- Jan 29 Buster Nupen, South African cricket all-rounder (17 Tests, 50 wickets; one eye only), dies at 75
- Feb 5 Izaak Boleslavski, Russian chess player, dies at 67
- Feb 19 Mike González, Cuban baseball player, dies at 86
- Feb 22 Jack O'Connor, cricketer (batted in 4 Tests for England 1929-30), dies
- Feb 25 Billy Coutu, Canadian ice hockey defenceman (Stanley Cup 1924; Montreal Canadiens; only player banned from NHL for life, attacked referee 1927), dies at 84
- Mar 5 Tom Pryce, Welsh Formula One driver, dies at 27
- Mar 5 Jansen Van Vuuren, Dutch volunteer safety marshal at the 1977 South African Grand Prix, dies in a car crash at 19
- Mar 11 Alberto Rodriguez Larreta, Argentine racing driver (b. 1934)
- Mar 18 José Carlos Pace, Brazilian racing driver (b. 1944)
- Mar 19 Buck Shaw, American football player and coach, dies at 77
- Apr 3 Jack Ryder, Australian cricket all-rounder (20 Tests, 1,394 runs @ 51.62), dies at 87
- Apr 11 Karen Krantzcke, Australian tennis player (Australian Open doubles 1968; Federation Cup 1970), dies of a heart attack whilst jogging at 31
- Apr 12 Philip K Wrigley, baseball owner (Chicago Cubs), dies at 82
- Apr 20 Len Johnson, cricketer (one Test for Australia, 3-66 & 3-8), dies
- Apr 20 Wilmer Allison, American tennis player (US Nat C'ship 1935), dies at 72
- Jun 9 Bill Merritt, cricketer (6 Tests of leg-spin for NZ, 12 wkts), dies
- Jul 29 Austin Matthews, cricketer (Test Eng v NZ 1937), dies
- Aug 24 Buddy O'Connor, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1916)
- Aug 29 Brian McGuire, Australian racing driver, killed while practicing at Brands Hatch at 31
- Sep 13 Arthur Fagg, English cricket batsman (5 Tests; dual double-centuries for Kent v Essex 1938) and umpire (18 Tests, 7 ODIs), dies at 62
- Sep 27 Jock Hutchison, Scottish golfer (PGA C'ship 1920, British Open 1921), dies at 93
- Oct 17 [Robert] Cal Hubbard, American football and baseball player and umpire (only person in football and baseball Hall of Fame), dies at 77
- Oct 18 Rolph Grant, West Indian cricketer (West Indian captain on 1939 England tour), dies at 67
- Nov 8 Bucky Harris, American baseball player and manager (Phillies, Yankees), dies at 81
- Nov 9 Fred Haney, American baseball player, dies at 81
- Nov 18 Davey O'Brien, American College Football Hall of Fame quarterback (Heisman Trophy 1938, Texas Christian University; NFL: Philadelphia Eagles), dies from cancer at 60
- Nov 22 Reg Perks, England cricket pace bowler (1938-39), dies
- Dec 7 Paul Gibb, cricketer (England batsman, 8 Tests), dies
- Dec 10 Adolph Rupp, American basketball coach (b. 1901)