- Jan 6 Burt Munro, New Zealand motorcycle racer, dies at 78 (b. 1899)
- Jan 9 Eddie Gilbert, cricket (Aboriginal Qld quick got Don for a duck), dies
- Jan 13 Joe McCarthy, American Baseball Hall of Fame manager (World Series 1932, 36–39, 41, 43; New York Yankees), dies at 96
- Jan 14 Harold Abrahams, British athlete (Olympic gold & silver 1924), dies at 78
- Jan 22 Herbert Sutcliffe, English cricketer (54 Tests for England 4555 runs), dies at 83
- Jan 25 Tango Duke, dies in Australia at 42; oldest known thoroughbred horse
- Feb 9 Costante Girardengo, Italian cyclist (b. 1893)
- Feb 14 Paul Governali, American professional football player (b. 1921)
- Mar 7 Steve Bilko, American baseball player, dies at 49
- Mar 12 Theresa Weld Blanchard, American figure skating champion (1914, 1920-24), dies at 84
- Mar 13 Ghulam Guard, Indian cricketer (lefty pace bowler in 2 Tests for India 1959), dies at 52
- Mar 17 George Dickinson, cricketer (8 wickets in 3 Tests for NZ), dies
- Mar 27 Dutch Zwilling, American baseball outfielder (Federal League HR all-time leader), dies at 89
- Mar 29 Jayasinghrao Ghorpade, Indian cricket batsman (8 Tests @ 15.26), dies at 47
- Mar 30 George Paine, lefty cricket spinner (for England in WI 1935), dies
- Mar 30 Harold Gimblett, cricketer (Batted in 3 Tests for England), suicide
- Apr 8 Ford Frick, American baseball commissioner, dies at 83
- Apr 9 Vivian McGrath, Australian tennis player (Australian C'ship 1937), dies at 62
- Apr 27 John Doeg, American tennis player (US Nat C'ship 1930), dies at 69
- May 5 Alfred (Harold] Gilligan, English cricketer (4 Tests for England), dies at 81
- May 6 Ethelda Bleibtrey, American swimmer (Olympic gold 100m, 300m, 4x100m freestyle relay 1920; first US female champion), dies at 76
- May 13 Alby Roberts, New Zealand cricket fast bowler (5 Tests, 7 wickets; Canterbury, Otago), dies at 68
- May 19 George Gladstone, cricketer (one Test WI v England 1930), dies
- May 29 Carl Reynolds, American baseball outfielder (2nd player in MLB history to hit home runs in 3 consecutive innings 1930; Chicago WS), dies at 75
- May 31 József Bozsik, Hungarian footballer (b. 1925)
- Jun 22 Tom Gorman, Australian rugby league centre and captain (10 Tests; Queensland 34 games), dies at 77
- Jul 10 Joe Davis, English snooker player (World Champion 1927-40, 1946), dies at 77
- Aug 21 Vinoo Mankad, Indian cricketer (44 Tests for India, 2,109 runs), dies at 61
- Aug 26 José Manuel Moreno, Argentine footballer, dies at 62
- Sep 6 Adolf Dassler, German entrepreneur (founder sportswear company Adidas), dies at 78
- Sep 10 Ronnie Peterson, Swedish auto racer (World F1 runner-up 1971, 78), dies in crash during Italian F1 GP at 34
- Sep 11 Mike Gazella, American baseball player (NY Yankees), dies at 82
- Sep 23 Lyman Bostock, MLB outfielder, 1975-78 (Minnesota Twins, California Angels), shot and killed by the estranged husband of a friend of a friend, at 27
- Oct 3 Alfred Strange, English soccer right half (20 caps, 3 as captain; Sheffield Wednesday, 253 games), dies at 78
- Oct 8 Jim Gilliam, coach (LA Dodgers), dies at 49
- Oct 10 Ralph Metcalfe, American athlete, politician (Rep-D-Ill; joint world record 100m, Olympic gold 4x100m relay 1936), dies of a heart attack at 68
- Oct 18 Frank Woolley, English cricketer (58,969 1st-class runs), dies at 91
- Oct 26 George "Jackie" Grant, West Indian cricketer (West Indian captain 1930-35), dies at 71
- Nov 6 Heiri Suter, Swiss cyclist, dies at 79
- Nov 7 Gene Tunney, American boxer (world heavyweight champion 1926-28), dies at 80
- Nov 11 Bennie Borgmann, American Basketball Hall of Fame forward and coach (Kingston Colonials, Original Celtics; coach Syracuse Nationals), dies at 77
- Nov 13 George Hearne, South African cricketer (open bat in 3 Tests 1922-24), dies
- Nov 15 Dick Chapman, American golfer (1940 US amateur, 1951 British amateur), dies of a stroke at 67
- Dec 11 Paul O'Dea, American baseball player (b. 1920)