A new year is here and that means a whole year of quality sporting events and more awaits. But with so many events, and often too many, and not enough time in the day, alongside the cost-of-living crises, which sporting events need our attention you ask? Well we’re ready for a full year of sport an offer up our The Gurgler’s Essential 2024 Sporting Calendar Highlights.
This is not an exhaustive list, sometimes less is more, although more is also more, and our Essential 2024 Sporting Calendar Highlights does have nearly 50 events across 2024 to enjoy.
Why not 50 you ask? Because that would be easy, and as you’ll see below there’s already plenty of filler.
So get those calendars ready and prepare to circle the best of 2024’s action according to us.
The Gurgler’s Essential 2024 Sporting Calendar Highlights
Here is the list in full fresh from excel, colour coded by categories which will dive into in full-ish detail below.
The Gurgler’s Essential 2024 Sporting Calendar Top Five
MONACO F1 GRAND PRIX
It usually ends up as the dullest race of the season, but still, it’s Monaco. After seeing most of the Monaco Grands Prix since the 1980’s we’re still amazed at the speed on the increasingly insane street layout.
NRL LAS VEGAS DOUBLE HEADER
NRL is going to Las Vegas, and let’s hope it is more successful than either of the two notable previous attempts to grow the game in the US – 1987 State of Origin in Long Beach and Matt Lodge in New York. Nothing like a double header too, although one does question why Penrith didn’t get an invite, but we’re looking forward to it all the same.
EUROPEAN CRICKET CHAMPIONSHIPS
A few months ago we discussed our love for the European Cricket Championships, and tuning into this festival of cricket in Spain is a must. Missing out is depriving yourself of one of sport’s hidden gems.
BATHURST 1000
The greatest day of sporting sloth. Only the Bathurst 1000 can justify the complete ownership of the TV for a day, interspersed with a handful of Andy Capp naps on the lounge.
US MASTERS
There’s just something about the US Masters that makes it compelling viewing. From the ghosts of Greg Norman failures, to the outstanding scenery, the Green Jacket, and that music they play as they go to an ad break, who knows why it drags us in every year. But it does.
The Gurgler’s Essential 2024 Sporting Calendar Highlights
We dive into the five categories of sporting highlights for 2024 with a little explanation of what’s in an out for the big sporting year ahead.
Motorsport
Having put the latest F1 Netflix Docu-drama down within a day of it coming out, we’d be in the mood for some motorsport action, and these events are the highlights in our opinion.
Sure we could put in every F1 race, but with the winner basically guaranteed with each race we thought it best to pick out just a handful. Of course you have to include the Bahrain Grand Prix opener, where the pecking order and biggest winners and disappointments are quickly sorted. A few weeks later is the Australian Grand Prix, usually full of action as it was in 2023. And a daytime GP for Australians for a change.
You must have Monaco and Italy as traditional circuits. Singapore is including as it is spectacular and Max Verstappen doesn’t do very well there. It was the only non Red Bull win in 2023. Finally the Las Vegas GP rounds off our F1 highlights, and based on the inaugural race last year, you never know what’s going to happen. The same can’t be said for the season ending race in Abu Dhabi which we didn’t bother with, as the Championship is likely sewn up by then, and the track is shite.
The rest of the motorsport features the mad men of the Moto GP where there is actual racing most of the time. The Indy 500 is a signature event, if hard to find to watch and hard to watch because of safety cars and running around an oval. Le Mans is a glorious way to watch a lot of motorsport for no good reason and to reminisce about forgotten ex F1 drivers. Talking of ex F1 drivers, we have two of the more interesting Formula E electric GPs on offer, Monaco for the prestige and Tokyo for the Tokyo Drift puns.
Bathurst 1000 is an equally good sporting sloth event and made our top five sporting events of the year.
NRL
We love our rugby league here, with a lot of our content and readership being rugby league related, so why wouldn’t we feature a bunch of NRL related events.
Round One is split this season, and why wouldn’t you when you are investing a shitload of money into a Las Vegas double header.
Magic Round is an even bigger double header, being three of them in a row at the same ground. One is almost rugby league-d out by the time the eighth game has been completed.
State of Origin is a premium sporting events and demands selection in any 2024 Sporting Calendar Highlights package. The slumming it on Channel Nein is painful, but it makes you appreciate the lack of it for the rest of the NRL season.
Finally in October we look forward to whoever is going to lose to Penrith in the Grand Final.
Football
Open wide for some soccer, we mean, football.
There’s three continental Championships on offer this season, and none of these will be as corrupt as the World Cup but are worth a casual score check. Africa and Asia have their big tournaments in January, while the Euros makes for a small off season by cramming itself into June/July. It should provide an opportunity for something to come home to England. Usually a penalty shootout loss in a knock out round.
Premier League last day could be interesting with multiple teams capable of mounting a challenge to Man City. Same for the FA Cup where at least one team in the final can’t be Man City. The Champions League final is the same.
Then it all starts again in August.
Stuff We Should Probably Care About
Here is our bunch of sports bundled together in the category that we should probably take them seriously. It’s not that we don’t like any or all these sports, but we can’t follow everything and anything, so need just the best bits. And we think these are the best bits.
Headlining this category is the Olympics, which is traditionally the most overrated sporting event on the planet. But once you are past the endless swimming replays and they hit the track and field it does get interesting.
Signature events like the US Masters Golf, Wimbledon and the AFL Grand Final are all events that need some attention. Same for the Super Bowl where the game that should take an hour will probably take four to five. But still, Go Ravens. Always Ravens.
Come September it’s all about the greatest sporting tournament each year – the European Cricket Championships. Luxembourg, Romania, Germany, Malta and more are all there, playing cricket for your enjoyment, featuring the addictive enthusiasm of Mr Maximooooo in the commentary box.
Random Stuff
It doesn’t all have to be official sport or anything to take too seriously, although most of the people competing in these sports probably do take it very seriously.
Although we had never heard of it before doing this research, nothing says Easter like the Hunky Jesus & Foxy Mary Championship from the USA on the Easter weekend.
There’s some food related conquests like the infamous Cheese Rolling which is almost as dangerous as it looks as mad people throw themselves down a steep hill. From chasing cheese to eating it, and one of the world’s greatest treats Poutine has an eating contest we suggest to follow. Sure it’s not a famous as the Hot Dog eating one, but we can’t see ourselves doing one of those hot dogs but could go a bowl or two of Poutine. There’s also the Tomato throwing La Tomatina and Running of the Bulls from Spain. The latter not being strictly food related. Well, straight after the event that is.
Finally there’s Air Guitar, Wife Carrying and Lawn Mower Racing. All the things that make for a happy marriage and home life, and thus are sporting events worth a follow in 2024.
Rugby Union
