Southampton and Northern Ireland captain Steven Davis spoke of his honour after receiving his MBE at Buckingham Palace on Tuesday.
Davis was presented with his medal by the Duke of Cambridge, who is president of the Football Association.
The 32-year-old said it was an "honour that I will cherish" to be given an MBE at such a point in his career.
He added: "I think to get it in any given field is huge, and obviously to still be playing as well, it's unbelievable. It's nothing I ever expected, to be honest."
Speaking ahead of the two-legged tie against Switzerland next month that will determine if the Northern Irish reach the World Cup, Davis said: "It's going to be a difficult game but there's a lot of belief within the squad, and it's two games for us to get to the World Cup so we will be giving it our all.