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2026 Sporting Calendar: Full Month-by-Month Guide

Sports fans will be in their element in 2026, with the upcoming schedule packed with high-profile events.

The 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico is the headline act of a year which will undoubtedly generate plenty of memorable moments.

With that in mind, read on as we provide a comprehensive month-by-month guide to the sporting year ahead.

January

  • Jan 15 – Feb 1: Handball – EHF European Men’s Handball Championship (Denmark, Norway & Sweden)
  • Jan 16-18: Short track – ISU Short Track European Championships (Tilburg, Netherlands)
  • Jan 18 – Feb 1: Tennis – Australian Open (Melbourne, Australia)
  • Jan 23-25: Freestyle Skiing & Snowboard – Winter X Games (Aspen, US)
  • Jan 23 – Feb 6: Multi-sport – South Asian Games (Pakistan)
  • Jan 26 – Feb 5: Water Polo – European Aquatics Women’s Water Polo Championship (Funchal, Portugal)

The first Grand Slam tennis event of the year takes centre stage in January, with the 2026 Australian Open scheduled to be staged in Melbourne.

The Winter X Games also take place in the US, where the world’s top freestyle skiing and snowboard athletes will strive to impress ahead of Milano Cortina 2026.

February

  • Feb 1-5: Cycling Track – UEC Track Elite European Championships (Konya, Turkey)
  • Feb 5 – Mar 14: Rugby Union – Six Nations Championship) England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland & Wales)
  • Feb 6-22: Multi-sport – Olympic Winter Games (Milan & Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy)
  • Feb 7 – Mar 8: Cricket – ICC Men’s T20 World Cup (India & Sri Lanka)
  • Feb 8: American Football – Super Bowl LX (Santa Clara, US)
  • Feb 15: Basketball – NBA All-Star Game (North America)

The eyes of the sporting world will be on Italy as the 2026 Olympic Winter Games are staged in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Medals will be awarded in 116 events across eight sports and 16 different disciplines over 19 thrilling days of competition.

March

  • Mar 1: Athletics – Tokyo Marathon (Tokyo, Japan)
  • Mar 2-8: Bobsleigh & Skeleton – IBSF World Cup Final (Konigssee, Germany)
  • Mar 5-8: Speed Skating – ISU Speed Skating Allround & Sprint World Championships (Heerenveen, Netherlands)
  • Mar 5-17: Baseball – World Baseball Classic (Various)
  • Mar 6-15: Multi-sport – Paralympic Winter Games (Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy)
  • March 10-13: Horse Racing – Cheltenham Festival – (Cheltenham, UK)
  • Mar 14-22: Curling – World Women’s Curling Championship (Calgary, Canada)
  • Mar 20-22: Cross-Country Skiing – FIS Cross-Country World Cup Finals (Lake Placid, US)
  • Mar 20-22: Athletics – World Athletics Indoor Championships (Torun, Poland)
  • Mar 21: Cycling Road – Milan-San Remo (Italy)
  • Mar 21-25: Alpine Skiing – FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Finals (Lillehammer, Norway)
  • Mar 24-29: Figure Skating – ISU World Figure Skating Championships (Prague, Czechia)
  • Mar 28 – Apr 5: Curling – World Men’s Curling Championship (Ogden, US)

National Hunt racing dominates the landscape in March, with the prestigious Cheltenham Festival scheduled to take place in the United Kingdom.

The four-day meeting generates a significant surge in betting activity, both at the racecourse and across online sportsbooks.

April

  • Apr 5: Cycling Road – Tour of Flanders (Belgium)
  • Apr 5: Horse Racing – Grand National (Aintree, UK)
  • Apr 7-12: Badminton – European Badminton Championships (Huelva, Spain)
  • Apr 8-12: Trampoline – European Trampoline Championships (Portimao, Portugal)
  • Apr 9-12: Golf – Masters (Augusta, US)
  • Apr 12: Cycling Road – Paris-Roubaix (France)
  • Apr 16-19: Judo – European Judo Championships (Tbilisi, Georgia)
  • Apr 19-26: Weightlifting – EWF European Weightlifting Championships (Batumi, Georgia)
  • Apr 20: Athletics – Boston Marathon (Boston, US)
  • Apr 23-26: Golf – Chevron Championship (Houston, US)
  • Apr 26: Athletics – London Marathon (London, UK)
  • Apr 26: Cycling Road – Liege-Bastogne-Liege (Belgium)
  • Apr 28 – May 10: Table Tennis – ITTF World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals (London, UK)

Horse racing will have another moment in the spotlight in April when the Grand National Steeplechase is staged at Aintree Racecourse in Liverpool.

The Masters at Augusta National will also garner plenty of attention as Rory McIlroy bids to defend the Green Jacket he won in thrilling fashion last year.

May

  • May 2-3: Athletics – World Athletics Relays (Gaborone, Botswana)
  • May 3-10: Cycling Road – La Vuelta Femenina (Spain)
  • May 8-31: Cycling Road – Giro d’Italia (Bulgaria & Italy)
  • May 14-17: Golf – PGA Championship (Pennsylvania, US)
  • May 15-31: Ice Hockey – IIHF Men’s World Championship (Zurich & Fribourg, Switzerland)
  • May 23: Football – UEFA Women’s Champions League final (Oslo, Norway)
  • May 24 – June 7: Tennis – French Open (Paris, France)
  • May 27-31: Rhythmic Gymnastics – European Championships (Varna, Bulgaria)
  • May 30: Football – UEFA Men’s Champions League final (Budapest, Hungary)

The IIHF Men’s World Ice Hockey Championship in Switzerland will be an epic celebration of the best exponents of one of the toughest sports on the planet.

The UEFA Men’s Champions League final in Hungary rounds off what promises to be a truly thrilling month of sporting action.

June

  • Jun 1-7: Basketball 3×3 – FIBA 3×3 World Cup (Warsaw, Poland)
  • Jun 4-7: Golf – U.S. Women’s Open (Los Angeles, US)
  • Jun 4-21: Basketball – NBA Finals (US)
  • Jun 5-7: Rugby Sevens – SVNS World Championship (Bordeaux, France)
  • Jun 11 – July 19: Football – FIFA World Cup (Canada, Mexico, US)
  • Jun 12 – July 5: Cricket – ICC Women’s T20 World Cup (UK)
  • Jun 13-14: Triathlon – European Triathlon Championships (Tarragona, Spain)
  • June 16-20: Horse Racing – Royal Ascot (Ascot, UK)
  • Jun 16-21: Fencing – European Fencing Championship (Tallinn, Estonia)
  • Jun 18-21: Golf – U.S. Open (New York, US)
  • Jun 25-28: Golf – Women’s PGA Championship (Chaska, US)
  • Jun 29 – July 12: Tennis – Wimbledon Championships (London, UK)

All eyes will be on North America in June as the 2026 FIFA World Cup gets underway.

The governing body has expanded the tournament to 48 teams for the first time, making it the most expansive World Cup ever staged.

July

  • Jul 4-26: Cycling Road – Tour de France (Spain & France)
  • Jul 9-12: Golf – Evian Championship (Evian-les-Bains, France)
  • Jul 10-12: Taekwondo – World Taekwondo Championships (Gimcheon, Korea)
  • Jul 14: Baseball – MLB All-Star Game (North America)
  • Jul 16-19: Golf – The Open Championship (Southport, UK)
  • Jul 16-25: Cycling BMX Racing – UCI BMX Racing World Championships (Brisbane, Australia)
  • Jul 20-25: Canoe Slalom – ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships (Oklahoma City, US)
  • Jul 21-30: Fencing – FIE Fencing World Championships (Hong Kong, China)
  • Jul 22-28: Modern Pentathlon – European Championships (Istanbul, Turkey)
  • Jul 23 – Aug 2: Multi-sport – Commonwealth Games (Glasgow, UK)
  • Jul 24 – Aug 2: Lacrosse – World Lacrosse Women’s Championship (Tokyo, Japan)
  • Jul 24 – Aug 8: Multi-sport – Central American & Caribbean Games (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic)
  • Jul – Aug 2: Cycling Mountain Bike – UEC Mountain Bike European Championships (Monteceneri, Switzerland)
  • 30 Jul to 2 Aug: Rowing – European Rowing Championships (Varese, Italy)
  • 30 Jul to 2 Aug: Golf – Women’s Open (Lytham St Annes, UK)
  • July 31 – Aug 16: Artistic Swimming, Diving, Marathon Swimming, Swimming – European Aquatics Championships (Paris, France)

The World Cup continues apace this month, culminating with the final in New Jersey on July 19.

Attention quickly switches to Glasgow, where the latest edition of the Commonwealth Games starts four days later.

August

  • Aug 1-9: Cycling Road – Tour de France Femmes (Switzerland & France)
  • Aug 10-16: Athletics – European Athletics Championships (Birmingham, UK)
  • Aug 11-23: Equestrian – FEI World Championships (Aachen, Germany)
  • Aug 13-16: Artistic Gymnastics – Women’s European Artistic Gymnastics Championships (Zagreb, Croatia)
  • Aug 14-30: Hockey – Men’s and Women’s FIH Hockey World Cup (Belgium & Netherlands)
  • Aug 19-23: Artistic Gymnastics – Men’s European Artistic Gymnastics Championships (Zagreb, Croatia)
  • Aug 21 – Sept 3: Multi-sport – Mediterranean Games (Taranto, Italy)
  • Aug 22- Sept 13: Cycling Road – Vuelta a España (Monaco & Spain)
  • Aug 23-30: Rowing – World Rowing Championships (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
  • Aug 26-30: Cycling Mountain Bike: UCI Mountain Bike World Championships (Trentino, Italy)
  • Aug 26-30: Canoe Sprint: ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships (Poznan, Poland)
  • Aug 30: Athletics – Sydney Marathon (Sydney, Australia)
  • Aug to 13 Sept: Tennis – U.S. Open (New York, US)

The 2026 European Athletics Championships will be staged in Birmingham in August, and plenty of UK stars will be eager to make their mark.

They include Keely Hodgkinson and Dina Asher-Smith, who will be desperate to defend the titles they won at Rome 2024.

September

  • Sept 4-13: Basketball – FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup (Berlin, Germany)
  • Sept 11-13: Golf – Solheim Cup (Cromvoirt, Netherlands)
  • Sept 11-13: Athletics – World Athletics Ultimate Championship (Budapest, Hungary)
  • Sept 19 – Oct 4: Multi-sport – Asian Games (Nagoya, Japan)
  • Sept 20-27: Cycling Road – UCI Road World Championships (Montreal, Canada)
  • Sept 21-26: Tennis – Billie Jean King Cup Finals (Shenzhen, China)
  • Sept 24-27: Golf – President Cup (Medinah, US)
  • Sept 24-27: Triathlon – World Triathlon Championship Finals (Pontevedra, Spain)
  • Sept 25-27: Tennis – Laver Cup (London, UK)
  • Sept 27: Athletics – Berlin Marathon (Berlin, Germany)

The new World Athletics Ultimate Championship will be launched in Hungary in September. The best athletes on the planet will battle it out over three action-packed nights.

The Asian Games and the UCI Road World Championships are other noteworthy events scheduled for this month.

October

  • Oct 3-7: Cycling Road – UEC Road European Championships (Ljubljana, Slovenia)
  • Oct 9-11: Coastal Rowing – World Rowing Coastal Championships (Qingdao, China)
  • Oct 10: Cycling Road – Il Lombardia (Lombardy, Italy)
  • Oct 11: Athletics – Chicago Marathon (Chicago, US)
  • Oct 14-18: Cycling Track – UCI Track Cycling World Championships (Shanghai, China)
  • Oct 17-28: Artistic Gymnastics – FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships (Rotterdam, Netherlands)
  • Oct 23-31: Baseball – MLB World Series (North America)
  • Oct 27 – Nov 8: Weightlifting – IWF World Weightlifting Championships (Ningbo, People’s Republic of China)
  • Oct 30-31: Horse Racing – Breeders’ Cup World Championships (Keeneland, US)
  • Oct 31 – Nov 13: Multi-sport – Summer Youth Olympic Games (Dakar, Senegal)

The 2026 Breeders’ Cup World Championships is another top-class horse racing event that generates significant activity in the betting industry.

The two-day meeting at Keeneland is the culmination of the international flat racing season worldwide and a true showcase of the Sport of Kings.

November

  • Nov 1: Athletics – New York City Marathon (New York, US)
  • Nov 3: Horse Racing – Melbourne Cup (Melbourne, Australia)
  • Nov 1-15: Shooting – ISSF World Championship Rifle/Pistol/Shotgun (Doha, Qatar)
  • Nov 3-7: Cycling BMX Freestyle – UCI Urban Cycling World Championships (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
  • Nov 6-16: Ice Hockey – IIHF Women’s World Championship (Denmark)
  • Nov 7-14: Tennis – WTA Finals (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
  • Nov 15-22: Tennis – ATP Finals (Turin, Italy)
  • Nov 24-29: Tennis – Davis Cup Finals (Bologna, Italy)

The 2026 tennis season culminates with the ATP and WTA Finals. The Davis Cup Finals are also scheduled to take place in Italy.

The Melbourne Cup dominates the landscape in Australia, headlining a stellar four-day meeting at Flemington Racecourse.

December

  • Dec 1-6: Swimming – World Aquatics Swimming Championships 25m (Beijing, China)
  • Dec 3-20: Handball – EHF European Women’s Handball Championship (Czechia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Turkey)
  • TBA: Darts – World Darts Championship (London, UK)

The calendar year finishes with a bang as the PDC World Darts Championship is staged at the Alexandra Palace in London.

Luke Littler will head into the event as the bookmakers’ favourite to win the title for the third consecutive year.