- Jan 1 35th Orange Bowl: #3 Penn State beats #6 Kansas, 15-14
- Jan 1 35th Sugar Bowl: #9 Arkansas beats #4 Georgia, 16-2
- Jan 1 55th Rose Bowl: #1 Ohio State beats #2 Southern California, 27-16
- Jan 1 Jack Kent Cooke, owner of NHL's LA Kings, fines each player $100 for "NOT" arguing with the referee
Zatopek "Public Enemy"
Jan 2 Once influential daily sports newspaper, 'Soviet Sport' declares Czech super-star distance runner Emil Zatopek a "public enemy" after he supports democratic wing of the Communist Party at start of the Prague Spring
NY Jets Win Super Bowl
Jan 12 Super Bowl III, Orange Bowl, Miami, FL: New York Jets beat Baltimore Colts, 16-7; MVP: Joe Namath, NY Jets, QB
19th NBA All-Star Game
Jan 14 19th NBA All-Star Game, Baltimore Civic Centre: East beats West, 123-112; MVP: Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati Royals, PG
- Jan 14 Matt Busby retires from Manchester United
- Jan 19 19th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: West beats East, 10-7; MVPs: Roman Gabriel, Los Angeles Rams, QB; Merlin Olsen, Los Angeles Rams, DT
- Jan 19 8th AFL All Star Game, Gator Bowl, Jacksonville: Western Division beats Eastern Division, 38-25; MVPs: Len Dawson, KC Chiefs, QB; George Webster, Houston Oilers, LB
22nd NHL All-Star Game
Jan 21 22nd NHL All-Star Game, Montreal Forum: Western Division ties Eastern Division, 3-3; MVP: Frank Mahovlich, Detroit, LW
Baseball Hall of Fame
Jan 22 Roy Campanella and Stan Musial elected to baseball Hall of Fame
1st Women's Australian Open
Jan 26 1st Australian Open Women's Tennis: Margaret Court wins inaugural Open event; beats American Billie Jean King 6-4, 6-1
Laver Begins Grand Slam
Jan 27 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Rod Laver takes 1st leg of his successful second Grand Slam; beats Andrés Gimeno of Spain 6-3, 6-4, 7-5
Noll Youngest Coach
Jan 27 Chuck Noll is named head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers (the youngest coach in NFL history at the time)
O.J. Simpson First Pick
Jan 28 1969 NFL Draft: O.J. Simpson from USC first pick by Buffalo Bills
Petty's Ford Win
Feb 1 In his first start in a Ford, legendary driver Richard Petty wins the Motor Trend 500 at Riverside, California; previous 92 NASCAR victories were in Plymouths
- Feb 1 Tim Wood wins second of 3 straight US Men's Figure Skating titles whilst Janet Lynn takes first of her 5 consecutive Women's National Championships in Seattle
- Feb 2 Stan Coveleski & Waite Hoyt are voted into Baseball Hall of Fame
Madden to Coach Raiders
Feb 4 John Madden is named head coach of NFL's Oakland Raiders
Maravich Scores 66
Feb 10 Louisiana State University's Pete Maravich scores 66, despite his team losing to Tulane 101-94
- Feb 11 Diana Crump becomes 1st US woman jockey to ride against men, Hialelah
- Feb 16 Detroit Red Wings' captain Alex Delvecchio picks up an assist in a 6-2 defeat at Minnesota to become the 3rd player in NHL history to score 1,000 career points
- Feb 18 Doug Walters scores 2nd innings century after 242 in 1st
Contract of Interest
Feb 21 Ted Williams signs 5-year contract to manage Washington Senators
- Feb 22 Barbara Jo Rubin becomes 1st female jockey to win at an American parimutuel race at a major US track aboard Cohesian at Charles Town, West Virginia
- Feb 23 11th Daytona 500: LeeRoy Yarbrough driving for Junior Johnson, catches Charlie Glotzbach on final lap to win; first Daytona 500 won on a last lap pass
- Feb 25 Pension plan for baseball is agreed to
- Feb 28 Ice Dance Championship at Colorado Springs won by Towler & Ford of Great Britain
- Feb 28 Men's Figure Skating Championship in Colorado Springs won by Tim Wood of USA
Sports History
Mar 1 New York Yankees legend Mickey Mantle announces his retirement due to persistent knee injuries; finishes 18-season career with 536 home runs and .298 batting average
NHL Record
Mar 1 Phil Esposito has a goal and assist in Boston Bruins' 8-5 win over NY Rangers to give him 99 points for the season, breaking the NHL record for most points in a season (97) held by Stan Mikita
- Mar 1 Tuesdee Testa becomes the first female jockey to win a race at a major American Thoroughbred track when she takes out the 3rd race at Santa Anita Park aboard Buz On
- Mar 2 Boston center Phil Esposito becomes first player in NHL history to record 100 points in a season when he scores 2 3rd-period goals in the Bruins' 4-0 win over the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins
- Mar 8 16th ACC Men's Basketball Tournament: North Carolina beats Duke, 85-74
- Mar 14 Barbara Jo Rubin becomes first female jockey to win at Aqueduct Racetrack, NYC aboard 2-year-old bay Bravy Galaxy at 13 to 1
- Mar 14 West Indies cricket batsman Seymour Nurse scores career high 258 in his last Test innings in 3rd Test win over NZ at Christchurch
- Mar 16 Boston Bruins scores a NHL record 8 goals in 1 period
- Mar 22 31st NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: UCLA beats Purdue 92-72; Bruins' 3-peat; center Lew Alcindor tournament Most Outstanding Player for 3rd consecutive year
Sports History
Mar 22 Ethiopian double Olympic marathon gold medalist Abebe Bikila (36) is paralyzed in auto accident near Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; regained upper-body mobility, but never walked again
- Mar 29 123rd Grand National: Eddie P. Harty Sr. aboard 100/9 chance Highland Wedding wins by 12 lengths from Steel Bridge
- Apr 1 Seattle Pilots trade little-known minor league outfielder Lou Piniella to KC Royals for 2 prospects; hits .282 with 11 HRs & 68 RBI to win AL Rookie of the Year; becomes leading MLB manager
- Apr 2 Toronto center Forbes Kennedy sets a Stanley Cup playoff record for most penalties in one game with 8 as the Maple Leafs crash 10-0 to the Bruins at Boston; Boston’s first NHL playoff victory in 10 years
- Apr 7 Dodgers' Bill Singer is credited with 1st official save, against Reds
- Apr 7 Ted Williams begins managing Washington Senators, they lose to Yanks 8-4
- Apr 8 Expansion teams Royals, Expos, Padres & Pilots win their 1st games
- Apr 8 First Major League Baseball game featuring a Canadian team; Montréal Expos beats NY Mets, 11-10 at Shea Stadium; KC Royals, SD Padres and Seattle Pilots also win on debut
- Apr 9 Chic Cub Billy Williams hits 4 consecutive doubles beat Phillies 11-3
- Apr 12 Simon & Garfunkel releases "Boxer"
- Apr 12 Wales beats England, 30-9 at the National Stadium, Cardiff to clinch their 16th Five Nations Rugby Championship and 11th Triple Crown
US Masters Golf
Apr 13 33rd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: George Archer wins his only major title, 1 stroke ahead of runners-up Billy Casper, George Knudson, and Tom Weiskopf
- Apr 14 First regular-season MLB game played outside the United States; Montreal Expos beat St. Louis Cardinals, 8-7 at Parc Jarry, Montreal
- Apr 17 Mont Expos Bill Stoneman no-hits Phillies, 7-0
- Apr 21 73rd Boston Marathon: Yoshiaki Unetani of Japan wins in 2:13:49; American Sara Mae Berman 1st woman in 3:22:46 (unsanctioned)
Joe Frazier KOs Dave Zyglewick
Apr 22 American Joe Frazier KOs American Dave Zyglewick in 1st round to retain heavyweight boxing title, in Houston, Texas
1st Single-Handed Circumnavigation
Apr 22 Robin Knox-Johnston ends 312 days of non-stop sailing to become the 1st person to perform a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the globe
NBA Finals
Apr 23 LA Lakers guard Jerry West scores 53 points in 120-118 NBA Finals Game 1 win over Boston Celtics at the LA Forum
- Apr 30 Cincinnati Reds pitcher Jim Maloney records his second MLB no-hitter in 10-0 rout of Houston Astros
- May 1 Houston Astros hurler Don Wilson blanks Reds, 4-0 for second career no-hitter, at Crosley Field in Cincinnati
- May 1 Leonard Tose buys NFL Philadelphia Eagles for a professional sports record $16.15m
- May 3 95th Kentucky Derby: Bill Hartack on Majestic Prince wins in 2:01.8
- May 4 Stanley Cup Final, St. Louis Arena, St. Louis, MO: John Ferguson scores the winner as Montreal Canadiens edge St Louis Blues, 2-1 for a 4 game series sweep
- May 5 23rd NBA Championship: Boston Celtics beat LA Lakers, 4 games to 3
Sports History
May 5 Milwaukee Bucks sign #1 NBA Draft pick, star UCLA center Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar)
- May 7 2nd ABA championship: Oakland Oaks beat Indiana Pacers, 4 games to 1
- May 17 94th Preakness: Bill Hartack aboard Majestic Prince wins in 1:55.6
- May 17 Baltimore, Cleveland & Pittsburgh agree to go from NFC to AFC in NFL
- May 21 Slovan Bratislava of Czechoslovakia win 9th European Cup Winner's Cup against FC Barcelona of Spain 3-2 in Basel
- May 28 European Cup Final, Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, Madrid: AC Milan striker Pierino Prati scores 3 in 4-1 win over Ajax; second title for I Rossoneri
- May 30 Australian Derek Clayton runs world record marathon (2:08:33.6) at Antwerp, Belgium; record disputed (short course)
Indy 500
May 30 Indianapolis 500: Mario Andretti leads for 116 laps to win for car owner Andy Granatelli in record time of 3:11:14.71; breaks previous record by nearly 5 minutes
Joe Namath Resigns
Jun 6 Joe Namath resigns from NFL after Pete Rozelle, football commissioner, said he must sell his stake in a bar
- Jun 7 101st Belmont: Braulio Baeza aboard Arts & Letters wins in 2:28.8
French Open Women's Tennis
Jun 7 French Open Women's Tennis: Margaret Court beats Ann Haydon-Jones of England 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 for her 3rd French singles title
- Jun 8 French Open Men's Tennis: Rod Laver wins second leg of his 2nd Grand Slam; beats fellow Australian Ken Rosewall 6-4, 6-3, 6-4
- Jun 8 MLB legend Mickey Mantle gives his farewell retirement speech during "Mickey Mantle Day" at Yankee Stadium, 60,096 see #7 retired
Sports History
Jun 14 Oakland As' Reggie Jackson gets 10 RBIs to beat Red Sox 21-7
- Jun 15 Mets help their power needs by adding 1st baseman Donn Clendenon
- Jun 15 US Open Golf, Champions GC: Orville Moody wins only major title by 1 stroke from Al Geiberger, Bob Rosberg & Dean Beman
- Jun 21 John Pennel pole vaults world record (5.45 m)
- Jun 23 Joe Frazier TKOs Jerry Quarry in 8 for heavyweight boxing title
- Jun 25 American Pancho González (41) beats Puerto Rican Charlie Pasarell (25) in 5 hour and 12 minute, 112-game marathon at Wimbledon
- Jun 27 Honduras/El Salvador breaks diplomatic relations due to soccer match
- Jun 28 John Hampshire scores 107 on Test cricket debut v WI at Lord's
Baseball Record
Jun 29 On 'Billy Williams Day' at Wrigley Field, Chicago, the Cubs outfielder passes Stan Musial's NL record for consecutive MLB games played (896) as Chicago sweeps St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1 and 12-1
US Women's Golf Open
Jun 29 US Open Women's Golf, Scenic Hills CC: Donna Caponi wins first of 4 major titles; beat Peggy Wilson by 1 stroke
- Jul 2 Ireland cricketers dismiss West Indies for just 25 (Dougie Goodwin 5 for 6, Alec O'Riordan 4 for 18) to set up a huge upset in Londonderry
- Jul 4 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: Home favourite Ann Jones upsets 3-time defending champion Billie Jean King 3-6, 6-3, 6-2
- Jul 5 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: In an all-Australian final Rod Laver beats John Newcombe 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 for the 3rd leg of his Grand Slam
Sports History
Jul 9 Tom Seaver's no-hit bid against Cubs ends with 1 out in 9th
British Golf Open
Jul 12 British Open Men's Golf, Royal Lytham & St Annes GC: Tony Jacklin wins the first of his 2 major titles, 2 strokes ahead of Bob Charles of New Zealand; first Briton to win The Open since 1951
- Jul 15 Cincinnati Red Lee May hits 4 HRs in a doubleheader
- Jul 18 Joe Namath agrees to sell interest in Bachelors 3, to stay in NFL
Tour de France
Jul 20 56th Tour de France: Belgian cyclist Eddy Merckx wins general, points, mountains, team classification titles
Sports History
Jul 23 40th MLB All Star Game, RFK Memorial Stadium, Washington, D.C.: NL beats AL, 9-3; MVP: Willie McCovey, SF Giants, 1B
LPGA Championship
Jul 27 LPGA Championship Women's Golf, Concord GC: Betsy Rawls wins her second LPGA C'ship, 4 strokes ahead of runners-up Carol Mann and Susie Maxwell Berning
Baseball Record
Aug 5 Pirates outfielder Willie Stargell smashes first and longest home run ever hit out of Dodger Stadium; the incomparable shot off Alan Foster, measures 506 feet
Sports History
Aug 10 Don Sutton breaks his 13-game losing streak to Cubs with a 4-2 win
Sports History
Aug 11 Future Baseball HOF'er Don Drysdale, the last LA Dodger to play in Brooklyn, retires because of damage to his right pitching shoulder
- Aug 12 Boston Celtics sold for an NBA record $6 million
Sports History
Aug 13 Baltimore Oriole Jim Palmer no-hits Oakland A's, 8-0
Election of Interest
Aug 13 Temp Commissioner Bowie Kuhn elected for 7-year term by unanimous vote
PGA Championship
Aug 17 PGA Championship Men's Golf, NCR CC: Ray Floyd wins first of his 4 major titles by 1 stroke from South African Gary Player
Sports History
Aug 19 MLB Chicago Cubs pitcher Ken Holtzman no-hits visiting Atlanta Braves, 3-0 at Wrigley Field
Sports History
Aug 29 Joe Pepitone quits NY Yankees after being fined $500 for leaving the bench
F1 World Champion
Sep 7 Scottish Matra-Ford driver Jackie Stewart wins the Italian Grand Prix at Monza to clinch his first Formula 1 World Drivers Championship; his 6th F1 win of the season
Sports History
Sep 8 US amateur Men's Tennis: Stan Smith beats Bob Lutz (97 63 61)
US Open Women's Tennis
Sep 8 US Open Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Australian Margaret Court wins her third US singles title & 16th Grand Slam singles event; beats Nancy Richey 6-2, 6-2
Sports History
Sep 13 San Francisco Giant Bobby Bonds is baseballs 4th 30-HR, 30-steal player
Sports History
Sep 15 MLB St. Louis Cardinals Steve Carlton sets record by striking out 19 NY Mets in a game
Davis Cup
Sep 20 58th Davis Cup: American pair Bob Lutz & Stan Smith clinch final 8-6, 6-1, 11-9 over Ilie Năstase & Ion Țiriac of Romania in Cleveland, OH; ends 5-0
- Sep 20 MLB Pittsburgh Pirate Bob Moose no-hits NY Mets, 4-0
Ryder Cup
Sep 20 Ryder Cup Golf, Royal Birkdale GC: US, Great Britain tie, 16-16; great sporting gesture, America's Jack Nicklaus concedes missable 3-foot putt to Tony Jacklin at the 18th hole for the draw
- Sep 21 NY Jet Steve O'Neal punts 98 yards against Denver Broncos
- Sep 21 Ron Hill wins European marathon (2:16:47.8)
Baseball Record
Sep 22 San Francisco Giant Willie Mays, becomes second player to hit 600 home runs
- Sep 24 NY Mets clinch NL East pennant
- Sep 28 NFL Minnesota Vikings QB Joe Kapp passes for 7 touchdowns vs Baltimore Colts in 52-14 home win
- Sep 29 Red Sox Rico Petrocelli hits shortstop record 40th HR of season
- Sep 29 Steve O'Neal of NY Jets, kicks longest NFL punt; 98 yards vs Denver
- Oct 2 Seattle Pilots' last game in Seattle; crash to 98th season loss, 3-1 to Oakland in front of just 5,473; move to Milwaukee as the Brewers next season
- Oct 4 MLB holds first league championship games; National League Championship Series: New York Mets beat Atlanta Braves, 9-5; Baltimore Orioles beat Minnesota Twins, 4-3 in American League Championship Series
- Oct 6 MLB American League Championship: Baltimore Orioles beat Minnesota Twins, 3 games to 0
- Oct 6 MLB National League Championship: New York Mets sweep Atlanta Braves, 3 games to 0
Sports History
Oct 13 Billy Martin (97-65) is fired as manager of AL West-winning Twins
Sports History
Oct 15 Baltimore's Earl Weaver becomes first manager since 1935 to be ejected World Series game as his Orioles slump to a 2-1 Game 4 defeat to NY Mets at Shea Stadium
- Oct 15 Madison Square Garden TV Network begins (Rangers vs North Stars)
- Oct 16 Baseball World Series: 100-1 shot NY Mets beat Baltimore Orioles, 5-3 at Shea Stadium for upset 4-1 series win; MVP: Mets 1B Donn Clendenon
- Oct 16 Met Cleon Jones awarded 1st base when shoe polish on ball proves he is hit by a pitch, he scores on a HR in World Series
- Oct 19 Scottish Matra-Ford driver Jackie Stewart finishes 4th in season ending Mexican Grand Prix to win his first F1 World Drivers Championship by 26 points from Jacky Ickx of Belgium
- Oct 24 Pakistani cricketing brothers Hanif, Mushtaq and Sadiq Mohammad start their only Test together; drawn 1st Test v NZ in Karachi
- Oct 29 Tom Seaver voted NL Cy Young Award
Sports History
Nov 2 41-year old Detroit right wing Gordie Howe picks up his 19th and final NHL hat trick as the Red Wings beat Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-3; Howe is the oldest player to score an NHL hat-trick
- Nov 2 Quarterbacks Billy Kilmer of New Orleans and St Louis' Charlie Johnson each pass for 6 touchdowns for combined NFL record of 12 passing TDs in a game; Saints beat Cardinals, 51-42 at Busch Memorial Stadium
Cy Young Award Tied
Nov 6 Inaugural Cy Young Award is a tie between Mike Cuellar and Denny McLain
Killebrew MVP
Nov 12 Minnesota's Harmon Killebrew is voted AL MVP
- Nov 16 US President Nixon becomes first president to attend a season NFL game while in office: the Dallas Cowboys beat the Washington Redskins 41-28
Pele's 1,000th
Nov 20 Brazilian soccer icon Pelé scores his 1,000th goal
- Nov 20 Gundappa Viswanath scores 137 on Test Cricket debut v Australia Kanpur
- Nov 20 San Francisco Giant Willie McCovey edges Tom Seaver as NL MVP
- Nov 25 KC outfielder Lou Piniella is voted AL Rookie of Year
- Nov 26 35th Heisman Trophy Award: Steve Owens, Oklahoma (RB)
- Nov 28 Infielder Ted Sizemore becomes 7th Dodger to win NL Rookie of Year
- Nov 29 34th Iron Bowl: Auburn beats Alabama 49-26 in Birmingham
- Nov 30 CFL Grey Cup, Autostade, Montreal: Ottawa Rough Riders defeat Saskatchewan Roughriders, 29-11; first Grey Cup game played in its entirety on a Sunday
Buck White
Dec 2 Oscar Brown, Jr's musical "Buck White", starring Muhammad Ali, opens at George Abbott Theatre, NYC, runs for 7 performances
- Dec 2 Two years after doubling its size from six to 12, the NHL announces 2 new teams would be joining the League the following year; Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks
- Dec 6 Oscar Brown, Jr's musical "Buck White", starring Muhammad Ali, closes at George Abbott Theatre, NYC, after 7 performances
- Dec 12 Decathlon Bill Toomey achieves world record-score of 8417 points
- Dec 13 MLB manager Billy Martin fired by the Minnesota Twins
- Dec 21 Vince Lombardi (Washington Redskins) coaches his last football game, a 20-10 loss to the Cowboys in Dallas, for a 7-5-2 season and 105-35-6 career
- Dec 22 Pete Marovich sets NCAA record of hitting 30 of 31 foul shots
Ballon d'Or
Dec 23 Ballon d'Or: Milan midfielder Gianni Rivera wins award for best European football player ahead of Cagliari forward Luigi Riva and Bayern Munich striker Gerd Müller
- Dec 24 Curt Flood writes to baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn refusing to accept the Cardinals’ right to deal him and in favor of free agency [1]
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions