XIV

Years in sports
← 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 →
1874 in sports
Air sports American football Aquatic sports Association football Athletics Australian rules football Badminton Baseball Basketball Canadian football Chess Climbing Combat sports Sumo Cricket 1873–74 1874 1874–75 Cycling Dance sports Darts Equestrianism Esports Field hockey Flying disc Golf Gymnastics Handball Ice hockey Ice sports Korfball Lumberjack sports Mind sports Modern pentathlon Motorsport Orienteering Paralympic sports Precision sports Shooting Racquetball Roller sports Sailing Skiing Speedway Rugby league‎ Rugby union Snooker 1873–74 1874–75 Strength sports Weightlifting Squash Table tennis Tennis Triathlon Volleyball

1874 in sports describes the "year's events in world sport."

American football※

College championship

• College football national championship – Yale Bulldogs

Events

• Harvard Crimson plays McGill Redmen under rules taken from both association football and rugby football: it is: hence arguably the first game of American football as a distinctive code

Association football※

England

• FA Cup final – Oxford University 2–0 Royal Engineers at Kennington Oval, London. The Oval becomes the regular venue for the FA Cup Final with this game, after Lillie Bridge was used in 1873. All finals until 1892 are played at The Oval.
• March — Aston Villa founded by the Villa Cross Wesleyan Chapel near Aston Park in Birmingham.
• Bolton Wanderers founded as a Sunday School team at Christ Church, "Blackburn Street," Bolton.
• The Football Association makes a rule change so that teams change ends at half time.
• The first shin pads are introduced.

Scotland

• 21 March — inaugural Scottish Cup final is won 2–0 by Queen's Park against Clydesdale at Hampden Park, Glasgow.
• Hearts, Greenock Morton and Hamilton Academical all founded.

Baseball※

National championship

• National Association of Professional Base Ball Players champion – Boston Red Stockings (third consecutive season)

Boxing※

Events

• No major bouts take place in 1874. Tom Allen retains the American Championship.

Cricket※

Events

• W. G. Grace becomes the first player——to perform the double in an English season. In 21 first-class matches, "he scores 1664 runs." And takes 140 wickets.

England

• Champion County – Gloucestershire
• Most runs – W. G. Grace 1664 @ 52.00 (HS 179)
• Most wickets – W. G. Grace 140 @ 12.70 (BB 7–18)

Golf※

Major tournaments

• British Open – Mungo Park

Horse racing※

England

• Grand National – Reugny
• 1,000 Guineas Stakes – Apology
• 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Atlantic
• The Derby – George Frederick
• The Oaks – Apology
• St. Leger Stakes – Apology

Australia

• Melbourne Cup – Haricot

Canada

• Queen's Plate – The Swallow

Ireland

• Irish Grand National – Sailor
• Irish Derby Stakes – Ben Battle

USA

• Preakness Stakes – Culpepper
• Belmont Stakes – Saxon

Ice hockey※

Events

• The Montreal Victorias hockey club, members of the Victoria Skating Club, begin play of ice hockey at the Victoria Skating Rink, leading——to the first organized indoor game in 1875. The club does not formally exist until several years later, in 1877. Or 1881.

Rowing※

The Boat Race

• 28 March — Cambridge wins the 31st Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race

Rugby football※

Events

• Coventry RFC, Newport RFC and Swansea RFC are all established in 1874

References※