1885 in sports
Encyclopedia
American footballAmerican footballAmerican football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
College championship
- College football national championshipNCAA Division I FBS National Football ChampionshipA college football national championship in the highest level of collegiate play in the United States, currently the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , is a designation awarded annually by various third-party organizations to their selection of the best...
– Princeton TigersPrinceton Tigers footballThe Princeton Tigers football program represents Princeton University college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision...
Association football
England- FA Cup finalFA Cup FinalThe FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the Football Association Challenge Cup. With an official attendance of 89,826 at the 2007 FA Cup Final, it is the fourth best attended domestic club championship event in the world and the second most...
– Blackburn Rovers 2–0 Queen's ParkQueen's Park F.C.Queen's Park Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland. The club are currently the only amateur club in the Scottish League; their amateur status is reflected by their motto, Ludere Causa Ludendi – to play for the sake of playing.Queen's Park are the oldest...
(Glasgow) at The OvalThe OvalThe Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval... - 20 July — the FA finally legitimises professionalism
- Millwall FC founded by workers on the Isle of DogsIsle of DogsThe Isle of Dogs is a former island in the East End of London that is bounded on three sides by one of the largest meanders in the River Thames.-Etymology:...
as Millwall Rovers. - Southampton FC founded as Southampton St Mary’s by members of St Mary’s Church YMCA.
Scotland
- Scottish Cup final – RentonRenton F.C.Renton Football Club was a prominent team in the early history of Scottish football. The club was based in the village of Renton, West Dunbartonshire...
3–1 Vale of LevenVale of Leven F.C.Vale of Leven Football Club are an association club based in the town of Alexandria, Scotland, in the Vale of Leven area of West Dunbartonshire. Nicknamed the Vale and formed in 1939, they play at Millburn Park...
at Hampden ParkHampden ParkHampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
(replay following 0–0 draw)
BaseballBaseballBaseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
National championship
- National LeagueNational LeagueThe National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
v. American AssociationAmerican Association (19th century)The American Association was a Major League Baseball league that existed for 10 seasons from to . During that time, it challenged the National League for dominance of professional baseball...
– Chicago NLChicago CubsThe Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...
ties St Louis A's, 3 games to 3 with one tie.
Events
- The Cuban Giants, composed mainly of African-American players from Philadelphia, is the first black professional baseball team on a reasonably permanent basis. It will sometimes join a league and use a regular home park but more often tour independently.
BoxingBoxingBoxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
Events
- 29 August — John L. SullivanJohn L. SullivanJohn Lawrence Sullivan , also known as the Boston Strong Boy, was recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing from February 7, 1881 to 1892, and is generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring rules...
's six round defeat of Dominick McCaffreyDominick McCaffreyDominick McCaffrey was an Irish-American boxer.McCaffrey was a popular boxer during his time, often noted for fighting much larger heavyweights. In 1885 he lost the Heavyweight Championship to John L. Sullivan...
in Chester Park, Cincinnati, inaugurates the modern World heavyweight boxing championship under Queensberry Rules. The bout is described as being "to decide the Marquess of Queensberry glove contest for the championship of the world". Sullivan will hold the title until 1892. - World Middleweight Champion Jack (Nonpareil) DempseyJack (Nonpareil) DempseyJohn Edward Kelly was an Irish-born champion boxer. At height, he was better known as Jack "Nonpareil" Dempsey, called "Nonpareil" because no one could defeat him. In 65 contests, he lost only 3 times. This ended when Bob Fitzsimmons pummelled him around the ring and begged him to concede before...
defeats 12 challengers during the year, most of them by knockouts. - Future World Heavyweight Champion James J. CorbettJames J. CorbettJames John "Gentleman Jim" Corbett was an Irish-American heavyweight boxing champion, best known as the man who defeated the great John L. Sullivan. He also coached boxing at the Olympic Club in San Francisco...
is the most successful amateur boxer on America's Pacific Coast and takes part in an exhibition bout with Dempsey.
Lineal world champions
- World Heavyweight Championship – John L. SullivanJohn L. SullivanJohn Lawrence Sullivan , also known as the Boston Strong Boy, was recognized as the first heavyweight champion of gloved boxing from February 7, 1881 to 1892, and is generally recognized as the last heavyweight champion of bare-knuckle boxing under the London Prize Ring rules...
- World Middleweight Championship – Jack Nonpareil Dempsey
CricketCricketCricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
Events
- Nottinghamshire wins the county championship title for a third successive season
England
- Champion County – Nottinghamshire
- Most runs – Walter ReadWalter ReadWalter William Read was an English cricketer, who was a fluent right hand bat. An occasional bowler of lobs, he sometimes switched to quick overarm deliveries. He captained England in two Test matches, winning them both...
1880 @ 44.76 (HS 163) - Most wickets – George LohmannGeorge LohmannGeorge Alfred Lohmann is regarded as one of the greatest bowlers of all time...
142 @ 14.36 (BB 8–18)
Australia
- Most runs – Billy BarnesBilly BarnesWilliam Barnes was a professional cricketer who played for Nottinghamshire between 1875 and 1894 and England between 1880 and 1890. In 1890 he was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year. Barnes also toured Australia three times and North America once...
520 @ 43.33 (HS 134) - Most wickets – Bobby PeelBobby PeelRobert "Bobby" Peel was a Yorkshire and England cricketer: a left-arm spinner who ranks as one of the finest bowlers of the 1890s. He was also a capable batsman, who once hit 210 not out...
35 @ 19.22 (BB 7–27)
GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
Events
- Inaugural British Amateur ChampionshipThe Amateur ChampionshipThe Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur...
held at Royal Liverpool Golf Club
Major tournaments
- British OpenThe Open ChampionshipThe Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
– Bob MartinBob Martin (golfer)Bob Martin was a Scottish golfer from the "Home of Golf", St Andrews. He was runner up in The Open Championship at Prestwick in 1875 and he won the Open at St Andrews in 1876 and 1885.-Wins :...
Other tournaments
- British AmateurThe Amateur ChampionshipThe Amateur Championship is a golf tournament which is held annually in the United Kingdom. It is one of the two leading individual tournaments for amateur golfers, alongside the U.S. Amateur...
– Allen MacFie
Horse racingHorse racingHorse racing is an equestrian sport that has a long history. Archaeological records indicate that horse racing occurred in ancient Babylon, Syria, and Egypt. Both chariot and mounted horse racing were events in the ancient Greek Olympics by 648 BC...
England
- Grand NationalGrand NationalThe Grand National is a world-famous National Hunt horse race which is held annually at Aintree Racecourse, near Liverpool, England. It is a handicap chase run over a distance of four miles and 856 yards , with horses jumping thirty fences over two circuits of Aintree's National Course...
– Roquefort - 1,000 Guineas Stakes – Farewell
- 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Paradox
- Epsom DerbyEpsom DerbyThe Derby Stakes, popularly known as The Derby, internationally as the Epsom Derby, and under its present sponsor as the Investec Derby, is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies...
– Melton - Epsom OaksEpsom OaksThe Oaks Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 10 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in early June....
– Lonely - St. Leger StakesSt. Leger StakesThe St. Leger Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain which is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at Doncaster over a distance of 1 mile, 6 furlongs and 132 yards , and it is scheduled to take place each year in September.Established in 1776, the St. Leger...
– Melton
Australia
- Melbourne CupMelbourne CupThe Melbourne Cup is Australia's major Thoroughbred horse race. Marketed as "the race that stops a nation", it is a 3,200 metre race for three-year-olds and over. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world, and one of the richest turf races...
– Sheet Anchor
Canada
- Queen's PlateQueen's PlateThe Queen's Plate is Canada's oldest thoroughbred horse race. It is run at a distance of 1¼ miles for 3-year-old thoroughbred horses foaled in Canada. The race takes place each summer in June or July at Woodbine Racetrack, Etobicoke , Ontario...
– Willie W.
Ireland
- Irish Grand NationalIrish Grand NationalThe Irish Grand National is a National Hunt chase in Ireland which is open to horses aged five years or older. It is run at Fairyhouse over a distance of about 3 miles and 5 furlongs , and during its running there are twenty-four fences to be jumped...
– Billet Doux - Irish Derby StakesIrish Derby StakesThe Irish Derby is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs , and it is scheduled to take place each year in late June or early July.It is Ireland's equivalent of the Epsom Derby,...
– St. Kevin
USA
- Kentucky DerbyKentucky DerbyThe Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
– Joe Cotton - Preakness StakesPreakness StakesThe Preakness Stakes is an American flat Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds held on the third Saturday in May each year at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Maryland. It is a Grade I race run over a distance of 9.5 furlongs on dirt. Colts and geldings carry 126 pounds ; fillies 121 lb...
– Tecumseh - Belmont StakesBelmont StakesThe Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
– Tyrant
RowingRowing (sport)Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
The Boat Race
- 28 March — OxfordOxford University Boat ClubThe Oxford University Boat Club is the rowing club of the University of Oxford, England, located on the River Thames at Oxford. The club was founded in the early 19th century....
wins the 42nd Oxford and Cambridge Boat RaceThe Boat RaceThe event generally known as "The Boat Race" is a rowing race in England between the Oxford University Boat Club and the Cambridge University Boat Club, rowed between competing eights each spring on the River Thames in London. It takes place generally on the last Saturday of March or the first...
Rugby footballRugby footballRugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
Home Nations Championship
- The 3rd series of the Home Nations ChampionshipSix Nations ChampionshipThe Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
is not completed
Other events
- Establishment of London Welsh RFC and Connacht RugbyConnacht RugbyConnacht Rugby is an Irish professional rugby union team based in Connacht that competes in the RaboDirect Pro12 comprising teams from the Celtic nations plus Italy. Normally, it also competes in the second-tier pan-European club competition, the European Challenge Cup...
TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
England
- Wimbledon Men's Singles ChampionshipThe Championships, WimbledonThe Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
– William RenshawWilliam RenshawWilliam "Willie" Charles Renshaw is one of the greatest British male tennis players of all time, and a candidate for the greatest tennis player of all time...
(GB) defeats Herbert LawfordHerbert LawfordHerbert Lawford was a tennis player from Great Britain who won the men's singles championship at Wimbledon in 1887, and was runner-up five times....
(GB) 7–5 6–2 4–6 7–5 - Wimbledon Women's Singles ChampionshipThe Championships, WimbledonThe Championships, Wimbledon, or simply Wimbledon , is the oldest tennis tournament in the world, considered by many to be the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London since 1877. It is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the other three Majors...
– Maud WatsonMaud WatsonMaud Watson was an English tennis player.Born in Harrow, London, the daughter of a local vicar, she began playing competitive tennis in 1881. Undefeated in tournament play, in 1884 the nineteen-year-old Watson won the first ever Ladies’ Singles title at Wimbledon...
(GB) defeats Blanche BingleyBlanche BingleyBlanche Bingley was an English tennis player.Born in Greenford in the London Borough of Ealing, Blanche Bingley was a member of the "Ealing Lawn Tennis & Archery Club." In 1884, she competed in the first ever Wimbledon championships for women and two years later captured the first of her six...
(GB) 6–1 7–5
USA
- American Men's Singles Championship – Richard D. SearsRichard Sears (tennis player)Richard Dudley "Dick" Sears – was an American male tennis player. He was the son of Frederic Richard Sears and Albertina Homer Shelton. He married Eleanor M Cochrane on Nov 24, 1891 and they had Richard Dudley Sears, Jr. and Miriam Sears.Sears was undefeated in the U.S...
(USA) defeats Godfrey M. Brinley (USA) 6–3 4–6 6–0 6–3
Yacht racingYacht racingYacht racing is the sport of competitive yachting.While sailing groups organize the most active and popular competitive yachting, other boating events are also held world-wide: speed motorboat racing; competitive canoeing, kayaking, and rowing; model yachting; and navigational contests Yacht racing...
America's Cup
- The New York Yacht ClubNew York Yacht ClubThe New York Yacht Club is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. The organization has over 3,000 members as of 2011. ...
retains the America's CupAmerica's CupThe America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...
as PuritanPuritan (yacht)Puritan was the 1885 America's Cup defender.-Design:She was built at the George Lawley & Son yard in Boston, Massachusetts and launched May 26, 1885....
defeats British challenger GenestaGenesta (yacht)Genesta was the unsuccessful English challenger in the fifth America's Cup in 1885 against the American defender Puritan.-Design:The cutter Genesta was designed by John Beavor-Webb and built by the D&W Henderson shipyard on the River Clyde in 1884, for owner Sir Richard Sutton of the Royal Yacht...
, of the Royal Yacht SquadronRoyal Yacht SquadronThe Royal Yacht Squadron is the most prestigious yacht club in the United Kingdom and arguably the world. Its clubhouse is located in Cowes Castle on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom...
, 2 races to 0