Super Bowl LVII
The 57th Super Bowl took place in Glendale, Arizona. The game featured AFC Champions – the Kansas City Chiefs – against the NFC Champions, the Philadelphia Eagles. This was the first Super Bowl where two brothers faced off: Travis (Chiefs) and Jason Kelce (Eagles). The Eagles had a controversial defensive-holding call that extended the drive for the Chiefs and let them drain the clock to just eight seconds. With a few seconds left in the game, the Chiefs scored a game-winning field goal, leaving no time for the Eagles to make a comeback. The Chiefs won their second Super Bowl championship in four years with a score of 38-35.
World Series
This year’s Fall Classic was the 119th edition and was a series between the American League champions, the Texas Rangers, and the National League champions, the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Rangers won the seven-game series in just five games, winning 4-1, and securing their first World Series title in their club’s existence since 1961. Both teams were Wild-Card winners and did not win their division, making this matchup the third time in history that the World Series had two wild-card teams facing off.
NBA Finals
The NBA Finals was a seven-game series between the Miami Heat and the Denver Nuggets. The Heat were underdogs in this matchup since they were the eighth and final seed in the Eastern Conference. The impressive Heat went on a victory run, beating high-seeded teams including the number one-seed Milwaukee Bucks and the two-seed Boston Celtics. Going into the series, the Nuggets were favored to win with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic as their star. The Nuggets won the series, four games to one, and clinched their franchise’s first NBA Finals victory.
Stanley Cup
This year’s Stanley Cup was a fierce competition between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Florida Panthers. This was the Golden Knight’s second Stanley Cup appearance since their formation in 2017. The Panthers were the final seed in the Eastern Conference bracket and went on a miracle run to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals. The Vegas Golden Knights won the series in dominating fashion with a 4-1 series score. In Game two the Knights won 7-2 and in the fifth and final game, they won 9-3. Jonathan Marchessault, of the Vegas Golden Knights, won the Finals MVP.
Women’s World Cup
The ninth edition of the Women’s World Cup was mutually hosted by Australia and New Zealand in July. The USA team had a lackluster showing on the world’s biggest stage with high expectations coming into the tournament since they had won the two previous tournaments in 2015 and 2019. The USA Women’s team was knocked out in the round of 16. The Spanish won the tournament over England in a 1-0 match, making it the women’s first-ever World Cup win in Spain.