- Jan 1 74th Sugar Bowl: #5 Georgia beats #10 Hawai'i, 41-10
- Jan 1 94th Rose Bowl: #6 Southern California beats #13 Illinois, 49-17
- Jan 2 37th Fiesta Bowl: #11 West Virginia beats #3 Oklahoma, 48-28
- Jan 3 74th Orange Bowl: #8 Kansas beats #5 Virginia Tech, 24-21
America Defeats Serbia
Jan 4 Hopman Cup Tennis, Perth: Americans Serena Williams & Mardy Fish beat Serbian pair Novak Đoković & Jelena Janković 7-6, 6-2 for an unassailable 2-0 lead, and the 5th US title
- Jan 7 College Football, 10th BCS National Championship Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans: #2 LSU beats #1 Ohio State, 38-24
- Jan 13 Orlando Magic knock down a then NBA-record 23 3-pointers in 37 attempts (62.2%); Jameer Nelson goes 5-for-5 from beyond the arc as Magic beat the Sacramento Kings, 139-107
- Jan 20 AFC Championship, Gillette Stadium, Foxborough: New England Patriots beat San Diego Chargers, 21-12
- Jan 20 Frenchman Francis Joyon becomes the fastest person to sail solo around the world, taking 57 days, 13 hours and 34 minutes
- Jan 20 NFC Championship, Lambeau Field, Green Bay: New York Giants beat Green Bay Packers, 23-20 (OT)
Sharapova Defeats Ivanović
Jan 26 Australian Open Women's Tennis: Russian Maria Sharapova wins her first and only Australian title; beats Ana Ivanović of Serbia 7-5, 6-3
- Jan 27 56th NHL All-Star Game, Phillips Arena, Atlanta, GA: Eastern Conference beats Western Conference, 8-7; MVP: Eric Staal, Carolina, C
Đoković Defeats Tsonga
Jan 27 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Novak Đoković beats Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 to become first Serbian player to win a Grand Slam title
- Feb 1 Canadian jockey Russell Baze rides his 10,000th career winner aboard Two Step Cat in 3rd race at Golden Gate Fields, Albany, CA; prevails in a 3-horse photo finish
- Feb 1 Minnesota starter Johan Santana signs a 6-year, $137.5 million deal with the New York Mets to become the highest-paid pitcher in MLB history; trade from Twins to Mets official the next day
Super Bowl XLII
Feb 3 Super Bowl XLII, University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ: New York Giants beat New England Patriots, 17-14; MVP: Eli Manning, New York, QB
NBA All-Star Game
Feb 17 57th NBA All-Star Game, New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, LA: East beats West, 134-128; MVP: LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers, F
Laureus Awards
Feb 18 Laureus World Sports Awards, Marinsky Theatre, St. Petersburg, Russia: Sportsman: Roger Federer; Sportswoman: Justine Henin; Team: South African Men's National Rugby Union team
Sports History
Feb 22 Marco van Basten signs a four-year contract with Ajax, starting from 1 July
- Mar 15 29th Big East Men's Basketball Tournament: Pittsburgh beats Georgetown, 74-65
- Mar 15 Wales beats France, 29-12 at Millennium Stadium, Cardiff to complete a Grand Slam and win the Six Nations Rugby Championship with a 19th Triple Crown
- Mar 16 49th SEC Men's Basketball Tournament: Georgia beats Arkansas, 66-57
- Mar 16 55th ACC Men's Basketball Tournament: #1 North Carolina beats #22 Clemson, 86-81
- Mar 22 French Swimmer Alain Bernard sets world record of 47.50 for 100m freestyle long course after winning the European LC Championships 2008
- Apr 1 New York Yankees set a MLB record by winning their 11th straight home opener, 3-2 against Toronto Blue Jays
- Apr 5 161st Grand National: 7/1 joint favourite Comply or Die wins in Irish jockey Timmy Murphy's 11th attempt, 4 lengths ahead of King John's Castle
Golf Major
Apr 6 Kraft Nabisco Championship Women's Golf, Mission Hills CC: top-ranked Lorena Ochoa of Mexico shoots a bogey-free final round 67 to win by 5 strokes ahead of Suzann Pettersen and Annika Sörenstam
- Apr 7 70th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: Kansas beats Memphis, 75-68; first time since seeding began, all 4 top seeds advance to the Final Four
- Apr 8 27th NCAA Women's Basketball Championship: Tennessee beats Stanford, 64-48; Volunteers' back-to-back titles; coach Pat Summitt, 8 national championships
US Masters Golf
Apr 13 72nd US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Trevor Immelman of South Africa wins his first major title, 3 strokes ahead of Tiger Woods; Immelman leads, or ties for the lead after every round
Boston Marathon
Apr 21 112th Boston Marathon: 3rd straight men's title for Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot of Kenya in 2:07:45; Dire Tune of Ethiopia women's winner in 2:25:25
- Apr 26 NFL Draft: University of Michigan offensive tackle Jake Long first pick by Miami Dolphins
Kentucky Derby
May 3 134th Kentucky Derby: Kent Desormeaux aboard Big Brown wins by nearly 5 lengths; runner-up Eight Belles euthanised after fracturing both front ankles; first fatality in Derby history
PGA Players Championship
May 11 PGA Players Championship, TPC at Sawgrass: Sergio García of Spain claims the biggest win of his career to date in a sudden-death playoff over American Paul Goydos
- May 17 133rd Preakness: Kent Desormeaux aboard Big Brown wins in 1:54.80
Sports History
May 17 Dale Jarrett's final race, the All-Star race, before joining ESPN's NASCAR coverage full-time
- May 17 English FA Cup Final, Wembley Stadium, London (82,752): Portsmouth beats Cardiff City, 1-0; Nwankwo Kanu scores 37' winner
- May 18 NHL Eastern Conference Final: Pittsburgh Penguins beat Philadelphia Flyers, 4 games to 1
- May 19 NHL Western Conference Final: Detroit Red Wings beat Dallas Stars, 4 games to 2
- May 21 UEFA Champions League Final, Moscow: Manchester United beats Chelsea, 6-5 on penalties after scores tied at 1-1 after extra time; first all-English final in the competition's history
- May 25 Indianapolis 500: Scott Dixon of New Zealand wins ahead of Vítor Meira and Marco Andretti; 19th winner from pole and first victor from NZ
Senior PGA Championship
May 25 Senior PGA Championship, Oak Hill CC: Jay Haas wins his second title in the event by 1 stroke from Germany’s Bernhard Langer
Sports History
May 30 Stacy Lewis helps the U.S. team win the Curtis Cup, going 5-0 in the matches, and turns professional immediately afterward
Super Rugby Final
May 31 Super Rugby Final, Christchurch: Canterbury Crusaders claim their 7th title with a 20-12 win over NSW Waratahs; Dan Carter kicks 4 penalties & a dropped goal for the home team
Bolt Sets 100m Record
May 31 Usain Bolt breaks the world record in the 100m sprint, with a wind-legal (+1.7m/s) 9.72 seconds
- Jun 1 IPL Cricket Final, DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai: Rajasthan Royals win inaugural event; beat Chennai Super Kings by 3 wickets; Yusuf Pathan top scores with 56 (39)
- Jun 1 Jason Koumas captains Wales for the first time
- Jun 4 Stanley Cup Final, Civic Center, Pittsburgh, PA: Detroit Red Wings defeat Pittsburgh Penguins, 3-2 for a 4-2 series win; Red Wings' 11th Championship
- Jun 7 140th Belmont: Alan Garcia aboard Da Tara wins in 2:29.65
French Open Women's Tennis
Jun 7 French Open Women's Tennis: Ana Ivanović of Serbia wins her only Grand Slam singles title; beats Russian Dinara Safina 6-4, 6-3
French Open Men's Tennis
Jun 8 French Open Men's Tennis: Rafael Nadal equals Björn Borg's Open era record of 4 consecutive French titles; outclasses Roger Federer 6-1, 6-3, 6-0
LPGA Championship
Jun 8 LPGA Championship Women's Golf, Bulle Rock GC: 19-year old tour rookie Yani Tseng of Taiwan wins a 4th hole playoff over Swede Maria Hjorth
Sports History
Jun 12 Patrick Kane receives the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's rookie of the year
- Jun 16 US Open Men's Golf, Torrey Pines GC: Tiger Woods wins his 3rd US Open and 14th major title, beating Rocco Mediate on the 1st hole of sudden-death, following a Monday 18-hole playoff
- Jun 17 NBA Finals: Boston Celtics beat Los Angeles Lakers, 131-92 in Game 6 for first title since 1986 and 17th overall; MVP: Paul Pierce
- Jun 23 Félix Hernández of the Seattle Mariners hits a grand slam home run against New York Mets, 1st pitcher since Steve Dunning in 1971
- Jun 26 NBA Draft: Memphis point guard Derrick Rose first pick by Chicago Bulls
- Jun 29 UEFA European Championship Final, Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria: Fernando Torres scores as Spain beats Germany, 1-0
US Women's Golf Open
Jun 29 US Open Women's Golf, Interlachen CC: 19-year-old South Korean Inbee Park wins the first of her 7 major titles by 4 strokes ahead of runner-up Helen Alfredsson
- Jul 2 A settlement is reached allowing former NBA franchise the Seattle SuperSonics to move to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; new owner Clay Bennett agrees to pay City of Seattle $45 million to wriggle out of last 2 years of KeyArena lease
Wimbledon Women's Tennis
Jul 5 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: Venus Williams successfully defends her title beating younger sister Serena 7-5, 6-4
- Jul 6 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: Rafael Nadal of Spain ends Roger Federer's 5 year reign at Wimbledon 6-4, 6-4, 6-7, 6-7, 9-7
- Jul 16 79th All Star Baseball Game: AL wins 4-3 at Yankee Stadium, New York City
Music Concert
Jul 18 Billy Joel performs last of two concerts dubbed "The Last Play at Shea"; the final concert event before demolition of the 1964 baseball stadium in Flushing Meadows, Queens, NYC; featured guests include Roger Daltrey, Tony Bennett, Garth Brooks, and Paul McCartney
- Jul 20 16th ESPY Awards: Tiger Woods, Candace Parker win
- Jul 20 British Open Men's Golf, Royal Birkdale GC: Irishman Pádraig Harrington successfully defends his Open title; shoots 4-under par over the final 9 to be 4 strokes clear of runner-up Ian Poulter
- Jul 27 95th Tour de France won by Carlos Sastre of Spain
- Jul 27 British Senior Open Men's Golf, Royal Troon: Bruce Vaughan birdies first extra playoff hole to beat fellow American John Cook by a stroke
- Aug 3 British Open Women's Golf, Sunningdale GC: Jiyai Shin of South Korea shoots final round 66 (−6) to win her first major championship, 3 strokes ahead of runner-up Yani Tseng
US Senior Golf Open
Aug 3 US Senior Open Men's Golf, Broadmoor GC: Eduardo Romero of Argentina wins by 4 strokes ahead of Fred Funk for his second Champions Tour major title
World Record
Aug 10 American super-star swimmer Michael Phelps wins the 400m individual medley at the Beijing Olympics in world record 4:03.84
- Aug 10 British cyclist Nicole Cooke wins the road race at the Beijing Olympics; Great Britain's 200th gold in the modern Olympics
- Aug 10 PGA Championship Men's Golf, Oakland Hills CC: Irishman Pádraig Harrington wins his second straight major by 2 shots from Sergio Garcia and Ben Curtis
- Aug 11 Abhinav Bindra wins men's 10m air rifle at the Beijing Olympics, the first ever individual Olympic gold medal for India, and India's first gold medal in any Olympic event since 1980
- Aug 11 Japanese swimmer Kosuke Kitajima repeats 1st leg of his Athens Olympics 100/200m breaststroke double at the Beijing Games winning the 100m in world record 58.91; goes on to win 200m event
- Aug 11 The US 4 x 100m freestyle replay team of Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones & Jason Lezak beats France by 8 seconds to win gold and smash world record at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 12 American super-swimmer Michael Phelps wins his 3rd of 8 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics when he takes the 200m freestyle in world record 1:42.96
- Aug 12 American swimmer Natalie Coughlin becomes the first to successfully defend the gold medal in the women's 100 m backstroke when she wins event at the Beijing Olympics
Olympic Games
Aug 12 An American 1-2 in the 100m backstroke at the Beijing Olympics with Aaron Peirsol swimming a world record 52.54 to beat teammate Matt Grevers
- Aug 13 American super-swimmer Michael Phelps wins 3 gold medals, all in world record time, in the one day at the Beijing Olympics; 200m I/M (1:54.23), 200m butterfly (1.52.03) and 4 x 200m freestyle relay (6:58.56)
- Aug 13 Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice wraps up the medley double at the Beijing Olympics when she swims world record 2:08.45 to win the 200m I/M gold medal
- Aug 13 Italian swimmer Federica Pellegrini sets new world record 1:54.82 to claim 200m freestyle gold medal at the Beijing Olympics; runner-up Sara Isaković is Slovenia's first Olympic swim medal winner
- Aug 14 A popular Chinese 1-2 in the 200m butterfly at the Beijing Olympics with Liu Zige swimming world record 2:04.18 to beat teammate Jiao Liuyang
- Aug 14 Australian women's 4 x 200m freestyle relay team of Stephanie Rice, Bronte Barratt, Kylie Palmer & Linda Mackenzie swims world record 7:44.31 to beat China and take the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 14 French swimmer Alain Bernard wins the coveted 100m freestyle gold medal at the Beijing Olympics beating Eamon O'Sullivan of Australia by 0.11
- Aug 14 Japanese swimmer Kosuke Kitajima repeats his Athens Olympics 100/200m breaststroke double at the Beijing Games winning the 200m in Olympic record 2:07.64
- Aug 15 American breaststroker Rebecca Soni avenges her defeat to Leisel Jones of Australia in the 100m when she swims world record 2:20.22 to beat Jones in 200m at the Beijing Olympics
World Record
Aug 15 An American 1-2 in the 200m backstroke at the Beijing Olympics with Ryan Lochte swimming a world record 1:53.94 to beat teammate Aaron Peirsol
- Aug 15 Despite China winning the women's gymnastics team all-round gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, Americans Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson go 1-2 in the individual all-round
- Aug 15 German swimmer Britta Steffen beats Australian Libby Trickett by 0.04 to win the blue ribband 100m freestyle gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 16 American swimmer Michael Phelps wins his 7th of 8 gold medals at the Beijing Olympics when he takes the 100m butterfly in Olympic record 50.58; beats Milorad Čavić of Serbia by 0.01
- Aug 16 British cyclist Bradley Wiggins becomes the first rider ever to successfully defend his Olympic title in the individual pursuit when he takes gold at the Beijing Olympics
Olympic Gold
Aug 16 British sailor Ben Ainslie convincingly wins the Finn class at the Beijing Olympics, his third gold medal in as many Games
- Aug 16 British swimmer Rebecca Adlington wraps up the 400/800m freestyle double at the Beijing Olympics with a world record 8:14.10 in the 800
- Aug 16 British team of Tom James, Steve Williams, Pete Reed & Andrew Triggs Hodge wins the men's rowing coxless fours in Beijing, the third straight Olympics that Great Britain wins gold in this event
- Aug 16 César Cielo wins the men's 50m freestyle in 21.30 in Beijing, Brazil's first ever swimming Olympic gold medal
- Aug 16 Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt sets new world record of 9.69 seconds to win the coveted 100m gold medal at the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics
- Aug 16 Kirsty Coventry of Zimbabwe swims a world record 2:05.24 to beat American Margaret Hoelzer by 1.01 and win the 200m backstroke at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 16 New Zealand rowers Caroline and Georgina Evers-Swindell successfully defend their 2004 Olympic title in the women's double sculls by beating Germany by 0.01 seconds at the Beijing Games
- Aug 16 Romanian rower Georgeta Andrunache wins the women's coxless pairs at the Beijing Olympics; her 5th career gold medal, and her 3rd consecutive Olympic gold in the event
- Aug 16 South Korean weightlifter Jang Mi-Ran wins the women's unlimited (+75 kg) division at the Beijing Olympics by breaking world records 5 times: once in snatch, twice in clean-and-jerk, and twice in total
- Aug 17 Australian women's 4 x 100m medley relay team of Emily Seebohm, Leisel Jones, Jessicah Schipper & Libby Trickett upset the United States to win the gold medal in world record 3:52.69 at the Beijing Olympics
Canadian Women's Open
Aug 17 Canadian Open Women's Golf, Ottawa Hunt GC: Australian Katherine Hull wins by 1 from Se Ri Pak
- Aug 17 China wins its 33rd gold medal of the Beijing Olympics by beating Singapore in the table tennis women's team event; most successful Olympiad ever for China; wins all 10 singles and all 5 doubles matches
- Aug 17 Four years after winning Olympic silver in the rowing quad sculls in Athens, Briton Rebecca Romero becomes only 2nd woman to earn medals in 2 different sports at the summer Games when she wins the pursuit track cycling gold in Beijing
- Aug 17 German swimmer Britta Steffen beats American Dara Torres by 0.01 in the 50m to wrap up the 50/100m double at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 17 Gulnara Samitova-Galkina of Russia wins the 3,000m steeplechase gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in world record 8:58.81
- Aug 17 Jamaica dominates the 100m at the Beijing Olympics with Shelly-Ann Fraser taking the gold medal in 10.78; her teammates Sherone Simpson & Kerron Stewart dead-heat for silver in 10.98
- Aug 17 Rafael Nadal of Spain beats Chile's Fernando González 6-3, 7-6, 6-3 to win the men's tennis singles at the Beijing Olympics; Spain's first ever Olympic gold medal in tennis
- Aug 17 The Tradition Senior Men's Golf, Crosswater Club: Fred Funk wins first of 3 Champions Tour majors by 3 strokes from Mike Goodes
- Aug 17 US team Michael Phelps, Aaron Peirsol, Brendan Hansen & Jason Lezak wins 4 x 100m medley relay at the Beijing Olympics in world record 3:29.34; Phelps' 8th gold medal of Games breaks Mark Spitz's 1972 record (7)
- Aug 18 An American 1-2-3 in the 400m hurdles at the Beijing Olympics; Angelo Taylor wins gold in 47.25 ahead of Kerron Clement and Bershawn Jackson
- Aug 18 Belarus weightlifter Andrei Aramnau breaks 3 world records, for the snatch, clean & jerk, and total, on the way to winning the men's 105kg gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 18 Emulating the Chinese women, the men win the team table tennis gold medal at the Beijing Olympics without losing a match; win all 10 singles and all 5 doubles matches
- Aug 18 Russian pole-vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva sets a new world record of 5.05m to win the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics; her 24th world record
- Aug 19 Britain's Victoria Pendleton beats Anna Mears in the women's cycling sprint final at the Beijing Olympics; GB dominates the track winning 7 of 10 gold medals
- Aug 19 Chris Hoy encapsulates British dominance of track cycling at the Beijing Olympics beating teammate Jason Kenny to win the sprint, adding to his keirin and team sprint gold medals
- Aug 19 Reigning world champion, Christine Ohuruogu wins the women's 400m at the Beijing Olympics; GB's 50th gold medal in Olympic track & field competition
- Aug 19 The men's gymnastics program at the Beijing Olympics concludes with the home team from China dominating the medals tally takes 7 of 8 gold medals; Zou Kai wins 3
- Aug 20 Russian long-distance swimmer Larisa Ilchenko wins inaugural women's open water marathon (10k) in 1:59:27.7 at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 20 Usain Bolt of Jamaica wraps up the 100/200m double in style with a new 200m world record 19.30 at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 21 After winning the event in Athens, Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown makes it consecutive 200m Olympic titles beating American Allyson Felix by 0.19 in Beijing
- Aug 21 American pair Misty May-Treanor & Kerry Walsh dominate China's Tian Jiathe & Wang Jie 21-18, 21-18 in the beach volleyball final to repeat of their gold medal from Athens; don't lose a set in the competition
- Aug 21 An American sweep of the 400m medals at the Beijing Olympics; LeShawn Merritt wins gold in 43.75 ahead of Jeremy Wariner and David Neville
- Aug 21 Daniëlle de Bruijn scores a match winning 7 goals as the Netherlands upset the United States 9-8 to take the women's water polo gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 21 Dutch swimmer and cancer survivor Maarten van der Weijden wins inaugural men's open water marathon (10k) in 1:51:51.6 at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 21 Japan edges the United States 3-1 for the gold medal in the final of the women's softball tournament at the Beijing Olympics
Olympic Gold
Aug 21 Striker Carli Lloyd scores in extra time as the United States beat Brazil 1-0 to take the women's football gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 22 American decathlete Brian Clay wins 4 of the 10 events and finishes 2nd in 2 others to dominate field and take the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 22 Anne-Caroline Chausson of France and Māris Štrombergs of Latvia win the inaugural gold medals in BMX, winning the women's and men's events respectively at the Beijing Olympics
- Aug 22 Ethiopian distance runner Tirunesh Dibaba wraps up the women's 5,000/10,000m double at the Beijing Olympics when she takes gold in the 5k in an Olympic record 15:41.40
- Aug 22 Maurren Higa Maggi wins the women's long jump with a leap of 7.04m at the Beijing Olympics; Brazil's first ever gold medal in any women's individual event
- Aug 22 Russia wins the women's 4 × 100 m relay ahead of Belgium & Nigeria at the Beijing Olympics; disqualified in 2016 when reanalysis of Yulia Chermoshanskaya’s samples result in positive test for prohibited substances
- Aug 22 Steven Hooker wins the men's pole vault with 5.96m at the Beijing Olympics; Australia's first gold medal in men's athletics since 1968
- Aug 22 The Jamaican team led by Usain Bolt smashes the world 4 x 100m relay record in the final at the Beijing Olympics; disqualified in 2017 as Nesta Carter tests positive for prohibited substance
- Aug 23 Australian diver Matthew Mitcham wins the men's 10m platform gold medal with final dive at the Beijing Olympics; prevents Chinese from winning every diving event; achieves highest score for an individual dive in Olympic history (112.10)
Olympic Gold
Aug 23 Ethiopian distance runner Kenenisa Bekele wraps up the 5,000/10,000m double at the Beijing Olympics when he takes gold in the 5k in an Olympic record 12:57.82
- Aug 23 Midfielder Ángel Di María scores a 58th minute winner as Argentina beats Nigeria 1-0 to take the men's football gold medal at the Beijing Olympics; 89,102 at the National Stadium
Olympic Gold
Aug 23 The star-studded American women's basketball team led by the likes of Lisa Leslie, Sue Bird & Diana Taurasi win the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics with a convincing 92-65 win over Australia
- Aug 24 Dániel Varga & Péter Biros score 3 goals each as Hungary wins the men's water polo gold medal at the Beijing Olympics; third consecutive Olympic gold medal
- Aug 24 Samuel Wansiru becomes first Kenyan to win the men's Olympic marathon in Beijing; wins in Olympic record time; silver medallist Joauad Gharib of Morocco also faster than OR, yet 44 seconds behind
- Aug 24 Summer Olympics in Beijing becomes the most watched event on TV ever - nearly 5 billion, 70% of world's population
- Aug 24 The star-studded American men's basketball team led by the likes of LeBron James, Chris Paul & Kobe Bryant win the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics with a relatively narrow 118-107 win over Spain
- Sep 3 The new Oklahoma City NBA franchise announces the team will be named the 'Thunder'; reference to powerful storms in the area
- Sep 6 US Open Women's Tennis: Serena Williams wins her third US title; beats Jelena Janković of Serbia 6-4, 7-5
- Sep 8 US Open Men's Tennis: Roger Federer beats Scotsman Andy Murray 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 for his 5th consecutive US title
- Sep 11 Chris Sharma redpoints Jumbo Love at Clark Mountain, California, the world's first-ever consensus 9b (5.15b) route
- Sep 13 New Zealand beats Australia, 28-24 in Brisbane to clinch their 4th straight Tri Nations Rugby Series; flyhalf Dan Carter scores a try and lands 4 conversions for the All Blacks
- Sep 14 Federation Cup Women's Tennis, Madrid, Spain: Svetlana Kuznetsova beats Spaniard Anabel Medina Garrigues 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 to give Russia its 4th title in 5 years (ends, 4-0)
Sports History
Sep 19 Greg Maddux pitches his 5,000th career inning against the San Francisco Giants
Sports History
Sep 19 Thierry Henry scores his first goal for Barcelona in a 3–0 Champions League group stage win over Lyon
- Sep 21 Ryder Cup Golf, Valhalla GC: US lead from start to finish to win 16½-11½ and regain Cup after 3 consecutive European victories
- Sep 21 The final home game is played at Yankee Stadium against the Baltimore Orioles.
- Sep 27 Greg Maddux wins his final start of his career (#355)
- Sep 28 MLB Boston Red Sox retire Johnny Pesky's jersey (number 6)
- Sep 28 The last game played at Shea Stadium before its demolition happens between baseball teams The New York Mets and the Florida Marlins, the Marlins win 4-2
- Oct 3 American surfer Kelly Slater clinches his record 9th world championship after round 3 of Billabong Pro in Mundaka, Spain; accrues enough points with 5 victories to win title with 2 scheduled ASP Tour contests to be surfed
O. J. Simpson Robbery Case
Oct 3 Former NFL star O.J. Simpson found guilty of charges of kidnapping and armed robbery
Sports History
Oct 12 Anna Kournikova and Andy Roddick defeat Martina Navratilova and Jesse Levine in a match for charity, raising over $400,000 for the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Atlanta AIDS Partnership Fund
Cricket Record
Oct 17 Sachin Tendulkar becomes the highest run-scorer ever in test cricket beating Brian Lara's record and passing 12,000 runs against Australia in Mohali
- Oct 19 MLB American League Championship: Tampa Bay Rays beat Boston Red Sox, 4 games to 3
- Oct 24 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Santa Anita Racetrack; Day 1 winners: Ventura, Maram, Stardom Bound, Together Forever, Zenyatta
- Oct 25 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Santa Anita Racetrack; Day 2 winners: Muhannak, Desert Code, Albertus Maximus, Goldikova, Midshipman, Donativum, Midnight Lute, Conduit, Raven's Pass
- Oct 29 Baseball World Series: Philadelphia beats Tampa Bay Rays, 4-3 in Game 5 at Citizens Bank Park for Phillies second title in their 126-year history; MVP: Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels
F1 World Champion
Nov 2 British McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton finishes 4th in season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix at Autódromo José Carlos Pace to clinch his first F1 World Drivers Championship by 1 point from Felipe Massa
- Nov 8 18th College Football Holy War: Boston College beats Notre Dame 17-0 in Chestnut Hill
- Nov 9 American tennis star Venus Williams wins her first career year-ending title; beats Russian Vera Zvonareva 6–7, 6–0, 6–2 in the WTA Tour Championship final at Doha, Qatar
- Nov 16 60th NASCAR Sprint Cup: Jimmie Johnson wins
- Nov 16 Novak Đoković of Serbia wins his first career season-ending Tennis Masters Cup title beating Russian Nikolay Davydenko 6-1, 7-5 in the final in Shanghai, China
- Nov 22 13th Rugby League World Cup: New Zealand beats Australia 34-20
Roy's Jersey Retired
Nov 22 Patrick Roy's #33 jersey is retired by the Montreal Canadiens
- Nov 23 97th Davis Cup: Spain beats Argentina in Mar del Plata (3-1)
- Nov 23 CFL Grey Cup, Olympic Stadium, Montreal: Calgary Stampeders beat Montreal Alouettes, 22-14; 66,308 2nd-highest attended Grey Cup game in history
- Nov 29 73rd Iron Bowl: Alabama beats Auburn 36-0 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama's first win in the series in seven years
Ballon d'Or
Dec 2 Ballon d'Or: Manchester United's Portuguese forward Cristiano Ronaldo wins his first award as best football player in the world; Barcelona forward Lionel Messi 2nd, Liverpool striker Fernando Torres 3rd
- Dec 5 Former NFL star O.J. Simpson is sentenced to 33 years in prison for kidnapping and armed robbery
- Dec 6 13th Big 12 Championship Game: #4 Oklahoma beats #19 Missouri, 62-21
- Dec 6 17th SEC Championship Game: #2 Florida beats #1 Alabama, 31-20
- Dec 6 4th ACC Championship Game: Virginia Tech beats #18 Boston College, 30-12
- Dec 15 74th Heisman Trophy Award: Sam Bradford, Oklahoma (QB)
Sixth Coach to Win 1,000
Dec 25 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
- Dec 28 Detroit Lions crash to a 31-21 loss to Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field; first team in NFL history to go winless in a 16-game season
Broncos Fire Shanahan
Dec 30 NFL head coach Mike Shanahan is fired by the Denver Broncos
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions