1937 in sports

1937 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

Alpine skiing[edit]

FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 7th FIS Alpine World Ski Championships are held at Chamonix, France. The events are a downhill, a slalom and a combined race in both the men's and women's categories. The winners are:

Men's Downhill – Emile Allais (France)
Men's Slalom – Emile Allais (France)
Men's Combined – Emile Allais (France)
Women's Downhill – Christl Cranz (Germany)
Women's Slalom – Christl Cranz (Germany)
Women's Combined – Christl Cranz (Germany)

American football[edit]

NFL Championship – the Washington Redskins won 28–21 over the Chicago Bears at Wrigley Field.
First Cotton Bowl Classic is played in Dallas.
Pittsburgh Panthers – college football national championship
The Cleveland Rams join the National Football League.

Association football[edit]

England

First Division – Manchester City win the 1936–37 title.
FA Cup – Sunderland beat Preston North End 3–1.

Spain

La Liga – not contested due to the Spanish Civil War

Germany

German football championship won by Schalke 04

Italy

Serie A won by Bologna

Portugal

Primeira Liga won by S.L. Benfica

France

French Division 1 won by Olympique de Marseille

Sweden

Allsvenskan 1936/1937: AIK

Australian rules football[edit]

Victorian Football League
- 25 September – Geelong wins the 41st VFL Premiership, defeating Collingwood 18.14 (122) to 12.18 (90) in the 1937 VFL Grand Final
- Brownlow Medal awarded to Dick Reynolds (Essendon)
South Australian National Football League
- 2 October – Port Adelaide 13.16 (94) defeat South Adelaide 10.10 (70) to win their second consecutive SANFL premiership.
- Magarey Medal won by Harold Hawke (North Adelaide)
Western Australian National Football League
- 9 October – East Fremantle 14.13 (97) defeat Claremont 13.9 (87) to win their eighteenth premiership.
- Sandover Medal won by "Scranno" Jenkins (South Fremantle).

Baseball[edit]

World Series – New York Yankees defeat New York Giants, 4–1.
Hall of Fame election – Continuing toward the goal of 10 initial inductees from the 20th century, voters select Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker and Cy Young. A special committee selects managers Connie Mack and John McGraw, former league presidents Morgan Bulkeley and Ban Johnson, and pioneer shortstop/promoter George Wright. Selections of nineteenth-century players are postponed.
Aguilas Cibaenas, a club of Dominican Republic, officially founded in Santiago de los Caballeros on January 28.^{[citation needed]}

Basketball[edit]

Events

Major professional basketball returns with the formation of the National Basketball League.
Eurobasket 1937 – Lithuania win the second European basketball championship.
The fifth South American Basketball Championship in Valparaíso and Santiago is won by Chile.
The first NAIA Division I men's basketball tournament played in Kansas City.

Boxing[edit]

Events

22 June – Joe Louis defeats James J. Braddock at Chicago by an eighth-round knockout to win the World Heavyweight Championship.
30 August – in his first title defence, Louis defeats Tommy Farr at Bronx on a fifteen-round decision

Lineal world champions^[1]

World Heavyweight Championship – James J. Braddock → Joe Louis
World Light Heavyweight Championship – John Henry Lewis
World Middleweight Championship – vacant
World Welterweight Championship – Barney Ross
World Lightweight Championship – Lou Ambers
World Featherweight Championship – vacant → Henry Armstrong
World Bantamweight Championship – Sixto Escobar → Harry Jeffra
World Flyweight Championship – vacant → Benny Lynch

Cricket[edit]

Events

England tours Australia, losing the five-Test series two games to three, despite winning the first two games.

England

County Championship – Yorkshire
Minor Counties Championship – Lancashire Second Eleven
Most runs – Wally Hammond 3,252 @ 65.04 (HS 217)
Most wickets – Tom Goddard 248 @ 16.76 (BB 10–113)
New Zealand play a three-test series against England, losing the series one Test to nil with two draws.
Wisden Cricketers of the Year – Tom Goddard, Joe Hardstaff, Jr., Leonard Hutton, Jim Parks, Sr., Eddie Paynter

Australia

Sheffield Shield – Victoria
Most runs – Don Bradman 1,552 @ 86.22 (HS 270)
Most wickets
- Chuck Fleetwood-Smith 53 @ 20.24 (BB 8–79)
- Frank Ward 53 @ 28.41 (BB 7–127)

India

Ranji Trophy – Nawanagar beat Bengal by 256 runs
Bombay Pentangular – Muslims

New Zealand

Plunket Shield – Auckland

South Africa

Currie Cup – not contested

West Indies

Inter-Colonial Tournament – Trinidad

Cycling[edit]

Tour de France

Roger Lapébie wins the Tour de France.^[2]

Giro d'Italia

Gino Bartali of Legnano wins the 25th Giro d'Italia

Field hockey[edit]

July 14 – foundation of HC Den Bosch, a Dutch club based in 's-Hertogenbosch

Figure skating[edit]

World Figure Skating Championships –
- Men's champion: Felix Kaspar, Austria
- Ladies’ champion: Megan Taylor, Great Britain
- Pair skating champion: Maxi Herber & Ernst Baier, Germany

Golf[edit]

Men's professional

Men's amateur

British Amateur – Robert Sweeny Jr.
U.S. Amateur – Johnny Goodman

Women's professional

Women's Western Open – Helen Hicks
Titleholders Championship – Patty Berg

Horse racing[edit]

Steeplechases

Cheltenham Gold Cup – not held due to flooding of Cheltenham Racecourse
Grand National – Royal Mail

Hurdle races

Champion Hurdle – Free Fare

Flat races

Australia – Melbourne Cup won by The Trump
Canada – King's Plate won by Goldlure
France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Corrida
Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Phideas
English Triple Crown Races:
1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Le Ksar
2. The Derby – Mid-day Sun^[3]
3. St. Leger Stakes – Chulmleigh
United States Triple Crown Races:
1. Kentucky Derby – War Admiral
2. Preakness Stakes – War Admiral
3. Belmont Stakes – War Admiral

Ice hockey[edit]

April 15 – The Detroit Red Wings defeat the New York Rangers 3–0 to win the 1937 Stanley Cup Finals
April 17 – The Winnipeg Monarchs defeat the Copper Cliff Redmen 7–0 to win the 1937 Memorial Cup