- Jan 1 106th Rose Bowl: #6 Oregon beats #8 Wisconsin, 28-27; MVPs: Justin Herbert (QB, Oregon) & Brady Breeze (S, Oregon)
- Jan 1 86th Sugar Bowl: #5 Georgia beats #7 Baylor, 26-14
Sports History
Jan 1 Scotland's Peter Wright beats Dutch defending champion Michael Van Gerwen, 7-3 with 102.79 average, 34 x 140s, 11 maximums and 53% on doubles to seal his first PDC World Darts Championship in London
Serbia Pair Defeat Spanish
Jan 12 1st ATP Cup Men's Tennis, Sydney: Novak Đoković & Viktor Troicki beat Spanish pair Pablo Carreño Busta & Feliciano López 6-3, 6-4 to clinch inaugural title for Serbia, 2-1; Đoković beats Rafael Nadal 6-2, 7-6
- Jan 12 Argentine striker Sergio Agüero becomes top-scoring overseas player in English Premier League football history with a hat-trick in Manchester City's 6-1 rout of Aston Villa; total 177 takes him past Thierry Henry
- Jan 13 College Football, National Championship, Superdome, New Orleans: #1 LSU beats #3 Clemson, 42-15
- Jan 13 Houston Astros manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow are fired by team owner Jim Crane for their roles in the sign-stealing scandal after MLB suspends both for one year
- Jan 14 Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora is fired amid Major League Baseball's investigation into sign-stealing by the Houston Astros; Cora was the Astros' bench coach before moving to Boston
- Jan 16 Former Sacramento State softball player Alyssa Nakken becomes first woman to hold a coaching position on a MLB staff when named an assistant by the San Francisco Giants
- Jan 16 Newly appointed manager Carlos Beltran and New York Mets mutually agree to part ways because of his role in Houston Astros sign stealing scandal; third manager forced out of a job as a result of the allegations
- Jan 18 Premiership Rugby announces reigning European and English champions Saracens to be relegated for exceeding salary cap the previous 3 seasons; club fined £5.3m and docked 35 Premiership points
- Jan 19 AFC Championship, Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri: Kansas City Chiefs beat Tennessee Titans, 35-24
- Jan 19 NFC Championship, Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California: San Francisco 49ers beat Green Bay Packers, 37-20
- Jan 25 65th NHL All Star Games, Enterprise Center, St. Louis, MI: Pacific All Stars win four-team, 3-on-3 tournament; MVP: David Pastrnak LW Boston Bruins
Kobe Byrant Dies in Helicopter Crash
Jan 26 LA Lakers basketball legend Kobe Bryant dies in a helicopter crash in foggy conditions in the hills above Calabasas, southern California; considered one of the greatest players in the game's history
NFL Pro Bowl
Jan 26 NFL Pro Bowl, Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida: AFC beats NFC, 38-33; MVP's: Lamar Jackson, QB (Baltimore Ravens), Calais Campbell, DE (Jacksonville Jaguars)
- Feb 1 Australian Open Women's Tennis: 21-year-old American Sofia Kenin wins her first Grand Slam title with a 4–6, 6–2, 6–2 victory over Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain
Sports History
Feb 1 San Diego State University retires Kawhi Leonard's number 15, making him the first Aztecs men's basketball player to have his jersey retired
- Feb 2 Australian Open Men's Tennis: Novak Đoković of Serbia rallies to beat Austrian Dominic Thiem 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 for a record-extending eighth title at Melbourne Park
Super Bowl LIV
Feb 2 Super Bowl LIV, Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL: Kansas City Chiefs beat San Francisco 49ers, 31-20; MVP: Patrick Mahomes, KC Chiefs, QB; Chiefs' 1st victory in 50 years
- Feb 14 UEFA places 2 year ban on Manchester City from European club competition for committing "serious breaches" of club licensing and financial fair play regulations; EPL champions also fined €30million
- Feb 16 NBA All-Star Game, United Center, Chicago, IL: Team LeBron beats Team Giannis, 157-155; MVP: Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers, F
- Feb 17 62nd Daytona 500: Denny Hamlin wins second straight title by 0.014 seconds over Ryan Blaney on the second restart in overtime; his third Daytona victory
Laureus Awards
Feb 17 Laureus World Sports Awards, Berlin, Germany: Sportsman: Lewis Hamilton & Lionel Messi; Sportswoman: Simone Biles; Team: South Africa National Rugby Union team
Ronaldo's 1,000th Game
Feb 22 Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo marks his 1,000th senior appearance by scoring in Juventus' 2-1 Serie A win over SPAL; 725 career goals in 836 club games and 164 internationals
- Feb 24 Memorial service for NBA star Kobe Byrant held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles
- Feb 28 Court of Arbitration for Sport bans Chinese triple Olympic gold medallist Sun Yang from swimming for 8 years for breaking anti-doping rules
- Feb 29 Watford beats Liverpool, 3-0 at Vicarage Road; first Reds loss since Manchester City January 2019; ends joint-longest winning streak (18) and second longest unbeaten run (44) in English top-flight football history
Sports History
Mar 8 A police report is filed against Brian Ortega for allegedly slapping rapper Jay Park at UFC 248
- Mar 8 BNP Paribas Open international tennis tournament in Indian Wells, California, dubbed 'the 5th Grand Slam' is cancelled due to concerns surrounding COVID-19 and the safety of participants and attendees
- Mar 8 ICC Women's Cricket T20 World Cup, Melbourne: Defending champions Australia beats India by 85 runs; Beth Mooney [77no] Player of the Series; Alyssa Healy 75 off 39 balls MVP; crowd 86,174
- Mar 11 NBA suspends 2019-20 season until further notice after Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert tests positive for COVID-19
- Mar 12 2020 NCAA men's basketball tournament is cancelled over concerns of the spread of COVID-19; first time 'March Madness' not held since it began in 1939; women's tournament also cancelled
- Mar 12 NHL announces the pausing of the 2019-20 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic
- Mar 13 12 hours after PGA Tour cancelled its flagship event, The Players Championship, Augusta National announces postponement of the Masters Tournament to a date to be fixed because of COVID-19 pandemic
- Mar 13 Elite football in Britain, including England's Premier League, EFL, Women's Super League plus in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, is suspended until at least 3 April because of COVID-19 pandemic
- Mar 16 Major League Baseball suspends remainder of Spring Training and delays start of regular season in response to COVID-19 pandemic; return dependent on recommendations by Centers for Disease Control
- Mar 17 French Open becomes first Grand Slam tennis tournament to be postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic; moves from May 24-June 7 to September 20-October 4; conflicts with Laver Cup men’s team event
Olympics Postponed
Mar 24 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzō Abe announces postponement of Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games until summer of 2021 because of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic
- Mar 30 International Olympic Committee announces postponed 2020 Summer Olympic Games will be held July 23-August 8 in 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic
- Apr 1 All England Lawn Tennis Club cancels Wimbledon for the first time since World War II because of the COVID-19 pandemic; entire grass-court season abandoned
- Apr 6 149th British Open Men's Golf Championship is cancelled for the first time since WWII due to the COVID-19 pandemic; Royal St George's GC to host event in 2021
Sports History
Apr 23 NFL Draft: LSU quarterback Joe Burrow first pick by Cincinnati Bengals
- May 8 11-year old Brazilian skateboarder Gui Khury creates world record by performing 1st 1080 degree turn on a vertical ramp
Sports History
May 17 Michael Jordan's autographed Air Nike 1s trainers from 1985 sell for a record $560,000 in an online auction
Sports History
Jun 16 Support from Manchester United player Marcus Rashford and others forces UK Government to make U-turn on summer school meal vouchers
Sports History
Jun 30 FC Barcelona's Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi scores his 700th career goal - a cheeky Panenka penalty - in a 2-2 draw against Atlético Madrid
- Jul 2 British Darts Organisation’s commercial arm – BDO Enterprises Ltd, goes into liquidation due to lack of sponsorship; oversaw original professional, semi-pro and amateur competitions in Britain
- Jul 3 Major League Baseball All-Star Game planned to be hosted on July 14 by the LA Dodgers is cancelled due to government restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Jul 3 MLB Cleveland Indians owner Paul Dolan announces he would review changing the organization's name
- Jul 6 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes agrees to the largest contract for an athlete in sports history, inking a 12-year deal that could end up being worth US$503 million
- Jul 19 World Formula 1 drivers champion Lewis Hamilton wins a record 8th Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest to equal Michael Schumacher's record of wins at a single circuit (French GP)
- Jul 20 Cristiano Ronaldo becomes first man to score 50 goals in Serie A, La Liga and the Premier League with a double in Juventus' 2-1 win over Lazio
- Jul 26 Italian football giants Juventus wins its 9th straight Serie A title with goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Federico Bernardeschiin in a 2-0 win over Sampdoria
- Aug 9 PGA Championship Men's Golf, TPC Harding Park: 23-year-old American Collin Morikawa fires final round 64 (-6) to win his first major title by 2 strokes from Paul Casey of England
World Record
Aug 14 Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda breaks Ethiopian legend Kenenisa Bekele’s 16-year-old 5,000m world record with a run of 12:35.36 at the Diamond League meet in Monaco
Sports History
Aug 16 World Snooker Championship, Crucible Theatre, Sheffield: Englishman Ronnie O'Sullivan wins his 6th world title with an 18-8 win over countryman Kyren Wilson
Golf Record
Aug 21 American golfer Scottie Scheffler makes birdie on 4 of final 5 holes to become 12th player in PGA Tour history to shoot 59 in 2nd round of the Northern Trust at TPC Boston
- Aug 23 British Open Women's Golf, Royal Troon GC: Sophia Popov of Germany claims her first Tour title by 2 strokes from Thailand's Jasmine Suwannapura; at #304, lowest ranked player to win a major
- Aug 23 Indianapolis 500: 2017 champion Takuma Sato of Japan wins his 2nd title under yellow caution flag after a crash with 3 laps remaining
UEFA Champions League Final
Aug 23 UEFA Champions League Final, Lisbon: Kingsley Coman heads German giants Bayern Munich to the club's 6th crown in a 1-0 win over Paris St-Germain
- Aug 25 Chicago White Sox pitcher Lucas Giolito no-hits the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-0 at Guaranteed Rate Field, Chicago
- Aug 25 England's James Anderson becomes first fast bowler to reach 600 wickets in Test cricket; Pakistan batsman Azhar Ali caught at first slip on 5th day of 3rd Test at Southampton
Sports History
Aug 26 Milwaukee Bucks forfeit their NBA playoff game after the shooting of Jacob Blake, leading to the NBA postponing more games
- Sep 3 Philadelphia Phillies retire infielder Dick Allen's number 15 on the 57th anniversary of his MLB debut.
- Sep 5 146th Kentucky Derby: 8-1 underdog Authentic with John R. Velazquez aboard holds off heavy favourite Tiz the Law to give trainer Bob Baffert his record-tying 6th Derby win
- Sep 6 World #1 tennis player Novak Đoković is sensationally disqualified in 4th round of US Open after hitting a ball in frustration, striking a line judge; trailed Pablo Carreño Busta 5-6 in 1st set
- Sep 7 Tour Championship, Men's Golf, East Lake GC: Dustin Johnson wins by 3 strokes from Xander Schauffele & Justin Thomas; claims FedEx Cup, equal biggest winner's prize in golf, US$15m
US Open Women's Tennis
Sep 12 US Open Women's Tennis: Naomi Osaka of Japan wins her second US title; beats Victoria Azarenka of Belarus 1-6, 6-3, 6-3
- Sep 13 ANA Inspiration Women's Golf, Mission Hills CC: Mirim Lee of South Korea wins her first major title; beats Brooke Henderson and Nelly Korda with a birdie on first playoff hole
- Sep 13 Chicago Cubs pitcher Alec Mills no-hits the Milwaukee Brewers, 12-0 at Miller Park, Milwaukee
US Men's Tennis Open
Sep 13 US Open Men's Tennis: Austrian Dominic Thiem becomes first in 70 years to recover from 2 sets down to win US crown; beats Alexander Zverev of Germany 2-6, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6
- Sep 20 107th Tour de France: Slovenian Tadej Pogačar claims yellow jersey from countryman Primož Roglič; also wins mountains and U25 classifications; green jersey, Sam Bennett
- Sep 20 US Open Men's Golf, Winged Foot CC: American Bryson DeChambeau claims his first career major title as the only player to score under par; wins by 6 strokes from Matthew Wolff
- Sep 28 Stanley Cup Final, Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta: Tampa Bay Lightning claim second championship in franchise history with a 2-0 Game 6 win over Dallas Stars; win series 4-2
Ben Ainslie Sails to Gold
Sep 29 Ben Ainslie wins the Olympic gold medal in the Laser class, beating previous Laser Olympic champion Robert Scheidt
- Oct 10 French Open Women's Tennis: 19-year-old Iga Świątek of Poland wins her country's first singles major title; beats American Sofia Kenin 6-4, 6-1
- Oct 11 British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton wins Eifel Grand Prix at Germany's Nürburgring to equal Michael Schumacher's record of 91 Formula 1 victories
French Open Men's Tennis
Oct 11 French Open Men's Tennis: Rafael Nadal beats Novak Đoković 6-0, 6-2, 7-5; 20th Grand Slam singles title; record 13th French singles title
NBA Finals
Oct 11 NBA Finals: LA Lakers beat Miami Heat 106-93 in Game 6 to win record equalling 17th title; MVP: LeBron James; first to win the award with 3 different teams
PGA Championship
Oct 11 Women's PGA Championship, Aronimink GC: Sei Young KIm wins her first major title by 5 strokes from fellow South Korean Inbee Park; shoots tournament record total 266
- Oct 14 NFL cancels Pro Bowl game scheduled for 31 January, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
- Oct 18 Brian Ortega wins against Chan Sung Jung at UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs. The Korean Zombie
- Oct 22 The National Hockey League announces the annual NHL All Star Game and the NHL All-Star Skills Competition would be postponed to no earlier than 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Sports History
Oct 23 Duhan van der Merwe makes his international debut for Scotland against Georgia, scoring a try
- Oct 25 British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton wins Portuguese Grand Prix at Autódromo Internacional Do Algarve for his 92nd career victory; moves 1 win clear of Michael Schumacher in all-time F1 victories list
- Oct 27 Baseball World Series: LA Dodgers beat Tampa Bay Rays, 3-1 in Game 6 at Globe Life Field, Arlington to win first title in 32 years; MVP: Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager
- Oct 27 Organizers of 96th East-West Shrine Bowl college football all-star game, benefiting Shriners Hospitals for Children, announce cancellation of game scheduled for January 23, 2021, in St. Petersburg, Florida, due to COVID-19 issues. The
- Oct 31 England beats Italy 34-5 in Rome to clinch 29th Six-Nations Rugby Championship; halfback Ben Youngs becomes second England player to earn 100th test cap
- Oct 31 New Zealand Rugby Union team routs Australia, 43-5 in Sydney to retain Bledisloe Cup (2-1) for 18th straight series; Wallabies' largest ever defeat by All Blacks
- Nov 6 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Keeneland Racetrack; Day 1 winners: Golden Pal, Fire at Will, Vequist, Aunt Pearl, Essential Quality
- Nov 7 Breeders' Cup Horse Racing, Keeneland Racetrack; Day 2 winners: Gamine, Glass Slippers, Knicks Go, Audarya, Whitmore, Order of Australia, Monomoy, Tarnawa, Authentic
- Nov 10 IPL Cricket Final, Dubai International Stadium: Defending champion Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Capitals by 5 wickets; Trent Boult 3/30 (4), Rohit Sharma 68 (51)
- Nov 11 Shane Bieber of the Cleveland Indians (AL) and Cincinnati Reds starter Trevor Bauer (NL) take Cy Young Award for best pitchers in MLB
- Nov 13 Fly-half Nicolas Sanchez scores all the Pumas points as Argentina claim their 1st ever win over New Zealand's All Blacks, winning 25-15 in a Rugby Championship game in Sydney
- Nov 15 84th US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: American Dustin Johnson fires record total -20 to win his first Masters title by 5 strokes from Cameron Smith of Australia & South Korean Sungjae Im
- Nov 15 British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton clinches 4th straight and record equalling 7th F1 World Drivers C'ship by winning Turkish GP at Intercity Istanbul Park, Tuzla
- Nov 20 Adam Ondra completes the first ascent of Zvěřinec in Czech Republic, claiming it as his hardest 9b+ and the second hardest route of his life
- Nov 22 24-year-old Russian Daniil Medvedev wins ATP World Tour Finals tennis title beating Dominic Thiem of Austria 4-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 in London
Sports History
Nov 25 Caitlin Clark makes her collegiate debut for the Iowa Hawkeyes, recording 27 points, eight rebounds, and four assists against Northern Iowa
- Dec 4 New Zealand cricket captain Kane Williamson smashes 251 to set up the home side's innings & 134 run win over the West Indies in the 1st Test in Hamilton
- Dec 7 Breaking, the competitive form of breakdancing, confirmed as an Olympic sport for the Paris 2024 games
- Dec 13 British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton finishes 3rd in season-ending Abu Dhabi GP to claim record equalling 7th F1 World Drivers C'ship by 124 points from teammate Valtteri Bottas; Mercedes' 7th straight Constructors title
- Dec 14 US Open Women's Golf, Champions GC, Houston: Kim A-lim wins her first major title by 1 stroke from fellow South Korean Ko Jin-young and American Amy Olson
- Dec 16 US Major League Baseball announces it is elevating the Negro Leagues to Major League status
- Dec 22 Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi scores his 644th goal for FC Barcelona during 3-0 win over Real Valladolid to break Pele's record for most goals for one club; Pele, 643 goals for Santos 1956-74
- Dec 22 Caitlin Clark registers her first triple-double at Iowa with 13 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists against Western Illinois
- Dec 25 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
- Dec 29 Milwaukee Bucks break NBA record for most 3-pointers made by a team in a single game with 29 in a dominant 144-97 victory over the Heat in Miami
- Dec 30 San Antonio assistant Becky Hammon becomes first female to coach an NBA team after Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is ejected in a 121-107 loss to the LA Lakers
Baseball Players
Basketball Stars
Boxers
Footballers
NFL Stars
Tennis Champions