1926 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

American football

  • NFL championship – Frankford Yellow Jackets (14–1–2)
  • Rose Bowl (1925 season):
  • The Alabama Crimson Tide won 20–19 over the Washington Huskies to share the college football national championship

Association football

England

  • The Football League – Huddersfield Town 57 points, Arsenal 52, Sunderland 48, Bury 47, Sheffield United 46, Aston Villa 44
  • FA Cup final – Bolton Wanderers 1–0 Manchester City at Empire Stadium, Wembley, London
  • Huddersfield Town is the first team to win the League championship title three times in succession.

Germany

  • National Championship – SpVgg Fürth 4–1 Hertha BSC at Frankfurt

Greece

  • Formation of the Hellenic Football Federation (HFF)

Athletics

Sweden

  • the Second Women's World Games, Gothenburg

Australian rules football

VFL Premiership

  • Melbourne wins the 30th VFL Premiership: Melbourne 17.17 (119) d Collingwood 9.8 (62) at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG)

Brownlow Medal

  • The annual Brownlow Medal is awarded to Ivor Warne-Smith (Melbourne)

Bandy

Sweden

  • Championship final – Västerås SK 1-0 IK Sirius

Baseball

World Series

  • 2–10 October — St. Louis Cardinals (NL) defeats New York Yankees (AL) to win the 1926 World Series by 4 games to 3

Negro leagues

  • Rube Foster, founder of the Negro National League (NNL) and owner and manager of the Chicago American Giants, suffers a nervous breakdown and has to be confined to an asylum. His protégé Dave Malarcher takes over as manager and leads the team to the NNL pennant.
  • The Chicago American Giants (NNL) defeat the Bacharach Giants of Atlantic City, New Jersey (ECL), 5 games to 3, in the 1926 Colored World Series.
  • Mule Suttles of the St. Louis Stars hits a Negro leagues record 27 home runs. His .498 batting average and 21 triples are also records.

Basketball

ABL Championship

  • Cleveland Rosenblums over Brooklyn Arcadians (3–0)

Boxing

Events

  • 23 September — Gene Tunney defeats Jack Dempsey over 10 rounds in Philadelphia to win the World Heavyweight Championship
  • Tiger Flowers twice defeats Harry Greb for the World Middleweight Championship but then loses it to former World Welterweight Champion Mickey Walker who holds it until 1931

Lineal world champions

  • World Heavyweight Championship – Jack Dempsey → Gene Tunney
  • World Light Heavyweight Championship – Paul Berlenbach → Jack Delaney
  • World Middleweight Championship – Harry Greb → Tiger Flowers → Mickey Walker
  • World Welterweight Championship – Mickey Walker → Pete Latzo
  • World Lightweight Championship – Rocky Kansas → Sammy Mandell
  • World Featherweight Championship – Louis "Kid" Kaplan → vacant
  • World Bantamweight Championship – Charley Phil Rosenberg
  • World Flyweight Championship – vacant

Canadian football

Grey Cup

  • 14th Grey Cup – Ottawa Senators 10–7 Toronto Varsity Blues

Cricket

Events

  • 31 May — India, New Zealand and West Indies are elected as Full Members of the Imperial Cricket Conference, increasing the number of nations playing Test cricket from three to six.
  • England regains The Ashes from Australia by winning the five-match Test series 1–0. After the first four Tests are drawn, England wins the final match at The Oval by 289 runs.

England

  • County Championship – Lancashire
  • Minor Counties Championship – Durham
  • Most runs – Jack Hobbs 2949 @ 77.60 (HS 316*)
  • Most wickets – Charlie Parker 213 @ 18.40 (BB 8–73)
  • Wisden Cricketers of the Year – George Geary, Harold Larwood, Jack Mercer, Bert Oldfield, Bill Woodfull

Australia

  • Sheffield Shield – New South Wales
  • Most runs – Arthur Richardson 904 @ 50.22 (HS 227)
  • Most wickets – Clarrie Grimmett 59 @ 30.40 (BB 6–76)
  • Victoria score 1,107 against New South Wales at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in December 1926 - still the largest innings total in first-class cricket.

India

  • Bombay Quadrangular – Hindus

New Zealand

  • Plunket Shield – Wellington

South Africa

  • Currie Cup – not contested

West Indies

  • Inter-Colonial Tournament – Trinidad and Tobago

Cycling

Tour de France

  • Lucien Buysse (Belgium) wins the 20th Tour de France

Figure skating

World Figure Skating Championships

  • World Women's Champion – Herma Szabo (Austria)
  • World Men's Champion – Willi Böckel (Austria)
  • World Pairs Champions – Andreé Joly-Brunet and Pierre Brunet (France)

Golf

Events

  • Bobby Jones becomes the first golfer to win the British and US Open titles in the same year.

Major tournaments

  • British Open – Bobby Jones
  • US Open – Bobby Jones
  • USPGA Championship – Walter Hagen

Other tournaments

  • British Amateur – Jess Sweetser
  • US Amateur – George Von Elm

Horse racing

England

  • Cheltenham Gold Cup – Koko
  • Grand National – Jack Horner
  • 19 April – Willie Watkinson, the Grand National-winning jockey, dies three weeks after his victory in a fall at Bogside, Scotland
  • 1,000 Guineas Stakes – Pillion
  • 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Colorado
  • The Derby – Coronach
  • The Oaks – Short Story
  • St. Leger Stakes – Coronach

Australia

  • Melbourne Cup – Spearfelt

Canada

  • King's Plate – Haplite

France

  • Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe – Biribi

Ireland

  • Irish Grand National – Amberwave
  • Irish Derby Stakes – Embargo

USA

  • Kentucky Derby – Bubbling Over
  • Preakness Stakes – Display
  • Belmont Stakes – Crusader

Ice hockey

Stanley Cup

  • 30 March to 6 April — Montreal Maroons defeats Victoria Cougars in the 1926 Stanley Cup Finals by 3 games to 1

Events

  • Allan Cup – University of Toronto defeats Port Arthur Bearcats
  • Memorial Cup – Calgary Canadians defeats Queen's University
  • The professional Western Hockey League folds; most players are sold for $300,000 to the National Hockey League (NHL).
  • December — new expansion teams debut in the NHL: Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Cougars and New York Rangers

Lacrosse

Events

  • Rosabelle Sinclair establishes the United States' first women's lacrosse team at Bryn Mawr School

Motorsport

Nordic skiing

FIS Nordic World Ski Championships

  • 2nd FIS Nordic World Ski Championships 1926 are held at Lahti, Finland

Rowing

The Boat Race

  • 27 March — Cambridge wins the 78th Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race

Rugby league

England

  • Championship – Wigan
  • Challenge Cup final – Swinton 9–3 Oldham at Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
  • Lancashire League Championship – Wigan
  • Yorkshire League Championship – Hull Kingston Rovers
  • Lancashire County Cup – Swinton 15–11 Wigan
  • Yorkshire County Cup – Dewsbury 2–0 Huddersfield

Australia

  • NSW Premiership – South Sydney 11–5 University (grand final)

Rugby union

Five Nations Championship

  • 39th Five Nations Championship series is shared by Ireland and Scotland

Speed skating

Speed Skating World Championships

  • Men's Allround Champion @ Trondheim, Norway – Ivar Ballangrud (Norway)
  • Overall Ladies World Champion @ Saint John, New Brunswick – Lela Brooks (Canada)
  • World Outdoor Champion – Charles Gorman (Canada)
  • International Outdoor Champion in pack style – John Farrell (United States)

Tennis

Australia

  • Australian Men's Singles Championship – John Hawkes (Australia) defeats James Willard (Australia) 6–1 6–3 6–1
  • Australian Women's Singles Championship – Daphne Akhurst Cozens (Australia) defeats Esna Boyd Robertson (Australia) 6–1 6–3

England

  • Wimbledon Men's Singles Championship – Jean Borotra (France) defeats Howard Kinsey (USA) 8–6 6–1 6–3
  • Wimbledon Women's Singles Championship – Kitty McKane Godfree (Great Britain) defeats Lilí de Álvarez (Spain) 6–2 4–6 6–3

France

  • French Men's Singles Championship – Henri Cochet (France) defeats René Lacoste (France) 6–2 6–4 6–3
  • French Women's Singles Championship – Suzanne Lenglen (France) defeats Mary Browne (USA) 6–1 6–0

USA

  • American Men's Singles Championship – René Lacoste (France) defeats Jean Borotra (France) 6–4 6–0 6–4
  • American Women's Singles Championship – Molla Bjurstedt Mallory (Norway) defeats Elizabeth Ryan (USA) 4–6 6–4 9–7

Davis Cup

  • 1926 International Lawn Tennis Challenge – 4–1 at Germantown Cricket Club (grass) Philadelphia, United States

References