Although the honorees generally do not compete together as a unit, the term is used in U.S. team sports to refer to players who are selected by members of the national media.

Walter Camp selected the first All-America team in the early days of American football in 1889.

[2] To earn "consensus" status, a player must win honors based on a point system computed from the four different all-America teams.

The scholar-athletes selected by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) are termed Academic All-Americans.

AP Honorable Mention:[4] On March 11, 2019, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) announced the 2019 Academic All-America team, with Joe Sherburne headlining the NCAA Division I team as the men's college basketball Academic All-American of the Year.