Five ways the sports world changed in 2024

By Ahmad Afzal Khan

Sports fans had their fill in 2024, as they witnessed some of the most hotly contested rivalries, record breaking performances, underdog triumphs, and the birth of a new super star. So let’s take a look back on what was a historic year for sports, and acknowledge five ways the sporting world changed.

5. JUAN SOTO SIGNS LARGEST DEAL IN SPORTS HISTORY

After suffering an emphatic 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers on the biggest stage in baseball, the New York Yankees’ players must have been in low spirits. But, despite being one of the league’s star players suited up in white with black stripes, Juan Soto was no longer a Yankee by the time Walker Buehler delivered the last pitch of the World Series.

Soto may not have a second world series under his belt to celebrate, but he has something that for many, is a whole lot better. To wit, a whole lotta money.

The 26-year old outfielder bagged $765 million, and all he had to do was move down the street.

The 15-year contract with the New York Mets is the largest in professional sports, and eclipses the deal Shohei Ohtani signed just a year prior, which earned the Japanese phenom $700 million.

Apart from the additional $65 million, and another $75 million signing bonus on top, as well as an opt out clause which if forfeited will raise the contract’s worth to $805 million, none of the Soto’s cash is deferred. While Ohtani has a current average annual value of $46 million, as $680 million of his contract is deferred, Soto will have an AAV of $51 million, which will raise to $55 million if he chooses to stay with the Mets past the 2029 season.

Soto’s titanic contract is a testament to just how much sports continue to grow year after year.

4. MCLAREN ENDS RED BULL’S TYRANNY

After Max Verstappen won four out of the first five races of the season, sports fans began to accept that Red Bull would dominate once again. In 2023, Red Bull beat Mercedes by a whopping 451 points, in what is considered by many to be one of the most dominant seasons in F1 history. Early on, 2024 looked to be more of the same.

That was until a few sparks of hope flew out from underneath the MCL38 in Miami. With McLaren learning from their shortcomings from the first stretch of races, an upgraded car was ready in time for the sixth race of the season. And Lando Norris made the most of it, winning his first ever formula 1 race.

After a series of podiums for Norris and Piastri, McLaren would get their second win of the season in Hungary. It would be Piastri’s maiden victory, with Norris close behind, earning McLaren their 49th one two finish in F1.

Norris would continue McLaren’s winning ways in the defending world champions’ home race, getting his second victory of the season in the Netherlands.

His Aussie teammate would get his second win soon after in Azerbaijan, giving the men and women in orange the lead of the Constructors’ Championship for the first time. In the very next race, Norris would get his third win, while Piastri took home third.

McLaren were in a good position after Singapore, but Ferrari hadn’t given up, and the boys in red would win the next two races. By the time F1 reached Abu Dhabi for the final race of the season, only 21 points separated the two rivals. Tensions ran high after Piastri suffered a collision with Verstappen on the first turn. The Aussie worked his way back up into the points, finishing seventh, but Carlos Sainz had finished third, while Leclerc took fourth.

Thankfully for McLaren, Norris finished first, winning his fourth F1 race, but more importantly, securing McLaren’s ninth constructors’ championship, and their first since 1998.

3. THE SHIFTING HEAVYWEIGHT LANDSCAPE

Oleksandr Usyk is one of boxing’s greatest. That much was clear three years ago, when he beat Anthony Joshua to become the unified heavyweight champion, adding to the already illustrious career he built at cruiserweight. But, this year, as fans watched the Ukrainian hitman chase a wounded Tyson Fury around a Saudi ring after he landed a crisp right left combo, the world understood that they were watching arguably the best fighter in boxing.

The heavyweight division that had long waited for a true king, one that fought and overcame the best, finally found one in Oleksandr Usyk, as he became the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 24 years after beating the Gypsy King by split decision.

The Ukrainian southpaw seemingly brought order to the heavyweight division. A sentiment reified when he beat Fury for a second time in December with a unanimous decision.

He stood at the top, with Joshua, Fury, and Deontay Wilder somewhere behind. That was until Daniel Dubois put on a stunner at Wembley.

In the lead-up to September’s British heavyweight clash, all eyes were on the more experienced of the two fighters, Joshua. Over the past year, the former champion had put together four wins, three of which ended in a stoppage. It was a fantastic recovery from the two defeats he suffered at the hands of Usyk, and with the Ukranian’s recent win over Fury, in which he badly hurt the 6’9 behemoth, Joshua’s losses didn’t look so bad. Dubois was simply the next step in the former two-time unified heavyweight champion’s resurgence. And the fact that Dubois was crowned the IBF champion only because Usyk vacated, made the boxing world underestimate the danger he presented.

But, Dubois reminded the world of just how vicious he could be within five rounds of him stepping foot in the Wembley ring.

Four knockdowns and a counter right filled with dynamite later, Dubois had retained the title, and silenced those who underestimated him.

Dubois and Usyk have fought once before, but after the devastating and awe-inspiring performance he had a couple months ago, it might be time to book the rematch. And it might happen next year.

After Usyk reified the sentiment that he is boxing’s greatest heavyweight by beating Fury a second time in December with a unanimous decision, Dubois entered the ring. The Brit declared that he wanted his revenge, to which Usyk replied, “no problem.”

2. FREDDIE FREEMAN’S FAIRY TALE PERFORMANCE

Future hall of famer Freddie Freeman put on the performance of his life this year, winning the second World Series of his career while breaking records. On his way to becoming World Series MVP, Freeman broke the record for most consecutive World Series games with a home run at six. But, the very first one, was the most memorable.

After both teams failed to break the deadlock by the end of the ninth, game one of the world series headed into extra innings. The Yankees scored a run in the top of the inning, putting all the pressure on the Dodgers. It was do or die, and with victory just one out away, the Yankees chose to walk Mookie Betts, in an attempt to give pitcher Nestor Cortez a favourable matchup.

With the bases loaded, up to the plate came Freeman. And on the very first ball he saw, the 35-year-old fan favourite hit a bomb to right field, ending game 1 with the first ever walk off grand slam in world series history.

That would give the Dodgers the momentum they needed to win their eighth World Series championship. Freeman would homer three more times, have six hits, and score five runs in the next four games. He would also tie the record for most RBIs in a world series with 12.

Freeman’s historic performance was nothing short of a sports fairy tale, and will no doubt become the standard for future World Series MVPs to be compared to.

1. A STAR WAS BORN, AND HER NAME IS CAITLIN CLARK

For the first time in the history of the NCAA tournament, the 2024 women’s championship game brought in more viewers than the men’s, outshining them by over four million. That was the Caitlin Clark effect, and the 22-year-old continued to outshine her competition when she joined the WNBA, bringing in viewership that the league didn’t dare dream of, all while putting together one of the greatest rookie campaigns the WNBA has ever seen.

The league had its highest attendance in 22 years and its highest viewership in 24, including over 54 million unique viewers across its partnered platforms. On ESPN platforms, the regular season saw a 170 per cent increase in average viewership, bringing in 1.19 million per game.

A league record of 22 games with over 1 million viewers across their media partners broke their previous 1998 record of 15.

Nineteen of those 22 games featured Clark. Similarly, the 13 most watched games of the season, topped by the all-star game, all had the rookie star.

Clark and the Fever also set post-season viewership records. Despite being eliminated in the first round, the two games Clark played were some of the most watched in WNBA history. Game one, which drew over 1.8 million viewers on ABC was the most watched post season game since 2000. That was until game two, which got over 2.5 million viewers on ESPN, becoming the most watched post season game, not including the WNBA finals, since game two of the Sparks-Comets 1999 conference final.

In the midst of helping the WNBA break viewership records, Clark was setting her own, putting together one of the best rookie campaigns the league has seen.

The Indiana fever guard scored the most out of any rookie player ever with 769 points, which was the fifth most in the league this last season. Clark also set the single season assist record with 337, averaging 8.4 dimes per game.

Clark has not only begun what could be one of the greatest WNBA careers ever, but is also helping the league as a whole. Games that featured Clark may have garnered the most viewership out of all contests this year, but even the games without her are feeling the “Caitlin Clark effect”. This years WNBA finals saw a 115 per cent increase over 2023’s, brining in an average of 1.6 million viewers per game.

All in all, Clark is a bonafide sports star.