1) Australian Open
16 January-29 January
Novak Djokovic will be at the Australian Open and this time he is here to stay. The Serbian found himself at the centre of a Covid-related storm before this year’s tournament that resulted in him being deported. But having had his visa ban overturned, Djokovic is free to compete in Melbourne for what would be a 22nd grand slam title. The defending champion, Rafael Nadal, is among those who stand in his way. There will definitely be a new women’s champion given Ashleigh Barty’s decision to retire from tennis two months after her historic triumph on home turf.
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2) Chris Eubank Jr v Liam Smith
21 January
Chris Eubank Jr versus Conor Benn was one of the most anticipated fights of 2022 but did not happen in an episode that shamed British boxing. On the bright side, it freed Eubank Jr to sign up to a bout that has the potential to be as explosive as it is engrossing. He and Liam Smith are well matched and head to Manchester’s AO Arena on the back of impressive winning runs. It is hard to call a winner, although Eubank Jr is characteristically sure he will come out on top. “I’m twice the fighter he is,” said the 33-year-old.
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3) Men’s & Women’s Six Nations
4 February-18 March, 25 March-29 April
An ever-fascinating competition takes on a further layer of intrigue given the change of head coach by two of the teams involved. Will England be rejuvenated under Steve Borthwick? Will Wales be back to their very best now Warren Gatland has returned to the helm? It’s very much a case of popcorn at the ready and especially so given those involved – including the reigning grand-slam champions France – are not just fighting for the prize in front of them but also gearing up for a World Cup in seven months’ time. The opening weekend of the Women’s Six Nations sees the holders, England, take on Scotland at Kingston Park as the Red Roses rebuild after their World Cup final loss to New Zealand.
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4) Women’s T20 World Cup
10 February-26 February
The eighth edition of this tournament takes place in South Africa for the first time and should be fun given the fast and furious nature of proceedings, with two groups of five teams immediately leading to semi-finals, both of which will take place in Cape Town, as will the final. For Heather Knight’s England the objective is to win the trophy for a first time since 2009, something that is easier said than done given the presence of the defending champions and five-times winners, Australia.
5) Formula One World Championship
5 March-26 November
Once again, F1 will attempt to stage a 23-race season. It didn’t happen this year due to the cancellation of the Russian Grand Prix but should occur in 2023 following the addition of races in Las Vegas and Qatar. There is even the potential for a 24-race campaign should a replacement be found for the Chinese GP, which was cancelled due to Covid restrictions. There will also be six sprint qualifying races next year, up from three last season. As for the teams, champions Red Bull will remain unchanged, as will Mercedes and Ferrari. There are shake-ups elsewhere, most notably at Aston Martin where Fernando Alonso replaces fellow former world champion Sebastian Vettel.
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6) Cheltenham Festival
14 March-17 March
Constitution Hill is the name on every racing fan’s lips right now and he could be the talk of pubs and clubs throughout the land by the time of the Cheltenham Festival. Turf experts Timeform already have him as the joint-sixth best two-mile hurdler ever on their ratings and he has only raced four times. The widespread expectation is that Constitution Hill will win the Champion Hurdle on the Festival’s opening day and it is no exaggeration to say that the sport may be hailing an all-time great.
7) The Masters
6 April-9 April
Could this finally be Rory McIlroy’s time to slip on the Green Jacket? The 33-year-old will certainly hope so and should be infused with belief given his status as world No 1. McIlroy’s second place in Augusta this year, when he shot a final round 64 to push the eventual winner Scottie Scheffler all the way, should also provide him with confidence. The Saudi-backed LIV Golf will undeniably cast a shadow over the build up to the first major of 2023, with Masters chairman, Fred Ridley, announcing this month that those signed up to the rebel will not be banned from Augusta.
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8) World Snooker Championship
15 April-1 May
According to Jimmy White, Ronnie O’Sullivan wants to win 10 world championship titles before he retires. If that’s indeed the case, “The Rocket” will be energised before doing battle at the Crucible. He will arrive there as reigning champion having secured a record-equalling seventh crown with victory over Judd Trump in the 2022 final. It was a battling triumph that also made O’Sullivan, at the age of 46, snooker’s oldest world champion. “We’ll probably go again next year,” he said having collected his trophy and the £500,000 prize.
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9) Women’s FA Cup final
14 May
This year’s final saw Chelsea beat Manchester City 3-2, thanks in large part to two goals from Sam Kerr. The win also secured the double for Emma Hayes’s side and took place in front of a crowd of 49,094, a record attendance for a Women’s FA Cup final. The hope is that even more people will attend 2023’s climax to a campaign that got under way in September and again will be staged at Wembley.
10) Men’s Champions League Final
10 June
After various failed attempts, Istanbul’s Atatürk Stadium will host the men’s Champions League final for the first time since 2005. Liverpool would love to return to the stadium where they won a fifth European Cup in miraculous fashion but face a challenge doing so given they have been drawn to face Real Madrid, who beat them in this year’s final, in the last 16. Manchester City have the far easier task of taking on RB Leipzig, and with Erling Haaland in attack this could well be the year Pep Guardiola’s side finally triumph in European football’s premier competition.
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11) Men’s & Women’s Ashes
16 June-31 July, 22 June-18 July
England’s bid to regain the men’s Ashes will be played out in frantic fashion, with the five-Test series compressed into the space of 46 days to allow the Hundred to again take centre stage in August. It will be a tough ask for Ben Stokes’s side but they will no doubt be up for it, and if they stick to the principles of Bazball it should make for thrilling viewing for those lucky enough to have tickets for the Tests, which are to be staged at Edgbaston, Lord’s, Headingley, Old Trafford and the Oval. The women’s side are also aiming to regain the Ashes and begin their campaign with a first five-day women’s Ashes match since 1992, to be held at Trent Bridge. There follows three Twenty20s and three one-day internationals.
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12) Tour de France & Tour de France Femmes
1 July-23 July, 23 July-30 July
The 110th edition of the Tour is an especially mountainous one, with the three-week race tracing a 3,400km route from the Basque country to the German border, with stages in the Pyrenees, Massif Central, Jura, Alps and the Vosges. Good news, perhaps, for the reigning champion, Jonas Vingegaard, but undeniably a source of frustration for Mark Cavendish as he attempts to beat Eddy Merckx’s all-time record of 34 stage wins. A sprinter’s paradise it is not. The women’s Tour, which was relaunched this summer and won by Annemiek van Vleuten, begins in Clermont-Ferrand before heading south.
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13) Wimbledon
3 July-16 July
According to Wimbledon’s official website, a record number of people have applied for tickets for the 2023 Championships via the public ballot, which is perhaps not a surprise given how this year’s tournament climaxed, with Novak Djokovic clinching the men’s title via an engrossing four-set victory over Nick Kyrgios and Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina beatings the odds and her own expectations to clinch a debut women’s title with victory over Ons Jabeur. Domestic hopes largely rest with Cameron Norrie, who did brilliantly to reach this year’s semi-finals, and Emma Raducanu, who continues to search for a first title since her stunning US Open triumph.
14) World Aquatics Championships
14 July-30 July
The 20th edition of water sports’ most prestigious event was meant to be held in Fukuoka, Japan, in the middle of May but was moved to the summer by governing body, Fina, following Covid-related concerns. The United States won 49 medals, including 18 golds, at this year’s championships in Budapest and are again expected to dominate. Among Great Britain’s medal hopes will be Ben Proud, whose electric display in the men’s 50m freestyle final saw him land gold in Hungary.
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15) Women’s World Cup
20 July-20 August
Australia and New Zealand co-host the ninth edition of this tournament, and it will be the largest ever with 32 competing nations. Three places remain up for grabs and will be finalised via a 10-team playoff tournament taking place across five days in February. One of the qualifiers will be in England’s pool, Group D, and the aim for Sarina Wiegman’s European champions is to go all the way. Standing in their way is the formidable presence of the USA, reigning world champions and the No 1 ranked side in the world.
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16) Netball World Cup
28 July-6 August
Cape Town is the venue for world netball’s premier tournament and from a home nations point of view there is the exciting prospect of a group-stage meeting between England and Scotland. Wales, meanwhile, are in the same group as hosts South Africa, while New Zealand, the reigning champions after their 52-51 victory over Australia in the 2019 final in Liverpool, are in the same group as Uganda, Trinidad & Tobago and Singapore. Sky Sports will show live coverage of every World Cup fixture.
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17) Cycling World Championships
3 August-13 August
Among the changes for next year’s championships is the women’s elite road race, as opposed to the men’s, bringing the curtain down on all the action, and the hope for organisers is that Annemiek van Vleuten takes part having won gold at this year’s road race in Wollongong, Australia, despite suffering with a broken arm. Even if Van Vleuten doesn’t compete, there will be plenty for spectators in Glasgow to enjoy, including the first simultaneous staging of track and para-track world championship events, which in 2023 will take place at the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome.
18) World Athletics Championships
19 August-27 August
There is no doubting Budapest’s pride in staging global athletics’ premier competition, seen most clearly in the fact organisers have built a venue specifically for the event. The National Athletic Centre will be the setting for nine days of elite sporting action involving track and field competitors from 200 nations. For Team GB the aim is to exceed the seven medals they won at this year’s world championships in Eugene, the standout of which was Jake Wightman’s stunning gold in the men’s 1500m.
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19) Men’s Rugby World Cup
8 September-28 October
France host the World Cup for the first time since 2007, when South Africa were crowned champions. This time the Springboks arrive as holders and will believe they can again go all the way, especially given they have been placed in what looks like a relatively kind pool, alongside Ireland, Scotland, Tonga and Romania. The hosts, meanwhile, are in the same pool as New Zealand and it is those two sides who get the tournament under way with a mouthwatering clash in Paris.
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20) Solheim Cup
22 September-24 September
Team Europe will be chasing a third consecutive Solheim Cup victory for the first time in the tournament’s history when they host the event in Finca Cortesin, Spain, and the captain Suzann Pettersen is confident of success given the pedigree of players she has to pick from, especially the younger ones. “I feel like every week there are new rookies continuing to deliver with great results,” she said. “Just look at the Swedes [Maja Stark and Linn Grant]; they’ve pretty much played themselves on to the team.” Standing in Europe’s way is a US team captained by Stacy Lewis.
21) Ryder Cup
29 September-1 October
The 44th Ryder Cup will take place at the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club, just outside Rome. Questions remain, however, about exactly who will represent Luke Donald’s European team and Zach Johnson’s US team given the lack of confirmation on bans for those who have signed up to LIV Golf. The suggestion is that the rebels will be prevented from taking part, meaning the likes of Sergio García, Lee Westwood, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau missing out. For Donald, who took over from Henrik Stenson after he was sacked as Europe’s captain for defecting to LIV, the aim is to avenge the United States’ record 19-9 victory at Whistling Straits.
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22) Super League Grand Final
14 October
Can anyone stop St Helens? That will be the overriding question going into the new Super League season after Saints made it a record-breaking fourth consecutive Grand Final victory in September. The big hope for their rivals is that a change in head coach, from Kristian Woolf to Paul Wellens, will lead to significant disruption at the Totally Wicked Stadium and, ultimately, a new team lifting the domestic game’s most treasured trophy at Old Trafford in October.
23) Men’s Cricket World Cup
October-November
India hosts one-day cricket’s most prestigious tournament for a fourth occasion and for the first time since 2011, when a side led by MS Dhoni were ultimately triumphant. The hosts will be seeking more glory on home soil and are among the favourites for a trophy that will be contested by 10 teams via a round-robin stage that eventually leads to knockout contests. For England the aim is to hold on to the crown they won in thrilling fashion against New Zealand in 2019.
