- Jan 1 Canadian Amateur Football Association formally becomes successor to Canadian Rugby Football Union; turns over the Grey Cup trophy to the CFL
- Jan 1 Second day's play in Calcutta 2nd cricket Test, India v W Indies is cancelled by riots; ticket holders denied access starts trouble outside ground; escalates with fires in stands and pitch damage; WI win by 45
- Jan 1 NFL Championship, Cotton Bowl, Dallas: Green Bay Packers beat Dallas Cowboys, 34-27
- Jan 1 AFL Championship, War Memorial Stadium, Buffalo: Kansas City Chiefs beat Buffalo Bills, 31-7; QB Len Dawson passes for 2 TDs, RB Mike Garrett runs for 2 TDs
- Jan 2 53rd Rose Bowl: #7 Purdue beats Southern California, 14-13
- Jan 2 33rd Sugar Bowl: #6 Alabama beats #3 Nebraska, 34-7
- Jan 2 33rd Orange Bowl: Florida beats #8 Georgia Tech, 27-12
- Jan 9 NFL New Orleans' franchise takes name "Saints"
NBA All-Star Game
Jan 10 17th NBA All-Star Game, Cow Palace, San Francisco, Ca: West beats East, 135-120; MVP: Rick Barry, SF Warriors, SF
- Jan 11 San Diego is granted an NBA franchise to be called the Rockets; franchise moves to Houston for the 1971-72 season
Sports History
Jan 12 Louisville, Kentucky draft board refuses exemption for boxer Muhammad Ali [1]
- Jan 15 Super Bowl I, LA Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA: Green Bay Packers beat KC Chiefs, 35-10; MVP: Bart Starr, Green Bay, QB
NHL All-Star Game
Jan 18 20th NHL All-Star Game, Montreal Forum, Montreal, QC: Montreal Canadiens beat All-Stars, 3-0; MVP: Henri Richard, Montreal, C
NBA Record
Jan 20 Philadelphia 76ers center Wilt Chamberlain makes all 15 of his field goal attempts in a 119-108 win over LA Lakers; NBA record for consecutive shots made; beats mark twice before 1966-67 season ends
- Jan 21 6th AFL All Star Game, LA Memorial Coliseum: Eastern Division beats Western Division, 30-23: MVPs: Babe Parilli, Boston Patriots, QB; Verlon Biggs, NY Jets, DE
- Jan 21 US female Figure Skating championship won by Peggy Fleming
NFL Pro Bowl
Jan 22 17th NFL Pro Bowl, LA Memorial Coliseum: East beats West, 20-10; MVPs: Gale Sayers, Chicago Bears, HB; Floyd Peters, Philadelphia Eagles, DT
Sports History
Jan 23 Stan Musial is named GM of Cards
- Jan 27 New Orleans Saints sign their 1st player (Paige Cothren-kicker)
Hall of Fame
Jan 29 Branch Rickey & Lloyd Waner elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
- Jan 29 Kees Verkerk becomes European skating champ
Australian Open Women's Tennis
Jan 30 Australian Championships Women's Tennis: American Nancy Richey wins her first and only Australian title; beats home favourite Lesley Turner Bowrey 6-1, 6-4
Australian Men's Tennis Open
Jan 30 Australian Championships Men's Tennis: Roy Emerson repeats previous year's result; beats American Arthur Ashe 6-4, 6-1, 6-4 for his 5th straight Australian title
Sports History
Feb 1 The 10-team American Basketball Association (ABA) with George Mikan as Commissioner is formed and lasts 9 years; its three-point shot remains a feature of the game
- Feb 2 Formation of American Basketball Association is announced
- Feb 6 Muhammad Ali pummels Ernie Terrell for 15 rounds to retain his world heavyweight boxing crown at Houston Astrodome; regains Terrell’s WBA belt as well
- Feb 8 Longest losing streak in Toronto Maple Leaf history (10 games)
- Feb 12 Kees Verkerk becomes world champ all round skater
- Feb 16 NY Yankees pitcher Red Ruffing elected to Baseball Hall of Fame
- Feb 18 Softball pitcher Eddie Feigner strikes out 6 straight major leaguers
- Feb 19 Stien Kaiser becomes world champion lady's skater
- Feb 22 Sling-shot goal post & 6' wide border around field are standard in NFL
- Feb 23 Ted Workman replaces Senator Keith Davey as CFL commissioner
Daytona 500
Feb 26 9th Daytona 500: Mario Andretti wins his first and only NASCAR Grand National event; only time driver born outside the US has ever won the Great American Race
- Feb 28 Wilt Chamberlain sinks NBA record 35th consecutive field goal
- Mar 1 MLB Commissioner William Eckert approves the Baseball Writers Association of America's plan to name a Cy Young Award recipient from both the National and American Leagues
- Mar 3 White Sox given permission to use semi-DH in training camp with home club permission (use of pinch hitter twice in same game)
- Mar 4 Ice Dance Championship at Vienna won by Towler & Ford (GRB)
- Mar 4 Men's Figure Skating Championship in Vienna won by Emmerich Danzer (AUT)
- Mar 4 Worlds Ladies' Figure Skating Champion in Vienna won by Peggy Fleming (US)
- Mar 6 Muhammad Ali is ordered by selective service to be inducted
- Mar 8 New Orleans Saints begin selling season tickets (20,000 sold 1st day)
- Mar 11 14th ACC Men's Basketball Tournament: North Carolina beats Duke, 82-73
- Mar 12 Austria's Reinhold Bachler ski jumps 505 feet
- Mar 14 1967 NFL Draft: Michigan State defensive end Bubba Smith first pick by Baltimore Colts
- Mar 22 Muhammad Ali KOs Zora Folley in 7 for heavyweight boxing title
Sports History
Mar 25 29th NCAA Men's Basketball Championship: UCLA beats Dayton, 79-64; Bruins center Lew Alcindor (later named Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) tournament MOP
- Apr 5 '76er Wilt Chamberlain sets NBA record of 41 rebounds
- Apr 8 121st Grand National: John Buckingham aboard rank 100/1 outsider Foinavon avoids famous carnage to win by 15 lengths from favourite Honey End
- Apr 9 31st US Masters Tournament, Augusta National GC: Gay Brewer wins his only major title by 1 stroke over runner-up Bobby Nichols
- Apr 15 France wins its 4th outright Five Nations Rugby Championship with an 11-6 win over Ireland at Lansdowne Road, Dublin
- Apr 17 71st Boston Marathon: Dave McKenzie of New Zealand wins in 2:15:45; American Bobbi Gibb 1st woman for 2nd straight year in 3:27:17 (unsanctioned)
Sports History
Apr 17 Italian boxer Nino Benvenuti beats American Emile Griffith in a 15 round points decision to win world middleweight crown at Madison Square Garden; start of famous trilogy of fights between the pair
Sports History
Apr 20 NY Met pitcher Tom Seaver wins his 1st game, helps beat Cubs, 6-1
- Apr 21 Dodgers 1st rain out in Los Angeles (after 737 consecutive games)
- Apr 24 21st NBA Championship: Philadelphia 76ers beat SF Warriors, 4 games to 2
- Apr 28 Muhammad Ali refuses induction into army & stripped of boxing title
- Apr 30 MLB Baltimore Orioles' Stu Miller & Steve Barber lose 2-1 despite no-hitting Tigers
Sports History
May 2 Stanley Cup Final, Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, ON: Terry Sawchuk makes 40 saves as Toronto Maple Leafs beat Montreal Canadiens, 3-1 in Game 6 to take title, 4-2
- May 6 93rd Kentucky Derby: Bobby Ussery on Proud Clarion wins in 2:00.6
- May 6 Maureen Wilton runs female world record marathon (3:15:22)
- May 8 Muhammad Ali is indicted for refusing induction in US Army
- May 10 Foundation AZ soccer team forms in Alkmaar
Sports History
May 10 Hank Aaron hits his only inside the park HR off of Phillies' Jim Bunning, in Philadelphia
- May 13 Octagonal boxing ring is tested to avoid corner injuries
Sports History
May 14 NY Yankee Mickey Mantle hits career HR #500 off Baltimore Oriole's Stu Miller
Sports History
May 20 92nd Preakness: Bill Shoemaker aboard Damascus wins in 1:55.2
Sports History
May 30 Yankee Whitey Ford, nearing 41, announces his retirement from baseball
- May 31 Bayern Munchen of West Germany wins 7th European Cup Winner's Cup against Rangers of Scotland 1-0 in Nuremberg
Sports History
May 31 Indianapolis 500: A. J. Foyt weaves his way through a pileup on the final lap to win his third Indy 500 victory; first Indy 500 win for Goodyear tires since 1919
- Jun 3 99th Belmont: Bill Shoemaker aboard Damascus wins in 2:28.8
- Jun 3 French Championships Men's Tennis: Roy Emerson bests fellow Australian Tony Roche, 6-1, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 for his 12th, and final, Grand Slam title
- Jun 3 French Championships Women's Tennis: Local favourite Françoise Dürr beats Lesley Turner of Australia, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4
- Jun 4 Curt Flood's record 568 straight chances without an error ends (227 straight games)
- Jun 7 NY Yankees draft Ron Blomberg #1
- Jun 10 American pole vaulter Bob Seagren sets a world record mark of 17'7" in San Diego, California
- Jun 11 A. J. Foyt and Dan Gurney drive a Ford to victory in Le Mans
- Jun 11 Chicago Cubs (7) & NY Mets (4) tie record of 11 HRs in a game
- Jun 12 Washington Senators beat Chicago White Sox, 6-5 in 22 innings at D.C. Stadium
US Golf Open
Jun 18 US Open Men's Golf, Baltusrol GC: Jack Nicklaus shoots a final round 65 for a new tournament record 275, 4 strokes ahead of Arnold Palmer
- Jun 18 Houston Astros pitcher Don Wilson no-hits Atlanta Braves, 2-0 at the Astrodome, Houston
- Jun 20 Phillies Larry Jackson beats NY Mets for 18th straight time
- Jun 21 Yanks take 5-3 lead in 11th & lose 6-5, in 2nd game Red Sox lead 3-2 in 9th & Yanks beat them 6-3
- Jun 30 Philadelphia Phillies utility man Cookie Rojas pitches a scoreless 9th inning in 12-3 loss to SF Giants; Rojas had now played all 9 positions since arriving in MLB in 1963
- Jul 1 Bobby Unser wins both races at Mosport, Ontario, Canada, the first Champ Car races ever run outside the United States
- Jul 2 US Open Women's Golf, The Homestead: Catherine Lacoste wins by 2 strokes from Susie Maxwell & Beth Stone (youngest [22], 1st amateur winner)
- Jul 7 Wimbledon Men's Tennis: John Newcombe outclasses Wilhelm Bungert of Germany 6-3, 6-1, 6-1 for his 1st of 3 Wimbledon singles titles
Wimbledon Women's Tennis
Jul 8 Wimbledon Women's Tennis: Billie Jean King beats local favourite Anne Jones 6-3, 6-4 for the 2nd of 3 straight Wimbledon singles titles
- Jul 11 38th All Star Baseball Game: NL wins 2-1 in 15 at Anaheim Stadium, CA
- Jul 11 All star MVP: Tony Perez (Cincinnati Reds)
- Jul 14 Houston Astro Eddie Matthews hits his 500th HR, off SF Giant Juan Marichal
- Jul 15 British Open Men's Golf, Royal Liverpool GC: 44 year old Argentine Robert De Vicenzo wins his only major championship, 2 strokes clear of defending champion Jack Nicklaus
LPGA Championship
Jul 16 LPGA Championship Women's Golf, Pleasant Valley CC: Kathy Whitworth wins by 1 stroke from Shirley Englehorn
- Jul 22 Atlanta Braves establish MLB record for number of pitchers called upon in one inning; 5 used in 9th inning of 5-4 defeat to St. Louis Cardinals
- Jul 23 54th Tour de France won by Roger Pingeon of France
- Jul 24 PGA Championship Men's Golf, Columbine CC: Don January wins his only major title in 18-hole playoff with Don Messengale (69-71)
- Jul 24 Race riots in Detroit force postponement of Tigers-Orioles game
- Jul 26 Twins beat Yanks 3-2 in 18
- Jul 27 Helmond Sport soccer team forms
- Aug 2 New Orleans Saints play 1st ever pre-season game, lose to LA Rams 16-7 at Anaheim Stadium
- Aug 4 34th NFL Chicago College All-Star Game: Green Bay 27, All-Stars 0 ; 70,934 at Soldier Field
- Aug 5 First exhibition after AFL/NFL merger, Denver Broncos (AFL) surprise Detroit Lions (NFL), 13-7 at University of Denver
- Aug 6 Minnesota Twins pitcher Dean Chance throws a perfect no-hitter vs Boston Red Sox, 2-0 in 5 innings before game is called because of weather
Baseball Record
Aug 6 Future Baseball Hall of Fame 3rd baseman Brooks Robinson (Baltimore Orioles) hits into MLB record 4th career triple play
- Aug 12 New Orleans Saints 1st pre-season victory, beat St Louis 23-14
- Aug 18 Red Sox Tony Conigliaro is beaned by Angels Jack Hamilton
- Aug 20 LPGA Western Open Women's Golf, Pekin CC: Kathy Whitworth wins by 7 strokes from Sandra Haynie
- Aug 21 Kansas City utility Ken Harrelson becomes baseball's first free agent when he is abruptly released by the Athletics; calls team owner Charlie Finley "a menace to baseball"
- Aug 25 Minn Twin Dean Chance 2nd no-hitter of month beats Cleveland, 2-1
- Aug 26 Dean Chance pitches a 2-1 no-hitter, & Twins sweep Cleveland
- Aug 28 Boston signs 1st free-agent outfielder Ken Harrelson for $75,000 bonus
- Aug 29 Yanks longest day, Red Sox take 1st game 2-1 in 9, Yanks win 2nd game in 20, 4-3 a total of 8 hours & 19 minutes
- Sep 1 Cincinnati Reds reliever Bob Lee walks Dick Groat with bases loaded in 21st inning to give SF Giants a 1-0 win at Crosley Field; 20 scoreless innings ties MLB mark, Pirates v Braves 1918
- Sep 10 Chicago White Sox Joel Horlen no-hits Det Tigers, 6-0
- Sep 10 US National Championship Men's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: John Newcombe of Australia defeats American Clark Graebner 6–4, 6–4, 8–6 for first of 2 US singles titles
- Sep 10 US National Championship Women's Tennis, Forest Hills, NY: Billie Jean King defeats England's Ann Haydon-Jones 11–9, 6–4 for first of 4 US singles crowns
- Sep 16 Anni Pede runs female world record marathon (3:07:26)
- Sep 17 New Orleans Saints 1st NFL game, they lose to LA Rams 27-13
- Sep 18 Intrepid (US) beats Dame Pattie (Aust) in 21st America's Cup
- Sep 22 Phillies release pitcher Dallas Green, their future manager
- Sep 24 NFL St. Loius Cardinals' Jim Bakken kicks 7 field goals at Pittsburgh Steelers, setting NFL record at the time
Baseball Record
Sep 27 Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jim Bunning ties NL record of 5, 1-0 losses in a year
- Sep 29 American boxer Emile Griffith regains his world middleweight crown on points in a brawling re-match with Italian Nino Benvenuti at Shea Stadium, NY; second of famous trilogy of fights
Sports History
Oct 1 Richard Petty continues phenomenal NASCAR winning streak by taking the Wilkes 400 at North Wilkesboro Speedway; unprecedented 10th consecutive victory
- Oct 4 St Louis Cardinals beat Boston Red Sox, 2-1 in Game 1 of Baseball World Series at Fenway Park; first Fall Classic since 1948 not to feature Yankees, Giants or Dodgers; Cards win series, 4-3
Baseball Record
Oct 11 World Series record 3 consecutive HRs hit by Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Smith and Rico Petrocelli as Boston Red Sox beat St Louis Cardinals, 8-4 in Game 6 at Fenway Park
- Oct 12 Baseball World Series: Lou Brock steals WS record 7 bases as St Louis Cardinals beat Boston Red Sox, 7-2 at Fenway Park for a 4-3 series win; MVP: Cards pitcher Bob Gibson
- Oct 13 Seattle SuperSonics (now OKC Thunder) lose NBA debut game, 144-116 to the San Francisco Warriors at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
- Oct 13 First American Basketball Association (ABA) game is played with Oakland Oaks beating Anaheim Amigos, 132-129; red, white & blue ball and 3-point field goal introduced
- Oct 18 MLB American League votes to allow Kansas City Athletics to move to Oakland, California & expand league to 12 teams in 1971 with Kansas City & Seattle teams - later accelerated to 1969 due to pressure from Kansas City politicians
- Oct 19 Igor Ter-Ovanesyan of USSR, sets then long jump record at 27' 4 3/4"
- Oct 20 Charlie Finley names Bob Kennedy 1st manager of Oakland A's
- Oct 22 Ian Brayshaw (W Aus v Vic, Perth) takes all 10 cricket wkts
Sports History
Oct 22 Joe DiMaggio is hired as executive VP of A's by Charlie Finley
- Oct 22 Denny Hulme becomes first New Zealander to win the F1 World Drivers Championship with 3rd place in the Mexican Grand Prix at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez; wins title by 5 points from team leader Jack Brabham
- Oct 23 NJ Americans (later NY/NJ Nets) play 1st ABA game
- Oct 29 Danny Abramowicz begins NFL streak of 105 consecutive game receptions
- Oct 30 Arthur Allyn says White Sox will play 9 games in Milwaukee in 1968
- Oct 30 Ferdinand Bracke bicycles world record time (48,093 km)
- Oct 31 SF Giants Mike McCormick wins NL Cy Young Award
- Nov 5 New Orleans Saints 1st NFL victory, beat Philadelphia Eagles 31-24
- Nov 15 Boston's Carl Yastrzemski wins AL MVP
- Nov 20 Mets pitcher Tom Seaver (16-12) is named NL Rookie of Year
- Nov 28 33rd Heisman Trophy Award: Gary Beban, UCLA (QB)
- Dec 1 Philadelphia center Wilt Chamberlain scores 52 points in 76ers' 133-109 win over Seattle SuperSonics; sets NBA record for 22 free throw misses
- Dec 1 Pacific Northwest Sports, Inc. is awarded one of the 2 American League baseball expansion franchises; new team named the Seattle Pilots
- Dec 2 CFL Grey Cup, Landsdowne Park, Ottawa: Hamilton Tiger-Cats defeat Saskatchewan Roughriders, 24-1; Alan Ford's 87 yard punt, on a quick kick, is the longest in Grey Cup history
- Dec 2 32nd Iron Bowl: Alabama beats Auburn 7-3 in Birmingham
- Dec 3 Australian Derek Clayton runs world marathon record 2:09:36.4 at the Fukuoka Marathon in Japan
- Dec 8 NHL California Seals change name to Oakland Seals
- Dec 15 Retired baseball player Joe Garagiola joins "Today" show panel
- Dec 16 Wilt Chamberlain of NBA Philadelphia 76ers scores 68 points vs Chicago
- Dec 26 Ballon d'Or: Ferencváros forward Flórián Albert wins award for best European football player ahead of Manchester United midfielder Bobby Charlton and Celtic winger Jimmy Johnstone
- Dec 28 56th Davis Cup: Australia beats Spain in Brisbane (4-1)
- Dec 31 1st NBA game at Great Western Forum, LA Lakers beat Houston 147-118
Sports History
Dec 31 AFL Championship, Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland: Oakland Raiders beat Houston Oilers 40-7; George Blanda 4 field goals for Raiders in club's 1st AFL Championship
- Dec 31 NFL Championship, Lambeau Field, Green Bay: Green Bay Packers beat Dallas Cowboys, 21-17; "The Ice Bowl", -13°F