1881 in sports

Engraving of the finish line at the 1881 Melbourne Cup

1881 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.

American football

College championship

• College football national championship – Princeton Tigers and Yale Bulldogs (shared)

Events

• Michigan Wolverines is the first "western" team to travel east and play against the established teams at Harvard Crimson, Yale Bulldogs and Princeton Tigers.

Association football

England

• FA Cup final – Old Carthusians 3–0 Old Etonians at The Oval in the last final to be played between two southern amateur sides.
• Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers both change their venues to enclosed grounds where gate money can be charged, an increasing practice among clubs that are openly (or otherwise) professional.
• Preston North End is founded and plays from the start at Deepdale, which holds the world record for the length of time a venue has been in continuous use by one major league club.
• Burnley FC founded as Burnley Rovers RUFC which decides in May 1882 to switch codes. The Rovers suffix is dropped two years later and the club renamed as Burnley AFC.
• Newcastle United, which has a complicated early history, is founded as Stanley FC by a cricket club in the Byker area of Newcastle.

France

• Foundation of FC Girondins de Bordeaux.

Ireland

• Moyola Park F.C. wins the inaugural Irish Cup final

Scotland

• 12 March — Andrew Watson makes his Scotland debut, becoming the world's first black international football player
• Scottish Cup final – Queen's Park 3–1 Dumbarton at Hampden Park (replay after Dumbarton protests about the original match which Queen's Park has won 2–1)

Baseball

National championship

• National League champions – Chicago White Stockings

Events

• Detroit replaces Cincinnati leaving Cleveland and Providence the southerly cities on the National League circuit. Four others lie on the northerly rail line from stalwart Chicago to stalwart Boston: Detroit, Buffalo, Troy, and Worcester.
• In autumn, for the first time, all eight National League clubs prepare to continue next season.

Boxing

Events

• Paddy Ryan takes part in a number of exhibition bouts but does not defend his Heavyweight Championship of America title.
• John L. Sullivan continues his rise to the championship with a series of knockout victories, none of them lasting longer than eight rounds.

Cricket

Events

• Lancashire CCC wins its first outright title. At the end of the season, an English team led by Alfred Shaw goes to Australia for the 1881–82 Test series.

England

• Champion County – Lancashire
• Most runs – A N Hornby 1534 @ 40.36 (HS 188)
• Most wickets – Ted Peate 173 @ 12.68 (BB 8–30)

Australia

• Most runs – Tom Horan 318 @ 35.33 (HS 113)
• Most wickets – Edwin Evans 32 @ 11.25 (BB 5–34)

Golf

Major tournaments

• British Open – Bob Ferguson

Gymnastics

Events

• 23 July — the Federation Internationale de Gymnastique, the world's oldest international sport federation, is founded.

Horse racing

England

• Grand National – Woodbrook
• 1,000 Guineas Stakes – Thebais
• 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Peregrine
• Epsom Derby – Iroquois
• Epsom Oaks – Thebais
• St. Leger Stakes – Iroquois

Australia

• Melbourne Cup – Zulu

Canada

• Queen's Plate – Vice Chancellor

Ireland

• Irish Grand National – Antoinette
• Irish Derby Stakes – Master Ned

USA

• Kentucky Derby – Hindoo
• Preakness Stakes – Saunterer
• Belmont Stakes – Saunterer

Rowing

The Boat Race

• 8 April — Oxford wins the 38th Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race

Rugby football

Events

• Wales plays its first international match but is well beaten by England

Tennis

England

• Wimbledon Men's Singles Championship – William Renshaw (GB) defeated John Hartley (GB) 6–0 6–1 6–1

USA

• First U.S. National Singles Championship, precursor of the US Open, won by Richard D. Sears (USA) who defeats William E. Glyn (USA) 6–0 6–3 6–2

Yacht racing

America's Cup

• The New York Yacht Club retains the America's Cup as Mischief defeats Canadian challenger Atalanta, of the Bay of Quinte Yacht Club