1970 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

• Alpine Skiing World Cup
  • Men's overall season champion –Karl Schranz, Austria
  • Women's overall season champion –Michèle Jacot, France

• 11 January –Super Bowl IV: theKansas City Chiefs (AFL) won 23–7 over theMinnesota Vikings (NFL)
  • Location:Tulane Stadium
  • Attendance: 80,562
  • MVP:Len Dawson, QB (Kansas City)
• Cotton Bowl (1969 season):
  • TheTexas Longhorns won 21–17 over theNotre Dame Fighting Irish to win the college footballnational championship
• 16 June – death ofBrian Piccolo, Chicago Bears player
• 15 August –Patricia Palinkas becomes the first woman to play in a professional football game for the Orlando Panthers in the Atlantic Coast Football League.^[1]
• 3 September – death ofVince Lombardi, Green Bay Packers coach; subsequently, his name is given to theSuper Bowl trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award
• 2 October – TheWichita State University football team plane crash claims approximately half the football team when one of two planes crashes on the way to a game atUtah State University.
• 14 November –A plane carrying most of theMarshall University team crashes just short of landing nearHuntington, West Virginia, killing all 75 aboard, including 37 players.

• World Artistic Gymnastics Championships
  • Men's all-around champion:Eizo Kenmotsu, Japan
  • Women's all-around champion:Ludmilla Tourischeva,USSR
  • Men's team competition champion: Japan
  • Women's team competition champion:USSR

• 26 December – death from cancer ofLillian Board (22), British middle-distance runner
• July –1970 Commonwealth Games held at Edinburgh
• December –1970 Asian Games held at Bangkok

• 16 January –Gold GloveoutfielderCurt Flood files a civil lawsuit challenging baseball's reserve clause, a suit that will have historic implications. Flood refused to report to thePhillies after he was traded by theCardinals, contending the baseball rule violates federal antitrust laws.
• 17 January –The Sporting News namesWillie Mays as Player of the Decade for the 1960s.
• 20 January –Lou Boudreau is elected to theHall of Fame, receiving 232 of a possible 300 votes from the BBWAA.
• 7 April – TheMilwaukee Brewers play their first ever game as the Brewers atMilwaukee County Stadium, after the team had relocated fromSeattle.
• 12 June –Dock Ellis of thePittsburgh Pirates throws ano-hitter against theSan Diego Padres. It is later revealed that he did so while under the influence of LSD.
• Robert W. Peterson's bookOnly the Ball was White is published. The book brings pressure onMajor League Baseball to recognize theAfrican-American players fromNegro league baseball by honoring its stars in theBaseball Hall of Fame.
• World Series – TheAmerican League'sBaltimore Orioles win their second World Title by defeating theNational League'sCincinnati Reds, 4 games to 1.

• NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship –
  • UCLA wins 80–69 overJacksonville
• National Basketball Association –
  • New York Knicks won 4 games to 3 over theLos Angeles Lakers in the1970 NBA Finals
• 1970 ABA Finals –
  • Indiana Pacers defeatLos Angeles Stars 4 games to 2
• FIBA World Championship –
  • Yugoslavia World Champion

• 15 February –Carlos Cruz, Featherweight Boxing Champion died in a plane crash
• 16 February –Joe Frazier wins the undisputed World Heavyweight title with the knock out ofJimmy Ellis in five rounds.
• 30 December – death ofSonny Liston (38), former heavyweight champion

• Grey Cup –Montreal Alouettes win 23–10 over theCalgary Stampeders
• Vanier Cup –Manitoba Bisons win 38–11 over theOttawa Gee-Gees

• 6 January –Australia commences a controversial tour of South Africa.
• 4 March –South Africa completes a 4–0 series whitewash overAustralia atPort Elizabeth. This was to beSouth Africa's last Test match for 22 years.
• 22 May – The British Government forcesEngland to cancel the planned tour of England by South Africa.
• A "Rest of the World" team captained byGarry Sobers plays five unofficial Test matches againstEngland winning the series 4–1.
• In their centenary yearKent wins the EnglishCounty Championship for the first time since 1913.
• TheInternational Cricket Conference votes to suspendSouth Africa from international cricket indefinitely because of its government'sapartheid policy.

• Giro d'Italia won byEddy Merckx of Belgium
• Tour de France –Eddy Merckx of Belgium
• UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race –Jean-Pierre Monseré of Belgium

• Men's European Nations Cup held in Brussels and won by West Germany

• World Figure Skating Championships –
  • Men's champion:Tim Wood, United States
  • Ladies' champion:Gabrielle Seyfert, Germany
  • Pair skating champions:Irina Rodnina &Alexei Ulanov, Soviet Union
  • Ice dancing champions:Lyudmila Pakhomova &Alexandr Gorshkov, Soviet Union

Men's professional

• Masters Tournament –Billy Casper
• U.S. Open –Tony Jacklin
• British Open –Jack Nicklaus
• PGA Championship –Dave Stockton
• PGA Tour money leader –Lee Trevino – $157,037

Men's amateur

• British Amateur –Michael Bonallack
• U.S. Amateur –Lanny Wadkins

Women's professional

• LPGA Championship –Shirley Englehorn
• U.S. Women's Open –Donna Caponi
• Titleholders Championship – not played
• LPGA Tour money leader –Kathy Whitworth – $30,235

• Fresh Yankee was named "Horse of the Year" by theU.S. Trotting Association and theU.S. Harness Writers Association.
• Most Happy Fella won theUnited States Pacing Triple Crown races –
  1. Cane Pace –Most Happy Fella
  2. Little Brown Jug –Most Happy Fella
  3. Messenger Stakes –Most Happy Fella
• United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
  1. Hambletonian –Timothy T.
  2. Yonkers Trot –Victory Star
  3. Kentucky Futurity –Timothy T.
• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
  • Pacers:Bold David

• Nijinsky wins all threeEnglish Triple Crown Races and the Irish Derby

Steeplechases

• Cheltenham Gold Cup –L'Escargot
• Grand National –Gay Trip

Flat races

• Australia –Melbourne Cup won byBaghdad Note
• Canada –Queen's Plate won byAlmoner
• France –Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won bySassafras
• Ireland –Irish Derby Stakes won byNijinsky
• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes –Nijinsky
  2. The Derby –Nijinsky^[2]
  3. St. Leger Stakes –Nijinsky
• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby –Dust Commander
  2. Preakness Stakes –Personality
  3. Belmont Stakes –High Echelon

• Art Ross Trophy –Bobby Orr becomes the first defenseman in the history of theNational Hockey League to lead the league in scoring.
• Hart Memorial Trophy for theNHL's Most Valuable Player:Bobby Orr,Boston Bruins
• Stanley Cup –Boston Bruins win the Cup for the first time in 29 years, defeating theSt. Louis Blues four games to none. Defenseman,Bobby Orr is awarded theConn Smythe Trophy as the series MVP (most valuable player).
• World Hockey Championship
  • Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Sweden
• NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship –Cornell University Big Red defeatClarkson University Golden Knights 6–4 inLake Placid, New York; only NCAA hockey team to complete season undefeated and untied (31–0)

• STX is founded by Richard B.C. Tucker Sr.
• The New Westminster Salmonbellies win theMann Cup.
• The Whitby Transporters win theCastrol Cup.
• The Lakeshore Maple Leafs win theMinto Cup.

• 15 March – the final match of the1969–70 European Championship is played, withEngland crowned champions for finishing on top of the league
• 19 September – the1970 NSWRFL season culminates withSouth Sydney's 23–12 Grand Final victory overManly-Warringah
• 8 November – the1970 World Cup is won byAustralia, who defeatedGreat Britain 12–7 in thefinal

• World Snooker Championship –Ray Reardon beatsJohn Pulman 37–33

• FirstISU Sprint Speed Skating Championships for Men and Ladies held inWest Allis, U.S.A.

• 22 August – US swimmerMark Spitz breaks his own, nearly three-year-oldworld record in the men's 200m butterfly (long course) with a time of2:05.4. At the same meet and on the same day inLos Angeles, California he loses it toGary Hall Sr., who swims2:05.0.

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open –Arthur Ashe
  2. French Open –Jan Kodeš
  3. Wimbledon championships –John Newcombe
  4. US Open –Ken Rosewall
• Margaret Court wins theGrand Slam in women's tennis –
  1. Australian Open –Margaret Court
  2. French Open –Margaret Court
  3. Wimbledon championships –Margaret Court
  4. US Open –Margaret Court
• Davis Cup – United States wins 5–0 overGermany F.R. in world tennis.

• 1970 FIVB Men's World Championship held in Sofia and won by East Germany

• TheNew York Yacht Club retains theAmerica's Cup asIntrepid defeats Australian challengerGretel II, of theRoyal Sydney Yacht Squadron, 4 races to 1.

• SixthAsian Games held inBangkok, Thailand
• 1970 British Commonwealth Games held inEdinburgh, Scotland^[3]
• Central American and Caribbean Games held inPanama City,Panama
• SixthSummer Universiade held inTurin, Italy
• SixthWinter Universiade held inRovaniemi, Finland

• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year –George Blanda,National Football League
• Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year –Chi Cheng,Track and field

• 1970 in sports
• Sports by year

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from September 2020
• Short description is different from Wikidata