Category: Baseball

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The new year is already in full swing, with the month of January having come to a close. 

It’s been an eventful month to say the least, with a few teams winning championships in some sports and others making playoff runs elsewhere. But what were the absolute biggest storylines in sports over the past month?

We dove into what’s transpired in college football, the NFL, college basketball, the NBA, MLB, and soccer in January and gave you the biggest headlines to follow.

Let’s take a look:

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10 biggest storylines in sports in January 

10. Ichiro Suzuki and C.C. Sabathia headline baseball Hall of Fame class

Ichiro Suzuki became the first player from Japan to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as part of the 2025 class, and was just one vote shy of being a unanimous selection. Suzuki came to Major League Baseball from Japan as a 27-year-old in 2001 and joined Fred Lynn in 1975 as the only players to win AL Rookie of the Year and AL MVP in the same season. Falling just short of the unanimous vote, Mariano Rivera remains the only player to be unanimously selected for induction in Cooperstown.

C.C. Sabathia received 86.6% of the vote in his first year on the ballot. He was a six-time All-Star, won the 2007 AL Cy Young Award and a World Series title in 2009. He went 251-161 with a 3.74 ERA and 3,093 strikeouts, third among left-handers behind Randy Johnson and Steve Carlton, during 19 seasons with Cleveland (2001-08), the Milwaukee Brewers (2008) and New York Yankees (2009-19).

9. Manchester City and PSG avoid elimination in new Champions League format

There were several questions about how the new UEFA Champions League format would pan out, with 36 teams battling to make the knockout stages. Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain struggled in the league phase, recording eight points and 10 points respectively and tinkering on the brink of elimination. But on the final matchday, both teams pulled out convincing victories to remain in the competition.

Pep Guardiola led City to a 3-1 victory over Club Brugge, despite going down 1-0 early in the match. The four-time defending English Premier League champions went on to score three unanswered goals. As for the French powerhouse, Ousmane Dembélé netted a hat trick in an easy 4-1 win over Stuttgart to secure them a spot in the knockout phase. Manager Luis Enrique engineered quite a turnaround over the last few months, leading them to three victories with 11 goals scored in that span. So, while some of the biggest clubs in the world were in danger of missing the cut in the new format, the final field still resulted in very familiar faces.  

8. Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey continue to dominate

There was a lot of hype surrounding these three freshman heading into the college basketball season, and so far they’ve absolutely lived up to it.

Cooper Flagg, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey have each all but guaranteed themselves a top five draft spot in the 2025 NBA Draft. January has been especially kind to Flagg and Bailey, who rank third and sixth in the country respectively in scoring for the month — with the Duke product putting up 25.4 points per game and the Rutgers big man putting up 24.3. While Bailey’s January hasn’t been quite as prolific, he’s still averaging 18.6 points per game with 4.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per outing.

Below are some nuggets that highlight just how incredible the true freshman have been this year:

• Flagg averaged 25.4 points per game on 57.9% shooting in January; the only other Division-I freshman in the last 15 years to average 25 points on that high of a shooting percentage in any month with five-plus games is Zion Williamson, who did it in January and March 2019.
• Flagg came a single assist shy of averaging 25-5-5 in January; he would have had the highest field goal percentage by any Division-I player averaging 25-5-5 in any month over that same span.
• Flagg had 42 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds against Notre Dame on 11-of-14 shooting (78.6%) and 16-of-17 from the free throw line (94.1%) on Jan. 11; his shooting percentage in this game was the highest of any Division-I player with at least 40 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds in a game this century.
• Harper joined De’Aaron Fox as the only Division-I freshmen over the last 15 years with a 35-point game and a triple-double in the same season.
• Harper is the first Division-I freshman to score 35+ points in consecutive games over the last 15 seasons.
• Harper had 37 points against No. 9 Alabama, the most by a freshman vs an AP Top-10 opponent since Cade Cunningham had 40 at Oklahoma in February 2021.
• Bailey had 37 points against Northwestern on Jan. 29, two points shy of tying the Rutgers single-game freshman record.
• Bailey and Harper are the second pair of freshman teammates over the last 15 years to each post 35-point games in the same season; they joined Kentucky’s De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk, who did it in 2016-17.

7. Miami lands Carson Beck for $4M in transfer portal

Former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck announced that he’d be returning to school for a sixth season, after committing to play for Miami (Fla.) in 2025 despite recently declaring for the NFL Draft. Beck is reportedly set to receive a little over $4 million to transfer, roughly double the $1.6 million Heisman Trophy finalist Cam Ward earned through Miami’s collective, according to FOX Sports’ Bruce Feldman. The senior signal-caller spent five seasons at Georgia, serving as a backup to Stetson Bennett on the school’s 2021 and 2022 title teams before spending the past two as the Bulldogs’ starter.

Beck completed 68% of his passes for 7,912 yards, 58 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in his college career. He appeared in 39 games for Georgia, 27 of them in the past two seasons, leading them to a combined 24-3 record. The Hurricanes will look to replicate the success they had with Ward under Beck’s command, coming off a 10-3 record. 

6. Jimmy Butler wants out in Miami

The saga of Jimmy Butler wanting to leave the Miami Heat seems never-ending, as signs of disagreement first came to light when the two parties failed to reach an extension in June of 2024 ahead of the season. On January 2nd of this year, Butler stated, “I want to see me getting my joy back playing basketball. Wherever that may be, we’ll find out here pretty soon.”

Over the next three weeks, Butler reiterated his desire to be traded multiple times to the front office, and has been suspended by the Heat on several different occasions in that span due to a “disregard of team rules.” He is currently suspended indefinitely, and Miami is still searching for the right trade partner to unload the six-time All-Star.

5. Saquon Barkley’s remarkable season lands Philly back in Super Bowl

It’s not often that a player gets to make the Super Bowl in their first season with a new team, but Saquon Barkley did just that in his first campaign with Philly. Highlighted by leading the league with 2,005 regular-season rushing yards, Barkley has been the driving force of a Philadelphia running game that ranked second in the league (179.3 rushing yards per game) and was strong enough to catapult the Eagles to Super Bowl LIX. His postseason run has been absolutely electric, with 442 rushing yards— the second-most by a player in a single playoff run before reaching the Super Bowl.

Barkley also became the sixth player in NFL history to have 120 scrimmage yards and three rushing scores in a conference championship game, joining Adrian Peterson, Emmitt Smith, LeGarrette Blount, Raheem Mostert, and Thurman Thomas. And to cap it off, Barkley has been the most dangerous big play threat in the postseason— recording three rushing touchdowns of 60+ yards in the 2024-25 playoffs. He is the first player in NFL history with three rushing scores of 60+ yards in a playoff career, let alone a single postseason! Entering the Super Bowl, he is just 30 rush yards shy of breaking the single-season record held by Terrell Davis (including the playoffs), and three scrimmage yards shy of breaking that record as well (also held by Davis). 

4. Roki Sasaki signs with Dodgers

Roki Sasaki, a 23-year-old right-hander whose fastball tops 100 mph, announced that would join fellow Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a move many baseball executives had long expected. The San Diego Padres and Toronto Blue Jays were said to be the other finalists still in pursuit of Sasaki. The Dodgers are planning to use a six-man rotation, which could ease his transition to Major League Baseball, as Los Angeles attempts to become the first repeat champion since the New York Yankees from 1998 to 2000. Sasaki was 10-5 with a 2.35 ERA in 18 games last year, striking out 129 hitters in 111 innings during a season limited by shoulder inflammation. He went 7-4 with a 1.78 ERA in 15 starts in 2023, when he had an oblique injury. He has a 29-15 career record with a 2.10 ERA over four seasons with the Marines and pitched a perfect game against Orix in April 2022.

3. Ohio State wins first 12-team CFP

Ohio State and Notre Dame made history even before kickoff of the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship. The Buckeyes and Fighting Irish were the first two teams to reach the inaugural 12-team playoff title game. Ohio State built a 31-7 lead in the third quarter before Notre Dame came charging back. The Buckeyes held on for the 34-23 win, thanks in part to a 56-yard completion from quarterback Will Howard to freshman sensation Jeremiah Smith late in the fourth quarter. The win gave Ohio State head coach Ryan Day his first national title in his second appearance in a championship game. It’s also the first national championship for the Buckeyes since the 2014 season.

Smith broke the Big Ten single-season record for receiving yards by a freshman with 1,315, passing Purdue’s Rondale Moore (1,258 in 2018), while Quinshon Judkins is the sixth player in the CFP era to have three scrimmage touchdowns in the national championship, joining Ezekiel Elliott, Travis Etienne Jr., Najee Harris, Derrick Henry and DeVonta Smith. The Buckeyes roster was truly a special one, boasting four 1,000-yard performers— the first time that’s happened in a single season in Buckeye history (Jeremiah Smith, Emeka Egbuka, TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins).

Ohio State finished the year with five wins vs. AP top-five opponents this season, not only the most since the FBS/FCS split in 1978, but also the most in the AP poll era (since 1936)— with four of its five wins came in the CFP.

2. Jayden Daniels’ historic playoff run

Jayden Daniels was absolutely stellar in the month of January, leading the Commanders to the NFC Championship before ultimately falling to the Eagles. It was Washington’s first NFC title game appearance since the 1991 season, the same year in which they won the Super Bowl.

In three playoff games, the former Heisman winner recorded 822 pass yards, five pass touchdowns, 135 rush yards, and a rushing touchdown— all the highest marks by a rookie quarterback in a playoff run ever. While his January was something to remember, below we’ve listed out all the records he broke throughout the season just to emphasize how unprecedented his season was:

Jayden Daniels Rookie QB Records Broken 2024 Season, Including Playoffs

• 1st to lead team in rush yards in regular season and make playoffs
• 1st to throw 2+ pass TD in road playoff win (Tampa Bay)
• 1st to lead team in pass and rush yds in playoff win (Tampa Bay)
• 1st to defeat No. 1 scoring offense in playoffs (Detroit)
• 1st to defeat multiple top five scoring offenses in playoffs (Tampa and Detroit)
• 1st to defeat multiple No. 1 overall drafted QBs in playoffs (Baker Mayfield and Jared Goff)
• 1st to have 300+ offensive yards in multiple playoffs games
• 1st to have 100+ passer rating in multiple playoff games
• 1st to win multiple playoff games without a top three scoring
• Most offensive yards in rookie season
• Most offensive touchdowns in rookie season
• Most pass yards in a rookie postseason
• Most pass touchdowns in a rookie postseason

1. Chiefs meet Eagles in Super Bowl rematch; K.C. looking to record first three-peat

Could we have asked for a better Super Bowl? A rematch of a game that ended 38-35 just a few years ago, with Patrick Mahomes & Co. looking to make history— going up against arguably the most talented team in the league in the Eagles.

No team has ever won three Super Bowls in a row, with the Packers having come the closest— winning the 1965 NFL Championship before winning Super Bowls I and II. The Chiefs are the first team ever to make five Super Bowls in a six-year span, and also the fourth team in league history to reach three consecutive Super Bowls.

The AFC title game was a thriller, with Kansas City coming out on top 32-19. It was their 17th straight win in a one-possession game, the longest such winning streak in NFL history when including the playoffs. Mahomes joins Tom Brady (10) and John Elway (five) as the only starting quarterbacks in NFL history to reach the Super Bowl five times, and he’ll be the only one to start five Super Bowls before age 30.

As for Philly, they’re looking for their first title since the 2017 season— having taken down Brady’s Patriots in a 41-33 barn-burner. Their NFC title game performance was beyond dominant, scoring 55 points and rushing for seven touchdowns— both NFL conference championship records. The two teams have a combined 10 All-Pro selections, which should make this an incredible game.

One fact we’ll leave you with: Andy Reid vs Nick Sirianni will be the fifth head coach rematch in a Super Bowl all-time. The head coach that won the first meeting also won the second meeting in all of the previous four instances. Can the Birds break the curse? 

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Deesha Thosar

MLB Writer

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Pete Alonso, a free agent for the first time in his career, is entitled to continue exploring the market to see what else is out there. He earned that right with his six years of MLB service time. But by now, he’s also likely been humbled by the lukewarm interest in his future services. He might not agree with the general assessment of his value, but as other free-agent first basemen have flown off the board, Alonso no longer has the upper hand or the luxury of competing for top dollar.

With his options dwindling, it’s long past time for Alonso to decide what is most important: his legacy or his contract. 

The former involves breaking New York Mets records as a beloved homegrown slugger. The latter could mean making more money elsewhere, but perhaps at the expense of having a more memorable career.

Alonso has explored the market for three months, and we still have no evidence to suggest that any team has made him an offer that even sniffs Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s salary of $28.5 million in 2025, which is currently the highest average annual value for a first baseman in Major League Baseball. If Alonso and his agent Scott Boras thought they would set a new ceiling for first basemen, or even come close, they surely know by now that that won’t be the case. Really, they should have known that by August or September.

The Polar Bear picked a bad time to have a dull regular season. Prior to his series-winning home run versus Milwaukee, Alonso was stumbling into free agency by whiffing with the pressure dialed up. He batted just .191 in high-leverage situations, continuing a steady drop-off in such at-bats in recent seasons. He sported a career-best 1.099 OPS with runners in scoring position in 2022. That figure fell to a still-elite .918 OPS in 2023, followed by a career-worst .761 mark in 2024. For a slugger who doesn’t do much besides hit home runs, his career-high 42.1% ground-ball rate in 2024 was also an unfortunate uptick. He was streaky and inconsistent all season, as opposing pitchers grew increasingly successful with their adjustments against him.

That being said, Alonso is still a 40-home run hitter, and he can still change the game with one swing, like when he propelled the Mets to the NLDS with a three-run shot off star closer Devin Williams and the Brewers. His 226 home runs since 2019 are second-most in baseball in that span, just six behind Aaron Judge‘s total. And for all the talk about how his body might hold up long-term, Alonso still posts every day. After playing all 162 games last year, Alonso ranks third among all first basemen in games played, behind only Freddie Freeman and Matt Olson, since his 2019 rookie season.

So, how does Alonso’s value on the field fit in with the highest-paid first basemen in baseball?

After Guerrero, Freeman earns the second-most per year among MLB first basemen with a 2025 salary of $27 million, followed by Bryce Harper ($25.3 million AAV), who was playing right field when he signed his $330 million extension with the Phillies, and Olson ($21 million AAV), according to Spotrac. Alonso was always expected to earn more than Olson, and perhaps come close to Harper, in terms of AAV. But matching Freeman’s annual salary, or even surpassing it, seemed like a long shot before Alonso’s pedestrian 2024 regular season. After it, well, he’s seeing for himself how much he is (and isn’t) worth on the open market.

Two years ago, Alonso reportedly rejected then-GM Billy Eppler’s seven-year, $158 million extension offer. In retrospect, that decision was a massive miscalculation on Alonso’s part. This offseason, with president of baseball operations David Stearns calling the shots, the Mets have reportedly offered somewhere around three years, $70 million, with potential opt-outs built into the contract.

The recent underwhelming contract structures must be abhorrent to Boras. But while Alonso can listen to his camp, he can also pick up the phone and speak to Mets ownership himself. That’s not unprecedented, as Judge finalized his contract with the Yankees by speaking to Hal Steinbrenner directly and ending his free agency. Currently, fellow Boras client Alex Bregman remains unsigned, and reports indicate José Altuve has been involved in negotiations, trying his best to bring Bregman back to the Astros while possibly circumventing Boras in the process. Both Alonso and Bregman don’t have much leverage, and Boras doesn’t seem to excel in those situations.

Steve Cohen made it clear this past weekend while speaking at the Mets’ FanFest event that he is unhappy with the Alonso negotiations. His comments, refreshingly transparent and seemingly off the cuff, showed contempt towards Boras, and sent a message to Alonso with nobody else interfering.

“Personally, this has been an exhausting conversation and negotiation,” Cohen said. “I mean, Soto was tough. This is worse. I don’t like the structures that are being presented back to us. I think it’s highly asymmetric against us and I feel strongly about it.

“I will never say no. There’s always a possibility. But the reality is, we’re moving forward. We continue to bring in players. As we continue to bring in players, it’s harder to fit Pete in. I’m being brutally honest. I don’t like the negotiations. I don’t like what’s been presented to us. Maybe that changes. And certainly, I’ll always stay flexible. If it stays this way, I think we’re going to have to get used to the fact that we may have to go forward with the existing players we have.”

What Cohen shrewdly withheld was how much the Mets need Alonso. That’s why he left the door open.

The Mets arguably won the offseason when they signed Juan Soto to a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million contract in December, but the best version of their roster includes building strength around him. Infielder Mark Vientos showed a ton of promise last year, belting 27 home runs with a .837 OPS after being left off the Opening Day roster in the spring. But he’s still young, and lacks the experience to be counted on consistently.

Soto needs protection in the Mets lineup, and we saw first-hand last season how much he benefits from batting in front of a talented slugger. Soto posted a career-high 179 OPS+ while batting ahead of Judge, despite his walk rate being at its lowest since 2019. Similarly, the Mets want Soto swinging, and Alonso’s presence in the lineup would force pitchers to throw more strikes to their best hitter. Soto, of course, propelled the Yankees to the World Series after several Judge-only lineups failed to break through; the Mets would love for their new superstar to do the same for them.

So, all that booing you heard from the Citi Field crowd at FanFest because Alonso remains unsigned came from a place of love. That’s how New York fan bases roll. People are upset that their team and one of its best players can’t agree to a deal, especially when he’s homegrown and beloved around Queens. It’s an intangible quality that other interested teams don’t possess. Cohen, a fan-oriented owner since the beginning of his reign, has a track record now that illustrates the lengths to which he’ll go to make the fan base happy. He seems to understand that signing Alonso would uplift the organization and its goals, but he also wants a fair shake.

Alonso might have sour grapes with Cohen and the Mets for offering a contract that’s less than he expected or believed he deserved. So, maybe he’ll continue holding out. If he doesn’t sign with a team in the next couple of weeks, he could miss the start of spring training. It’s understandable if Alonso is upset with teams, particularly the Mets, for failing to recognize and appreciate his value the way he does.

But at this point, he has to move on and accept that his market is what it is, and he can’t change it this winter. It’s disappointing that he played his entire career looking forward to reaching this point, to enter free agency and finally earn what he believes he deserves, only to be underwhelmed by the negotiations. The only thing he can control now is playing better in 2025 in hopes of resetting his market. Alonso is 27 home runs away from surpassing Daryl Strawberry as the Mets’ all-time leader. He’s one signing away from cementing himself as a franchise legend versus an unpopular mercenary. The choice is his, but the ending to this saga always seemed like it was painted in orange and blue.

It’s time for Alonso to accept that his destiny is calling him back to Queens.

Deesha Thosar is an MLB reporter for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.

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For the first time in its history, MLB The Show will have multiple players on its cover.

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes, Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz and Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson will appear on the cover of MLB The Show 25, it was announced Tuesday. 

The decision to name Skenes, De La Cruz and Henderson the cover athletes follows a recent trend by San Diego Studio, the game’s developer, to place rising stars on the cover of MLB The Show. Its decision to focus on young stars in this year’s edition of the game was intentional.

“Historically, we’ve chosen a single cover athlete for MLB The Show, someone who is at the pinnacle of the sport,” The Show global marketing group manager Todd Liss told MLB.com. “However, with the unprecedented young talent coming into the league, we wanted to represent the changing current climate of baseball and showcase it on our cover. These three players are changing what’s possible in baseball, and we’re changing how many players can be on the cover of The Show.”

Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vlad Guerrero Jr. was on the cover of last season’s game while then Miami Marlins star Jazz Chisholm appeared on MLB The Show 23, with each making their cover debut relatively early in their careers. 

Skenes, De La Cruz and Henderson seem like logical successors to be cover athletes based on the starts of their careers. Skenes lived up to the hype as one of the top pitching prospects in recent memory after getting called up in May 2024. The 22-year-old won National League Rookie of the Year and finished third in NL Cy Young voting after going 11-3 with a 1.96 ERA, 170 strikeouts and a 0.947 WHIP.

De La Cruz has arguably become one of the league’s most electrifying players in recent memory. He became the fifth player since 1901 to have at least 20 home runs and 60 stolen bases in a single season last year, recording 25 homers to go with his MLB-high 67 stolen bases. That came after he recorded 13 homers, seven triples and 35 stolen bases in 98 games as a rookie in 2023.

Finally, Henderson has been one of the keys to the Orioles’ back-to-back playoff appearances over the last two years. The 23-year-old was one of the best hitters in the American League last season, hitting .281 with 37 homers, 92 RBIs and a .893 OPS. He also had 21 stolen bases after winning AL Rookie of the Year in 2023. 

Unlike its NFL counterpart, there hasn’t been much of a curse associated with being on the cover of MLB The Show. Last season, Guerrero actually had a bounceback year after appearing on the cover, hitting .323 with 30 homers and a .940 OPS. Chisholm missed some time due to injury in 2023, but he still hit a career-high 19 homers that year. Shohei Ohtani also had another stellar two-way season after appearing on the cover in 2022, finishing second in AL MVP voting.

MLB The Show 25 will mark the 20th edition of the game. Former Boston Red Sox star and Hall of Famer David Ortiz appeared on the first cover of the game in 2006, hitting a career-high 54 homers that season. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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The MLB regular season is scheduled to start in Tokyo, Japan on March 18, with MLB’s traditional Opening Day scheduled for Thursday, March 27. This is the earliest Opening Day in MLB history. Check out the complete details on how to watch this year’s Opening Day games, including teams, times and TV channels — all times Eastern.

When does the 2025 MLB season start?

The 2025 MLB season is scheduled to begin overseas with a two-game series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs in Tokyo, Japan. The Dodgers and Cubs will play on Tuesday, March 18 and Wednesday, March 19. This is the sixth time that a MLB season opener has taken place in Tokyo, Japan. 

2025 MLB Opening Day Schedule

A week after the games in Japan, MLB Opening Day is slated for Thursday, March 27, 2025. Below are the matchups scheduled for that day:

How to watch 2025 MLB Opening Day games

Where can I watch MLB Opening Day games? What channel will they be on?

Most Opening Day games will be played on the regional sports networks affiliated with each baseball club. MLB’s Opening Night game will be broadcast on ESPN. For each specific channel, check out our MLB Schedule.

How can I stream MLB’s Opening Day games or watch them without cable?

Streaming services that carry ESPN and RSNs can be used to stream the games. You can also stream MLB games on MLB.TV with local blackout restrictions.

Which MLB teams play on Opening Day?

28 of the 30 MLB clubs will be in action on Opening Day. The Colorado Rockies and Tampa Bay Rays will start their season on March 28, after their game was moved in order to provide more time to prepare George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, FL, the field that will serve as the Rays’ home park for the 2025 season. 

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Sometimes, greatness runs in the family.

Several players in sports history have followed in their father’s footsteps to become stars of their own. In fact, some of the greatest players in major North American sports are sons of former professional athletes. 

Not many father-son duos get the opportunity to play together, though — like what LeBron and Bronny James did with the Los Angeles Lakers at the start of the 2024-25 season.

That said, here are the 10 best father-son duos in sports history.

The elder Long had an unusual path to a Hall of Fame career, playing at Villanova right before its college football program briefly shut down. But as he emerged as a standout there, the Raiders selected him in the second round of the 1981 NFL Draft. He went on to become one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL in the 1980s, making eight Pro Bowls and helping the Raiders win Super Bowl XVIII. 

Long’s eldest son, Chris, followed in his footsteps. The second overall pick in 2008, Chris Long had several solid seasons with the Rams before winning a Super Bowl title with the Patriots in 2016 and the Eagles a year later. Long, who finished his career with 70 sacks, was one of the few players in NFL history to win back-to-back Super Bowls with different teams. He and his father also became the first father-son duo to ever win a Super Bowl. 

Kyle Long, meanwhile, played on the other side of the ball. The three-time Pro Bowl guard was a first-round pick of the Bears, and he spent most of his career in Chicago, losing to the Eagles (and his brother) in the memorable “Double Doink” playoff game. He joined the Chiefs for a season in 2021 after a one-year retirement but did not appear in any games with them due to injury. 

9. Cecil Fielder and Prince Fielder

A pair of Fielders are among the top power–hitting father-son duos in MLB history. Cecil Fielder was an All-Star for the Tigers in the early 1990s after stints with the Blue Jays and in Japan, leading the American League in homers in back-to-back seasons. He also became the first AL player since Babe Ruth to lead the league in RBIs for three straight seasons. He later won a World Series with the Yankees, finishing his career with 319 homers and three All-Star nods.

The younger Fielder was every bit the slugger that his father was. He quickly emerged as one of the game’s top sluggers when he was with the Brewers in the mid-to-late 2000s, hitting 50 homers in his third season. He later joined the Tigers, nearly helping them win a World Series in 2012. A six-time All-Star, Fielder’s 50-homer season made the Fielders the first father-son duo to record at least 40 homers in a season. He also hit the same number of homers as his father did in his career. 

Decades before Klay Thompson was a centerpiece of the Warriors‘ dynasty, his father was a key contributor to the Lakers’ dynasty in the 1980s. He helped Los Angeles win a pair of titles, averaging over 10 points per game off the bench in those championship seasons. Prior to that, Thompson was taken with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1978 NBA Draft by the Trail Blazers, enjoying eight solid years there before joining the Spurs in 1986.

Klay Thompson made up half of the “Splash Brothers” twosome that won four titles between 2014-22. The five-time All-Star averaged over 20 points per game in each of Golden State’s title-winning seasons, with the Warriors reaching the NBA Finals two more times during his tenure with the team. The Thompsons are one of five father-son duos to have ever won an NBA title.

The other half of the “Splash Brothers” was the son of an NBA standout, too. Dell Curry broke out as one of the first great 3-point shooters in the league, making 40.2% of his shots from deep over his 16-year career. He also won Sixth Man of the Year in 1994 and is second on the Hornets‘ all-time points leader list.

Of course, Steph Curry took his father’s 3-point prowess to a whole other level. The Warriors star revolutionized the game with his 3-point shooting, winning two MVPs (including the first unanimous one in league history) en route to guiding Golden State to four championships. Curry set the NBA’s all-time record for 3-pointers made in 2021, six months before he won his first Finals MVP. 

The Earnhardts are two of NASCAR‘s most iconic drivers. The elder Earnhardt participated in 676 Winston Cup races, winning 76 of them. Earnhardt’s career came to an end after he was involved in a fatal crash on the final lap of the 2001 Daytona 500. He was posthumously inducted into the NASCAR Hall of Fame inaugural class in 2010.

Earnhardt Jr. won 26 Cup Series races, including the Daytona 500 twice (2004, 2014). He had 260 top-10 finishes in Cup races in his career and was named to the NASCAR Hall of Fame in 2021.

5. Bobby Bonds and Barry Bonds

Before Barry Bonds reset the record books, his father also joined the record books in a unique way. Bobby Bonds, a three-time All-Star, was just the second player to hit 300 career home runs and steal 300 bases, recording 332 homers and 461 stolen bases.

Three decades after Bonds emerged as a young star with the Giants, his son added to his already Hall of Fame career in a big way during his time in the Bay Area. He won five of his seven NL MVPs during his 15 seasons with the Giants, including four in a row at the start of the century. Bonds broke a couple of home run records as well, hitting 73 homers for the most in a single season ever in 2001 and setting the all-time record for homers with 762.

The Guerreros have left their mark on Canadian baseball history. The elder Guerrero was a four-time All-Star with the Expos, finishing in the NL’s top 10 in homers four times during his eight seasons in Montreal. He added to his historic career in his first season with the Angels, hitting 39 homers in 2004 to win his first and only MVP. The nine-time All-Star became a Hall of Famer on the second ballot.

As for the younger Guerrero, he turned into one of MLB’s best power hitters in just a short time. He hit 48 homers in his third season in 2021, which marked his first of four straight All-Star nods. Guerrero Jr. is only 25 years old, so it’s possible this father-son duo could climb the list.

3. Bobby Hull and Brett Hull

The Hull family produced two of the greatest players in NHL history. Bobby Hull was arguably the best player in the history of the sport during his prime, leading the league in goals seven times and finishing second all-time in goals scored (610) at the time of his retirement. The two-time MVP winner also led the league in scoring three times.

The younger Hull might have been an even better player than his father. Brett Hull scored 741 goals in his career, the fifth-highest in league history. He also won Stanley Cups in 1999 with the Stars and in 2002 with the Red Wings. A nine-time All-Star, Brett Hull was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009, joining his father to become the Hall’s first father-son duo.

2. Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr.

Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. notably made history when they became the first father-son duo to play together in the majors. Before they appeared in 51 games together in the early 1990s, Griffey Sr. played a key role in the Reds‘ World Series triumphs in the 1970s. He was one of the best contact hitters in the game when they won it all in 1975 and was an All-Star a year later when the Reds claimed the World Series again. Griffey Sr. ended his career as a three-time All-Star.

The younger Griffey is known as one of the greatest players in MLB history. He was a 13-time All-Star and an MVP winner, leading the AL in homers four times. Junior, who mostly starred for the Mariners and Reds, also won 10 Gold Gloves in his career. He ranks seventh all-time with 630 career home runs, and he set a record at the time for the highest Hall of Fame voting share in 2016.

1. Archie Manning and Peyton Manning, Eli Manning

Most families would love to have one quarterback good enough to make the NFL. The Manning family not only had three (likely to be four soon), but all three also became top quarterbacks in the league.

Archie Manning was a two-time Pro Bowler over his 14-year NFL career, spending most of it with the Saints in their early seasons as a franchise. While the Saints never had great team success with Manning, he was widely viewed as one of the best passers of the 1970s.

Manning’s two quarterback sons wound up having even better careers than he did. Peyton Manning, the elder of the two, lived up to the hype as a generational prospect when the Colts selected him first overall in the 1998 NFL Draft. He won four MVPs during his time in Indianapolis and brought the Colts a Super Bowl title in 2006. Manning continued his all-time career with the Broncos in 2012, adding another MVP award and Super Bowl championship in the final four seasons of his career. He still holds several NFL records, including MVP wins, and was a first-ballot Hall of Famer in 2021.

Eli Manning could become a first-ballot Hall of Famer soon, too. The Giants‘ decision to trade up and nab him with the first overall pick in the 2004 NFL Draft paid dividends. While the youngest Manning didn’t have the individual prowess that his older brother had, he led the Giants to a great deal of success. He helped them pull off one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history in the 2007 season, giving the then-undefeated Patriots their first loss in dramatic fashion. Manning took down the Patriots in the Super Bowl again four years later, making him one of a handful of quarterbacks to start in two Super Bowl wins. 

Honorable mentions:

• Sandy Alomar, Roberto Alomar and Sandy Alomar Jr.
• Deion Sanders, Shedeur Sanders and Shilo Sanders
• Doc Rivers and Austin Rivers
• Joe Bryant and Kobe Bryant 
• Clay Matthews Jr., Clay Matthews III and Casey Matthews
• Ed McCaffrey and Christian McCaffrey
• Marvin Harrison and Marvin Harrison Jr.
• Peter Schmeichel and Kasper Schmeichel
• Tim Hardaway and Tim Hardaway Jr.
• Bill Walton and Luke Walton
• Bruce Matthews and Jake Matthews
• Richard Petty and Kyle Petty
• Calvin Hill and Grant Hill
• LeBron James and Bronny James

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Dale Earnhardt Jr.

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Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are one win away from making NFL history. 

The Chiefs clinched their ticket to Super Bowl LIX with their win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship Game, giving them the chance to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowl titles. 

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For perspective on the difficulty that comes with three-peating, nine NFL teams (eight franchises) have repeated as Super Bowl champions, but the first eight failed to make it back to the championship game the ensuing season, according to FOX Sports research. So, the Chiefs have already made history in that regard. 

But the two-time defending Super Bowl champions aren’t the only team with such an opportunity in front of them.

The UConn Huskies are the back-to-back men’s college basketball champions. UConn appears to be on track to make the NCAA Tournament again in 2025, but it hasn’t been as strong of a team as it was the last two seasons. Through January, the Huskies already had twice as many losses (six) as they did the year before, when they finished 37-3.

There have been a pair of other teams who’ve recently had a chance to three-peat but fell just short. The Las Vegas Aces lost in the semifinals of the 2024 WNBA playoffs after winning two straight titles. Georgia had the opportunity to three-peat in 2023. However, it was left out of the College Football Playoff that year after losing to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. 

With all that in mind, let’s take a look at some teams who have managed to pull it off.

Here are some of the teams that have most recently three-peated in their league across a plethora of sports — both professionally and collegiately — in reverse chronological order.

Right now, it’s Manchester City’s world, and the entire Premier League is just living in it. Winners of six of the last seven Premier League championships, Man City has been a runaway freight train, headlined by the attack of Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland.

College Softball: Oklahoma (2021-24)

The Sooners have lost just 15 games over the past four years and have shown no signs of letting up under coach Patty Gasso. Oklahoma has beaten Texas and Florida State twice apiece to win its titles.

The one they call Ronaldo helped Real Madrid three-peat in the mid-2010s, along with the likes of Karim Benzema and Alvaro Morata (for one season in the three-peat stretch). Ronaldo’s final season with Real Madrid came in the final season of the team’s three-peat.

Chiefs beat Bills, Is Kansas City the best version of themselves?

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The game of basketball has treated the UConn faithful well over the past decade. Losing a whopping five games over four years (151-5), the Huskies were the unstoppable force of women’s college basketball, boat-racing teams up and down the floor. Breanna Stewart, Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis and Morgan Tuck were part of what was arguably the golden age of UConn hoops.

Johnson drove laps around everyone in the latter half of the 2000s, winning 35 races from 2006-10 and six Cup Series championships in eight years. He ended his career with seven championships, tied with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt Jr. for the most in NASCAR history.

Phil Jackson retired following the 1998 season with the Chicago Bulls — until, of course, he became the head coach of the Lakers in 1999. Led by the star power of Shaquille O’Neal and an emerging superstar by the name of Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles won three straight titles, while Jackson actually claimed his sixth consecutive title as a coach, as he won in each of his final three seasons at the helm in Chicago with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen.

In what was the last true Yankees dynasty, the team won four titles in five years — with the wins in the three-peat coming in convincing fashion. Sweeping the San Diego Padres in 1998 and the Atlanta Braves in 1999 and then beating the New York Mets in the 2000 Subway Series, the likes of Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada and Andy Pettitte cemented their respective places in Yankees history.

Was there ever a doubt the Chiefs would beat the Bills?

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WNBA: Houston Comets (1997-2000)

The first four seasons of the WNBA were controlled by the Houston Comets, who won each of the first four league titles. As the Comets dominated the sport, Cynthia Cooper won two WNBA MVPs. Cooper and Tina Thompson each went on to have Hall of Fame careers, but the Comets disbanded as a franchise following the 2008 season.

The pride of Long Island won its first Stanley Cup in what was the Islanders’ eighth season in the sport. A run that featured Hall of Famers Bryan Trottier, Mike Bossy, Clark Gillies and goalkeeper Billy Smith saw the Islanders sweep the Stanley Cup in 1982 and 1983 and avoid a Game 7 in each of the four seasons. This run came directly after the Montreal Canadians also four-peated.

College Baseball: USC Trojans (1970-74)

The Trojans baseball program was a behemoth under manager Rod Dedeaux, winning five consecutive World Series thanks to the contributions of George Milke and Russ McQueen, among many others. To date, the five-peat remains an NCAA Baseball record, with two being the most consecutive titles by any other team.

Thought some of the aforementioned runs were impressive? Those don’t hold a candle to John Wooden’s UCLA teams of the late 1960s and early 1970s. A period that saw the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Walton and Curtis Rowe, among many others, put on the Bruins uniform saw UCLA win titles in nine of 10 seasons.

No NFL team has three-peated in the Super Bowl era (1966-present), but the Packers did three-peat, as they won the final NFL championship in 1965 and then the first two Super Bowls in 1966 and 1967. Near the end of Vince Lombardi’s reign as head coach, Bart Starr, Jim Taylor and Willie Davis helped lead Green Bay to three consecutive titles, including a pair of blowouts in Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II. The Packers also three-peated from 1929-31.

The Golden Gophers lost one game over their three-peat span (25-1) under head coach Bernie Bierman. Minnesota won two more titles under Bierman in 1940 and 1941. The head coach was ordered to report to the Marines during WWII, with him returning as Minnesota’s head coach in 1945.

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