- Jan 1 45th Orange Bowl: #4 Oklahoma beats #6 Nebraska, 31-24
- Jan 1 45th Sugar Bowl: #2 Alabama beats #1 Penn State, 14-7
- Jan 1 65th Rose Bowl: #3 Southern California beats #5 Michigan, 17-10
- Jan 1 John Y. Brown attends his first game as owner of the Boston Celtics NBA franchise after trading the Buffalo Braves to previous Celtics owner, Irving H. Levin
- Jan 2 Australian Open Women's Tennis: unseeded Australian Christine O'Neil wins her first and only Grand Slam event; beats American Betsy Nagelsen 6-3, 7-6
Vilas Defeats Marks
Jan 3 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Guillermo Vilas of Argentina wins 3rd Grand Slam title; beats Australian John Marks 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3
- Jan 7 AFC Championship, Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh Steelers beat Houston Oilers, 34-5
- Jan 7 NFC Championship, LA Memorial Coliseum Dallas Cowboys beat Los Angeles Rams, 28-0
McEnroe's 1st ATP
Jan 14 John McEnroe wins his first of 3 season-ending ATP Masters Grand Prix tennis titles 6–7, 6–3, 7–5 against fellow American Arthur Ashe at Madison Square Garden, NYC
Benitez vs. Palomino
Jan 14 Puerto Rican boxer Wilfred Benitez beats WBC welterweight champion Carlos Palomino of Mexico in a 15-round split decision in San Juan, Puerto Rico; becomes two-division champion at the age of 20
- Jan 21 Super Bowl XIII, Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, FL: Pittsburgh Steelers beat Dallas Cowboys, 35-31; MVP: Terry Bradshaw, Pittsburgh, QB
Mays Elected
Jan 23 NY/SF Giants / New York Mets center fielder Willie Mays elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
- Jan 27 Islanders ends 23 undefeated games at home streak (15-0-8)
- Jan 29 NFL Pro Bowl, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: NFC beats AFC, 13-7; MVP: Ahmad Rashād, Minnesota Vikings, WR
- Feb 1 English international forward Trevor Francis becomes Britain’s first £1 million soccer player when he transfers from Birmingham City to Nottingham Forest
Border's Only Missed Test
Feb 10 Allan Border is named 12th man for Australia, only Test Cricket he misses
World Record
Feb 17 American speed skater Eric Heiden equals world record 1000m (1:14.99)
Daytona 500
Feb 18 21st Daytona 500: Richard Petty wins after race leaders Cale Yarborough and Donnie Allison collide with each other on final lap; first 500 mile race broadcast from start to finish
- Feb 21 2 Iowa girls HS basketball teams play 4 scoreless quarters game was won 4-2 in 4th overtime period
Baseball History
Feb 22 Billy Martin named manager of Oakland A's
Baseball Hall of Fame
Mar 7 Warren Giles and Hack Wilson selected for the Baseball Hall of Fame
Sports History
Mar 9 MLB Commissioner Bowie Kuhn orders baseball to give equal access to female reporters
- Mar 11 Randy Hold receives 67 min in penalties in a 60 min NHL hockey game
NHL Record
Mar 13 NHL New York Islanders Mike Bossy's 5th career hat trick
NHL Record
Mar 15 Isle's Bryan Trottier's 5th career hat trick
- Mar 17 Ice Dance Championship at Vienna won by N Linichuk & G Karponosov USSR
- Mar 17 Wales beats England, 27-3 at the National Stadium, Cardiff for its 2nd consecutive Five Nations Rugby Championship and record 21st outright title; record 4th straight Triple Crown
- Mar 22 NHL votes to accept 4 WHA teams (Oilers, Jets, Nordiques & Whalers)
Boxing Title Fight
Mar 23 Larry Holmes TKOs Osvaldo Ocasio in 7 for heavyweight boxing title
Cricket History
Mar 24 1st appearance as Australian cricket captain for Kim Hughes
Sports History
Mar 25 Czech tennis star Martina Navratilova retains her WTA Tour Championship with a 6–3, 3–6, 6–2 win over American teenager Tracey Austin in NYC
PGA Players Championship
Mar 25 PGA Tournament Players Championship, Sawgrass CC: Lanny Wadkins wins in windy conditions, 5 strokes ahead of runner-up Tom Watson
- Mar 26 41st NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Michigan State beats Indiana State, 75-64; marks start of rivalry between future Hall of Famers Magic Johnson and Larry Bird; highest-rated game in history of televised college basketball
- Mar 26 MLB San Diego Padres & San Francisco Giants announce plans to play exhibition series in Tokyo but Giant players reject it
- Mar 29 Delhi beats Karnataka by 399 runs to win Cricket's Ranji Trophy
- Mar 29 Last day of Test cricket for Pakistani cricketer Mushtaq Mohammad
- Mar 31 133rd Grand National: Maurice Barnes victorious aboard Rubstic; first Scottish-trained horse to win the event
- Mar 31 Montreal Canadiens beat visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-3 to become just the 2nd team in NHL history to win 50 (or more) games for 4 straight years
Sports History
Apr 6 Baltimore manager Earl Weaver wins his 1,000th game as a skipper, a 5-3 Orioles victory over the Chicago White Sox
Sports History
Apr 7 Houston Astro Ken Forsch no-hits Atlanta Braves, 6-0, becoming with his brother Bob Forsch the only MLB siblings to accomplish the feat
- Apr 7 NHL New York Islanders Mike Bossy scores 4 goals on his first 4 shots in 9-2 win over visiting Philadelphia Flyers
- Apr 8 People's Republic of China joins International Olympic Committee
- Apr 10 J. R. Richard of the Houston Astros pitches a complete game but sets a MLB record by throwing 6 wild pitches in 2-1 win over the LA Dodgers at the Astrodome
- Apr 15 43rd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Fuzzy Zoeller wins his only Masters with a birdie on the 2nd hole of a playoff with Ed Sneed and Tom Watson
Boston Marathon
Apr 16 83rd Boston Marathon: American double; Bill Rodgers wins 2nd straight event and 3rd overall title in 2:09:27; Joan Benoit women's champion in 2:35:15
Baseball Record
May 3 MLB Cleveland Indian Bobby Bonds hits his 300th HR (2nd to have 300 HRs & 300 stolen bases)
Sports History
May 12 Chris Evert's 125-match winning streak on clay comes to an end
- May 16 FC Barcelona of Spain wins 19th European Cup Winner's Cup against Fortuna Düsseldorf of West Germany 4-3 in Basel
- May 16 MLB National League approves sale of Houston Astros by Ford Motors to John J McMullen for $19M
- May 17 Phillies beat Cubs, 23-22, on 50 hits with 11 HRs
- May 19 104th Preakness: Ron Franklin aboard Spectacular Bid wins in 1:54.2
- May 21 Stanley Cup Final, Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec: 4 consecutive titles for Montreal Canadiens; beat NY Rangers, 4-1 for a 4 games to 1 series win
- May 23 1st edition of "Wisden Cricket Monthly"
- May 24 Billy Martin issues a public apology to Reno sportswriter Ray Hagar
- May 27 Indianapolis 500: Polesitter Rick Mears takes lead for the final time with 18 laps to go, to win his first of four Indy 500 races
- May 30 23rd European Cup: Nottingham Forest beats Malmo FF 1-0 at Munich
- Jun 1 NBA Championship, Capital Centre, Landover, Maryland: Seattle Supersonics beat Washington Bullets, 97-93 for a 4-1 series victory; Seattle's first major pro sports championship win
- Jun 9 111th Belmont: Ruben Hernandez aboard Coastal wins in 2:28.6
- Jun 9 MLB Phillies wear all-burgundy alternate uniforms for 1st and (almost) last time in 10-5 loss to Montreal Expos at Veteran's Stadium, Philadelphia; revived 40 years later as part of a "retro night" promotion [1]
- Jun 10 Baltimore Orioles pull their 8th triple play (5-4-3 vs Cleveland)
- Jun 10 French Open Women's Tennis: Chris Evert dominates Wendy Turnbull of Australia 6-2, 6-0 for her 3rd French singles crown
LPGA Championship
Jun 10 LPGA Championship Women's Golf, Jack Nicklaus GC: Donna Caponi Young wins 3rd major; beats Jerilyn Britz by 3 strokes
French Open Men's Tennis
Jun 11 French Open Men's Tennis: Björn Borg wins 2nd of 4 straight French titles and 6 overall; beats Victor Pecci of Paraguay 6-3, 6-1, 6-7, 6-4
Baseball History
Jun 12 Detroit Tigers fire manager Les Moss, hiring Sparky Anderson who stays until 1995; includes World Series title 1984 and AL Manager of the Year Award 1984 and 1987
- Jun 14 Canada all out for 45 runs in Cricket World Cup v England, in 40.3 overs
Sports History
Jun 14 NY Giants Willie McCovey 513th HR is an NL lefty record
Sports History
Jun 16 Boston Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski hits his 1,000th extra base hit
US Golf Open
Jun 17 US Open Men's Golf, Inverness Club: Hale Irwin wins his second Open title, 2 strokes ahead of former champions Jerry Pate and Gary Player
- Jun 18 Billy Martin becomes Yankee manager (2nd time), replacing Bob Lemon
- Jun 18 Sri Lanka beat India by 47 runs in Cricket World Cup upset
- Jun 19 In NYC 36,211 show up to witness return of Billy Martin as manager of the New York Yankees
- Jun 22 Larry Holmes TKOs Mike Weaver in 12 rounds for heavyweight boxing title
- Jun 23 Cricket World Cup, Lord's, London: Man of the match Vivian Richards scores 138 no as defending champions the West Indies beat England by 92 runs; Joel Garner 5/38
- Jun 23 ICC Men's Cricket ODI World Cup, Lord's, London: West Indies beat England by 92 runs to win second straight final; Player the Match: Vivian Richards (WI) 138 no (157)
- Jun 23 West Indies beat England by 92 runs to win Cricket World Cup
Baseball Record
Jun 24 Rickey Henderson debuts for Oakland & steals his 1st base
Sports History
Jun 27 Heavyweight Muhammad Ali confirms that his 3rd retirement is final (it isn't)
- Jun 30 Davona Dale wins the Coaching Club American Oaks at Belmont to clinch American thoroughbred racing's Triple Tiara for fillies
- Jul 6 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: Martina Navratilova successfully defends her title beating Chris Evert Lloyd 6-4, 6-4
- Jul 7 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: Björn Borg beats American Roscoe Tanner 6-7, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 for his 4th consecutive Wimbledon title
Down With Disco!
Jul 12 "Disco Demolition Night" at Comiskey Park: fans go wild destroying disco records and cause the White Sox to forfeit second game of a doubleheader to the Detroit Tigers
Sports History
Jul 13 Calif's Nolan Ryan and Boston's Steve Renko each lose no-hitters in 9th
David Gower's Double Century
Jul 17 David Gower 200* in England score of 5-633 v India at Edgbaston
Sebastian Coe's Record Mile
Jul 17 Sebastian Coe runs world record 3:49 mile in Oslo
British Golf Open
Jul 21 British Open Men's Golf, Royal Lytham & St. Annes: Spaniard Seve Ballesteros wins by 3 from Jack Nicklaus & Ben Crenshaw; Nicklaus runner-up for record 7th time
Tour de France
Jul 22 66th Tour de France won by Bernard Hinault of France
Baseball Record
Jul 23 George Brett gets his 1,000th hit
- Jul 24 Boston Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski hits his 400th HR
Sports History
Jul 28 Dave Kingman becomes 6th to have a 2nd 3 HR game
Canadian Women's Open
Jul 29 Canadian Open Women's Golf (Peter Jackson Classic), St. George's CC: Amy Alcott wins by 3 from Nancy Lopez for her first major title
- Aug 2 MLB New York Mets purchase contract of outfielder José Cardenal from Philadelphia Phillies between games of a double-header between the two teams
- Aug 2 Washington, D.C. trial attorney Edward Bennett Williams buys MLB's Baltimore Orioles from Jerold Hoffberger for reported $12.3 million
PGA Championship
Aug 3 Sam Snead, at 67 years, 2 months and 7 days sets the record for the oldest player to make the cut in a major - PGA Championship at Oakland Hills CC
PGA Championship
Aug 5 PGA Championship Men's Golf, Oakland Hills CC: Australian David Graham wins on the 3rd playoff hole against Ben Crenshaw
- Aug 5 Willie Mays, Warren Giles, and Hack Wilson inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY
- Aug 11 Phillies Tug McGraw gives up record 4th grand slam of year
Cricket History
Aug 30 Cricketer Ian Botham passes 1000 runs and 100 wickets in Tests in his 21st match for England
- Aug 30 In a wild encounter at the US Open, John McEnroe beats Ilie Năstase 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2; Năstase is defaulted by the umpire then reinstated
Teen Prodigies Face Off
Aug 31 In the battle of American teenage tennis prodigies, 16-year-old Tracy Austin beats 14-year-old Andrea Jaeger 6-2, 6-2 in the 2nd round at US Open
Sports History
Sep 2 US Men's Amateur Golf Championship, Canterbury GC: Mark O'Meara wins 8 & 7 over John Cook
Cricket History
Sep 4 Sunil Gavaskar scores his third double century in Test cricket (221) to guide India to a famous draw against England in the 4th Test at The Oval
US Men's Tennis Open
Sep 5 American Roscoe Tanner fires 11 aces, breaks the net with his bullet serve and upsets top-seed Björn Borg 6-2, 4-6, 6-2, 7-6 in the US Open Tennis quarterfinals
- Sep 5 Oakland A's pitcher Matt Keough beats Milwaukee Brewers, 6-1 for first win after 14 straight losses, ended 1978 with 18 defeats (1 shy of the MLB record 19)
- Sep 7 The Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) makes its debut.
- Sep 8 US Open Women's Tennis: Tracy Austin becomes youngest US champion (16 years, 9 months); beats Chris Evert 6-4, 6-3
- Sep 9 South African Ferrari driver Jody Scheckter wins the Italian Grand Prix at Monza to clinch his first Formula 1 World Drivers Championship; first RSA champion
- Sep 9 US Open Men's Tennis: John McEnroe wins first Grand Slam title; beats fellow American Vitas Gerulaitis 7-5, 6-3, 6-3
- Sep 12 Boston Red Sox Carl Yastrzemski gets his 3,000th hit off NY Yankee Jim Beattie
- Sep 12 Indiana Pacers cut Ann Meyers, 1st woman on an NBA club
- Sep 15 Red Sox Bob Watson is 1st to hit for cycle in AL & NL (Astros)
- Sep 16 Catfish Hunter Day at Yankee Stadium
- Sep 16 Ryder Cup Golf, The Greenbrier: US wins, 17-11; new Team Europe replaces Great Britain & Ireland as official opposition to the United States
- Sep 17 Royals' George Brett is 6th to have 20 doubles/triples/HRs in a season
- Sep 22 Montreal Expo Larry Parrish HRs off Phillies Rawly Eastwick in DH
- Sep 23 MLB St Louis Cardinals legend Lou Brock steals 938th & final base of his career
- Sep 24 Pete Rose reaches 200 hits in a season for 10th time
- Sep 24 Russian Olympic and World Champion figure skaters Oleg Protopopov & Ludmila Beloussova ask for asylum in Switzerland
- Sep 25 California Angels win their 1st NL West pennant
- Sep 26 1984 summer LA Olympic coverage sold to ABC for $225 million
- Sep 28 Larry Holmes beats Earnie Shavers by TKO in 11th round in Las Vegas for WBC heavyweight boxing title
- Sep 29 Astros' J R Richard strikes out NL season righty record of 313
- Sep 29 LA Dodger Manny Mota hits record 146th pinch hit
- Sep 30 Milwaukee Brewers lose 5-0 ending 213 straight games without a shutout
- Oct 6 MLB American League Championship: Baltimore Orioles beat California Angels, 3 games to 1
- Oct 7 Cleveland Browns' Dino Hall sets club records with 9 kickoff returns
- Oct 7 Ferrari driver Jody Scheckter retires with tyre trouble in US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen; becomes first South African to claim Formula 1 World Drivers Championship; wins by 4 points from race winner Gilles Villeneuve
Sports History
Oct 7 Frank Mahovlich formally retires from the NHL after a failed comeback attempt with the Detroit Red Wings
- Oct 10 Nordiques' Real Cloutier sets NHL record of a hat trick in 1st game
NBA Record
Oct 12 Boston Celtics guard Chris Ford scores first 3-point basket in NBA history in 1st quarter of 114-106 win v Houston at Boston Garden; game also marks debut of Boston rookie Larry Bird
- Oct 12 Future Basketball Hall of Fame forward Magic Johnson makes his debut for Los Angeles Lakers at the San Diego Clippers; Lakers win, 103-102
- Oct 14 NHL NY Rangers retire Rod Gilbert's uniform number 7, the first number to be retired by the team
Sports History
Oct 14 NHL's greatest scorer Wayne Gretzky scores his 1st NHL goal
Sports History
Oct 15 NY Knicks retire 2nd number, # 10, Walt Frazier
World Series
Oct 17 Baseball World Series: Pittsburgh Pirates beat Baltimore Orioles, 4-1 at Memorial Stadium for 4 games to 3 series win; MVP: Pirates 1B Willie Stargell
- Oct 20 American John Tate beats local favourite Gerrie Coetzee by UD in 15 rounds in Pretoria, South Africa for vacant WBA heavyweight boxing title
- Oct 21 New York City Marathon: Bill Rodgers wins 4th straight men's title in 2:11:42; defending champion Grete Waitz of Norway takes out women's event in 2:27:33
- Oct 21 Ozzie Newsome begins NFL streak of 150 consecutive game receptions
- Oct 24 Billy Martin punches a marshmallow salesman, puts job in jeopardy
- Oct 27 Islanders score 2 goals within 6 seconds 3 goals within 44 seconds
- Oct 28 Dick Howser (best Yank manager win-lost pct .636) returns to New York, replacing Billy Martin
- Oct 29 Billy Martin fired as Yankee manager (2nd time)
- Oct 31 Baltimore Orioles pitcher Mike Flanagan wins AL Cy Young Award
- Nov 7 MLB Chicago Cubs reliever Bruce Sutter wins NL Cy Young Award
- Nov 12 Tony Franklin of Philadelphia Eagles kicks 59-yard field goal
NL MVP Shared
Nov 13 Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Willie Stargell and St Louis Cardinals first baseman Keith Hernandez share National League MVP Award
Petty's NASCAR Record Win
Nov 18 29th NASCAR Series Cup: Richard Petty is the first person to win seven times
- Nov 19 Astros sign Nolan Ryan, to record 4 year, $4.5 million contract
- Nov 24 Kings' Charley Simmer fails on 8th penalty shot against Islanders
- Nov 25 CFL Grey Cup, Olympic Stadium, Montreal: Edmonton Eskimos retain Championship; defeat Montreal Alouettes, 17-9; Eskimos shut out of MVP and MV Canadian awards
Summerall, Madden's First Broadcast
Nov 25 Pat Summerall and John Madden broadcast a game together for the first time, a pairing that lasts 22 years and becomes one of the most well-known partnerships in TV sportscasting history
Australia vs. West Indies
Dec 1 Australia's World Series Cricket men return to the fold in the drawn 1st Test v West Indies in Brisbane; ex-WSC players Bruce Laird (92), Greg Chappell (74) & David Hookes (33no) provide the scoring on Day 1 in home side's 229/5
- Dec 3 45th Heisman Trophy Award: Charles White, Southern California (RB)
- Dec 4 Cleveland Cavaliers retire jersey # 7, Bingo Smith
- Dec 5 Ex-World Series Cricket combatants Greg Chappell (124) and Kim Hughes (130no) return to rescue Australia on last day of the drawn 1st Test v West Indies in Brisbane
- Dec 11 Geoff Boycott scores cricket century in a limited-over international
- Dec 16 68th Davis Cup: USA beats Italy in San Francisco (5-0)
- Dec 16 Dallas QB Roger Staubach throws 3 TDs and 336 yards in his last NFL regular season game with the Cowboys, a 35-34 win over Washington Redskins at Texas Stadium
- Dec 20 Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Behn Wilson scores with 4:08 remaining in regulation to earn a 1-1 tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins and equal NHL record for longest undefeated streak of 28 games; go on to break record and extend to 35 games
- Dec 21 Garry Unger’s NHL record for consecutive games ends at 914, as his Atlanta Flames lose 5-1 to the St Louis Blues and he is benched by coach Al MacNeil; record eventually broken by Doug Jarvis (964)
- Dec 23 NY Islanders greatest shutout lose (8-0) vs Chicago Black Hawks
- Dec 25 9th Fiesta Bowl: #10 Pittsburgh beats Arizona, 16-10
- Dec 25 Ballon d'Or: Hamburg's English forward Kevin Keegan wins his 2nd consecutive trophy as best football player in Europe; beats Bayern Munich forward Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Ajax sweeper Ruud Krol
- Dec 27 Los Angeles left wing Charlie Simmer scores in a Kings' 3-0 shutout of the Quebec Nordiques to extend his modern day NHL goal-scoring streak to 13 straight games (ends next game)
- Dec 27 Red Army beats NY Rangers 5-2 at Madison Square Garden
- Dec 29 Red Army beats NY Islanders 3-2 at Nassau Coliseum