and the FIFA World Cup is both humbling and unexpected,” mentioned Dave Krupinski, VP of Marketing, Media and Communications for USA Lacrosse. “For us, it’s validation that great storytelling isn’t defined by the size of a budget or platform. It’s driven by authentic access, talented people and a belief that the story matters.
“Behind the Shield was produced entirely in house by the USA Lacrosse team to bring fans closer to the athletes who represent our country. This recognition belongs to every member of that team. More than anything, we’re proud that lacrosse stories are being recognized on the same stage as some of the biggest names in sports media. It’s a sign of where the sport is headed, and we’re just getting started.”
This 12 months’s finalists and winners included main organizations akin to ESPN, NBC, FOX Sports, Prime Video, NFL Media, Nielsen, Playfly Sports, Monumental Sports & Entertainment, Barstool Sports, CBS Sports and YES Network, amongst others, reflecting a strong cross-section of the trendy sports activities ecosystem.
Behind the Shield is a groundbreaking documentary collection from USA Lacrosse that captured the drama, delight, and evolution of the United States U20 nationwide lacrosse group on the 2025 World Championship in Jeju, South Korea. Produced in-house and streamed on YouTube, the collection represents an modern leap for a grassroots sports activities group and nationwide governing physique. With Behind the Shield, USA Lacrosse proved that compelling storytelling, authenticity, and strategic digital distribution can rival the affect of conventional, big-budget sports activities documentaries.
The award was introduced on the 2026 Cynopsis Sports Awards Gala on June 4 in New York City, bringing collectively leaders from throughout the business to have fun the groups and organizations shaping the way forward for sports activities media and advertising and marketing.
A whole listing of category winners is available here.
Producers and USA Lacrosse workers members Noah Beidleman, Dave Krupinski and Richie Garry obtain the Cynopis Award in New York.