Most memorable sports broadcast moments in 2025

This year delivered some unforgettable moments for sports fans. From halftime shows and sporting milestones to stunning upsets, here are some of the wackiest and most memorable 2025 sports broadcast highlights.

Chloe Kelly’s winning penalty

England retained their UEFA European Women’s Championship title after seeing off Spain on penalties in an epic final on July 27 at St. Jakob-Park in Basel, Switzerland. Hosted in Switzerland, the tournament produced record-breaking audiences for the BBC.

Remarkably, the final was the most-watched TV moment of the year in the UK. Chloe Kelly’s winning penalty was named TV Sports Moment of the Year at the Broadcast Sport Awards.

Have a look at our feature on the tournament here.

India’s Virat Kohli retires from Test cricket

Cricket legend Virat Kohli shocked fans across the globe when he announced his retirement from all formats in early 2025. His announcement on Instagram received over 20 million likes and his retirement speech went viral.

Although there had been some speculation, his farewell speech at the Wankhede Stadium was extremely moving and not just about cricket, but about perseverance.

Super Bowl LIX halftime show

Samuel L. Jackson opened the stage with Kendrick Lamar headlining and special appearances by SZA, Serena Williams and Mustard. The show was televised nationally in the U.S. by Fox. To capture the performance, a number of Sony FX6, VENICE 2 and FR7 PTZ were utilised.

The performance became the most-watched Super Bowl halftime performance ever with a combined 133.5 million viewers domestically across all platforms, surpassing Michael Jackson’s performance at Super Bowl XXVII in 1993 as the most viewed halftime show in the U.S.

Spurs finally get their hands on silverware

After many years of hurt, Spurs won the 2025 UEFA Europa League final, beating Manchester United 1-0 at the San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao on 21 May. Broadcast exclusively on TNT Sports, the event marked Spurs’ first European trophy since 1984 and a first major trophy since winning the 2008 Football League Cup final.

In the most ‘Spursy’ tradition, they sacked their manager Ange Postecoglou only 16 days later. Never change, Tottenham.

Tadej Pogačar wins the Tour de France

Slovenian rider Tadej Pogačar of UAE Team Emirates-XRG pedalled to victory in the 112th edition of the Tour de France on 21 July during the final stage of the competition from Mantes-la-Ville to the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

It marked Pogačar’s fourth Tour de France win and puts him joint-fifth for all-time Tour titles, level with Chris Froome – only Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Miguel Induráin remain above them.

The Tour was broadcast live by France Télévisions with an average of 3.8 million viewers in France each day, a 9% increase compared to 2024.

Check out our feature on the Tour de France here!

Carlos Alcaraz wins the US Open

Carlos Alcaraz won the US Open Tennis Championship by defeating Jannik Sinner of Italy 6–2, 3–6, 6–1, 6–4 on 7 September in New York. The win served as revenge for Alcaraz after his loss to Sinner in the Wimbledon final earlier in the year.

Despite meeting in numerous finals, the heartwarming moment between the two ‘rivals’ was broadcast across the globe. The event was slightly disrupted due to extra security measures for President Trump, which leads us to our next memorable sports broadcast moment of 2025 and the most recent on the list.

The 2026 World Cup Draw

Live music performances from Andrea Bocelli, Robbie Williams and Nicole Scherzinger. Speeches from Heidi Klum, Kevin Hart and Rio Ferdinand conducting the draw. Donald Trump dancing to (or at least attempting to) Village People’s YMCA.

This random line-up of hosts, musical acts and celebrities was a cringeworthy preview of what’s to come next year when the US hosts the 2026 World Cup (and let’s not forget Canada and Mexico are also co-hosting – although you’d be forgiven for not realising this with all the attention on President Trump).

Perhaps the most memorable and uncomfortable moment of the night came when Fifa president Gianni Infantino handed Trump the Fifa Peace Prize (an award that was specifically created for this event) before Trump declared that ‘we are the hottest country in the world.’ Eyeroll.

Kenya’s Lilian Odira delivered stunning upset

In a powerful finish, Lilian Odira overtook the pre-race favourites to win the women’s 800m gold medal at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo. More than 75 camera channels, along with Gravity Media’s 110-metre railcam and vertical track rigs were operated by the company’s specialist crews to capture dynamic and overhead coverage of the event.

Ranked world number 17 before the race, Odira was relatively unknown in global finals and was not considered a favourite, with competitors including Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson and Olympic 1500m bronze medallist Georgia Hunter Bell.

However, Odira triumphed with a personal best and new championship record of 1:54.62, breaking a 42-year-old mark in a race broadcast worldwide by major sports networks.

Robotic races

A Unitree Robotics H1 humanoid robot indeed competed in and won the inaugural 400m race at the first-ever World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing on 15 August at the National Speed Skating Oval. Unitree, seen as a competitor to Tesla’s Optimus, won multiple medals.

The event marked a significant milestone for the entire humanoid robot industry and is a sign for what’s potentially to come for future robotic sporting events and was showcased globally on major networks including CGTN, BBC and NBC.

Rory McIlroy’s Masters Triumph

Rory McIlroy finally ended years of anticipation by capturing the Masters’ title in a playoff against Justin Rose, completing his career Grand Slam. The final round, broadcast on CBS, became the most-watched Masters finale since 2018, drawing a peak audience of 19.54 million viewers eager to witness the thrilling conclusion. The tournament was widely celebrated as one of the most memorable golf broadcasts in history.