Events in Sports History on December 25

  • 1862 40,000 watch Union army men play baseball at Hilton Head, South Carolina
  • 1888 First indoor baseball game played at fairgrounds in Philadelphia; 2,000 watch the Uptowners beat the Downtowners, 6-1
  • 1930 Mt, Van Hoevenberg bobsled run at Lake Placid, NY opens; first American bobsled run open to public

Bradman's Christmas Duck

1940 Cricket master batsman Don Bradman is dismissed for a Xmas Day first ball duck (0) for South Australia v Victoria in a Sheffield Shield match at the Adelaide Oval

  • 1951 West Indies wrap up 6 wicket defeat of Australia on first Christmas Day of Test cricket, the 3rd day of 3rd Test at the Adelaide Oval

Howe's Christmas Hat Trick

1956 Detroit's future Hockey Hall of Fame right wing Gordie Howe picks up a Xmas hat-trick & 3 assists in Red Wings' 8-1 win over NY Rangers; most points he scores in a single game in entire 26-year NHL career

  • 1971 Longest game in NFL history as Miami Dolphins beat KC Chiefs, 27-24 in 2OT in AFL playoff game; duration: 82 minutes and 40 seconds

Johan Cruyff's Second Award

1973 Ballon d'Or: Ajax forward Johan Cruyff wins his second award for best European football player ahead of Juventus goalkeeper Dino Zoff and Bayern Munich striker Gerd Müller

  • 1976 6th Fiesta Bowl: #8 Oklahoma beats Wyoming, 41-7
  • 1977 7th Fiesta Bowl: #8 Penn State beats #15 Arizona State, 42-30
  • 1978 8th Fiesta Bowl: #8 Arkansas ties #15 UCLA, 10-10
  • 1979 9th Fiesta Bowl: #10 Pittsburgh beats Arizona, 16-10
  • 1979 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

Nazar, Khan Put Pakistan on Top

1982 Mudassar Nazar scores 119 in Pakistan's 2nd innings of 452 before Imran Khan takes 6 wickets in 2nd Test against India in Karachi; Pakistan will win by an innings and 86 runs

Michel Platini's Second in a Row

1984 Ballon d'Or: Juventus' French midfielder Michel Platini is named Europe's best football player for the 2nd consecutive time; beats Bordeaux midfielder Jean Tigana and Verona striker Preben Elkjær

  • 1984 Knicks basketball forward Bernard King scores 60 points, but New York loses, 120-114 to the New Jersey Nets on Xmas Day at Madison Square Garden
  • 1990 Ballon d'Or: Inter's German sweeper Lothar Matthäus is named best football player in Europe ahead of Juventus striker Salvatore Schillaci and Inter defender Andreas Brehme

Emmitt Smiths 25th Touchdown

1995 Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith scores NFL record 25th touchdown of the season in 37-13 win against Arizona Cardinals at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe AZ

Sixth Coach to Win 1,000

2008 Phil Jackson becomes the sixth coach in NBA history to win 1,000 games as his LA Lakers beat Boston Celtics, 92-83 at the Staples Center, Los Angeles

  • 2020 New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara equals Ernie Nevers 1929 NFL record of 6 touchdowns in a match in the Saints' 52-33 win over the Minnesota Vikings at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome