The Sportsletter - 2023 Rewind: The Best of Sports 🎉

BY JEFF YODER

DEC. 29, 2023 |  SUBSCRIBE  |  WEB VIEW

Good Morning 👋

It’s finally here — my favorite edition of the year. Tracking events as they happen is great, but reliving the best sports moments at the end of each year? It’s special. I spent hours digging through our past 250+ newsletters to find links to the best moments of 2023.

In today’s edition, we remember the biggest champions, highlights, record-breaking performances and top news stories. I hope you find a few minutes to rewind the incredible year we spent together in sports. Happy New Year, team! 🎉

  HOLIDAYS  

🗓️ Holiday Schedule: The Sportsletter Team will return to our normal schedule on Wednesday (Jan. 3).

  CHAMPIONS   🏆

The 23 Biggest Champions of 2023

Image via Giphy

The 23 Biggest Champions of Sports in 2023 (In Chronological Order)

Another year has come to a close and the remnants of the greatest sports moments still live in our minds. While much of what we’ve published in 2023 — somewhere in the ballpark of 500,000 words — has already been forgotten, these are the stories, champions and highlights that will live forever. You can’t cover sports without historic data, and these champions etched their names in those record books.

The calendar year featured three first-time championships for three franchises in the major professional team sports — the Denver Nuggets (NBA), Vegas Golden Knights (NHL) and Texas Rangers (MLB). Overall, 12 of the teams or athletes on our list were first-time champions in 2023.

Let’s do it! These are the 23 best sports champions of 2023. Scroll down further to see the top-5 record-breaking highlights and moments, as well as the top 23 news stories of the year in sports. Enjoy!

🏈 A Blowout CFB Championship Game

Georgia Deals TCU Biggest Beatdown in CFP History (65-7)

🏈 An Epic Super Bowl LVII Shootout

Chiefs Come Back to Beat Eagles (38-35)

🏀 NCAA Tournament Darlings (March Madness)

Men: #4 UConn Paces #5 SD State (76-59)

Women: #3 LSU Top #2 Iowa (102-85)

⛳️ A 1st-Time Masters Champion

Jon Rahm (-12) Wins The Masters

🏇 The 149th Kentucky Derby Miracle

15-1 Long-Shot ‘Mage’ Makes Improbable Comeback

 🏎️ The 107th Indianapolis 500 Twist

Josef Newgarden Survives Crash-Filled Race in Indy

⚽️ The New Champions of Europe

Manchester City Win 1st UEFA Champions League Crown

🏀 A Mile-High NBA Finals Celebration

Denver Nuggets Beat Miami Heat for 1st NBA Crown

🏒 A 1st-Time Stanley Cup Finals Winner

Vegas Golden Knights Beat Florida Panthers for 1st Stanley Cup

🎾 A Wimbledon Finale for the Ages

Carlos Alcaraz Wins 5-Set Epic Against Novak Djokovic

🥊 The Fight of the Year

Terence Crawford TKOs Errol Spence Jr. for Welterweight Title

⛳️ The FedEx Cup Playoff Runaway

Viktor Hovland (-27) Dominates Field for 1st FedEx Cup

⚽️ The All-Europe World Cup Final

Spain Tops England (1-0) to Win 1st Ever Women’s World Cup

🎾 A U.S. Open Star is Born

Teen Phenom Coco Gauff Wins 1st Major

⛳️ Another Wild Ryder Cup

Europe Holds Off USA for Ryder Cup in Rome (16.5-11.5)

🏎️ The Undeniable Formula 1 Champion

Max Verstappen Captures 3-Peat as F1 Champ

🏀 A Repeat for Vegas in the WNBA Finals

Aces Oust Liberty to Win Back-to-Back WNBA ‘Ships

🏅 Another Gold Rush for Gym’s Biggest Star

Simone Biles Wins 4 Gold Medals at World Championships

⚾️ A Southwest Fall Classic Few Expected

Texas Rangers Roll Arizona Diamondbacks for 1st World Series Crown

⚽️ The 1st-Time NWSL Champions

Gotham FC Take Out OL Reign (2-1) for 1st NWSL Title

🏁 The NASCAR Cup Series Showdown

Ryan Blaney Wins 2023 NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs

⚽️ The MLS Cup Final of Magic

Columbus Crew Top LAFC (2-1) to Earn 3rd MLS Cup

  HIGHLIGHTS   🎥

Top-5 Most Memorable Moments

Image via Giphy

Highlights & Videos of Historic Record-Setting Performances

#1 LeBron James Breaks NBA’s All-Time Scoring Record 🏀

February 8, 2023

#2 Ronald Acuna Jr. Notches MLB’s 1st 40-HR 70-SB Season ⚾️

September 27, 2023

#3 Max Verstappen Shatters F1 Single-Season Wins Record (19) 🏎️

November 26, 2023

#4 16-Seed Fairleigh Dickinson Upsets #1 Purdue 🏀

March 17, 2023

#5 Boston Bruins Break NHL's Single-Season Wins Records 🏒

April 9, 2023

🚨 Bonus

Michael Block’s Hole-in-One at the PGA Championship

May 21, 2023

  NEWS   📰

The 23 Biggest Storylines

Image via Giphy

Storylines, Signings, Trades, Scandals, Remembrances, Retirements & More

January 2023

Damar Hamlin’s Cardiac Arrest & Recovery

The Passing of NHL Hall of Famer Bobby Hull

February 2023

Tom Brady’s Official Retirement From Football

March 2023

Nets Trade Kevin Durant to Suns

April 2023

Packers Trade Aaron Rodgers to Jets

Wrexham AFC Promoted After 15-Year Absence

May 2023

Blackhawks Win Draft Lottery for Connor Bedard

Spurs Win Draft Lottery for Victor Wembanyama

June 2023

The PGA-LIV Golf Merger Announcement

Ja Morant Suspended 25 Games

July 2023

Lionel Messi Signs With MLS Club Inter Miami

Bronny James Suffers Cardiac Arrest at USC Practice

August 2023

Megan Rapinoe & Julie Ertz Retire After USWNT Loss

September 2023

Deion Sanders Revitalizes Colorado Football

Blazers Trade Damian Lillard to Bucks

October 2023

The Passing of Pro Football Hall of Famer Dick Butkus

Travis Kelce & Taylor Swift Get Together

November 2023

The Passing of Legendary Indiana Coach Bob Knight

The Michigan Football Sign-Stealing Scandal

December 2023

LSU’s Jayden Daniels Wins the Heisman Trophy

Florida State Snubbed From CFB Playoff

Shohei Ohtani Signs $700 Million Deal With Dodgers

Draymond Green Suspended Indefinitely by NBA

  THE TEAM  

Writer & Editor: Jeff Yoder

Product Manager: Matthew Cahill

Lead Designer: Joe Stella

Assistant Writer: Marissa Kasch

Social Media: Aaron Yorke

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