1941 in sports
| Years in sports: | 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 |
| Centuries: | 19th century · 20th century · 21st century |
| Decades: | 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s |
| Years: | 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 |
- Note — many sporting events did not take place because of World War II
1941 in sports describes the year's events in world sport.
- Minnesota Golden Gophers – college football national champions.
- Chicago Bears win 37–9 over New York Giants for the NFL championship.
- Chicago Bears win only meeting vs. Green Bay Packers in the playoffs. On January 23, 2011, they will meet again in the playoffs. It is the biggest rivalry in American football.
- At a college game in Youngstown, Ohio, game officials use a penalty flag for the first time.
- La Liga won by Atlético Aviación
- German football championship won by SK Rapid Wien
- Serie A won by Bologna
- Primeira Liga won by Sporting CP
- There is no major football competition in England, Scotland or France due to World War II. In England, several regional leagues are played but statistics from these are not counted in players’ figures.
- Victorian Football League
- Melbourne wins the 45th VFL Premiership, beating Essendon 19.13 (127) to 13.20 (98) in the 1941 VFL Grand Final
- Brownlow Medal awarded to Norman Ware (Footscray)
- South Australian National Football League:
- Western Australian National Football League:
- 11 October: West Perth 14.14 (98) beat East Fremantle 10.17 (77) to win their eighth WANFL premiership.
- New York Yankees win the World Series, beating Brooklyn Dodgers by 4 games to 1
- Ted Williams records a season batting average of .406; it is the last time a major leaguer hit over .400
- Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak (May 15 – July 16)
NBL Championship
- Oshkosh All-Stars win three games to none over the Sheboygan Redskins
Events
- Ninth South American Basketball Championship in Mendoza is won by Argentina.
Events
- The highlight of the year is the World Heavyweight title fight between two current world champions, Joe Louis and Billy Conn, won by Louis with a 13th round knockout.
Lineal world champions[1]
- World Heavyweight Championship – Joe Louis
- World Light Heavyweight Championship – Billy Conn
- World Middleweight Championship – vacant → Tony Zale
- World Welterweight Championship – Fritzie Zivic → Freddie "Red" Cochrane
- World Lightweight Championship – Lew Jenkins → Sammy Angott
- World Featherweight Championship – Harry Jeffra → Joey Archibald → Albert "Chalky" Wright
- World Bantamweight Championship – Lou Salica
- World Flyweight Championship – vacant
England and South Africa
- There is no first-class cricket in England or South Africa due to World War II.
India
- Ranji Trophy – Maharashtra defeats Madras by six wickets.
- Bombay Pentangular – Hindus
Australia
- During the 1940–41 season, although the Sheffield Shield is not contested, a number of interstate cricket matches are played for patriotic funding. For the 1941–42 season, seven three-day interstate matches are scheduled but only one is played before the urgency of the Pacific War puts an end to Australian first-class cricket until November 1945.
New Zealand and West Indies
- New Zealand abandons the Plunket Shield for 1940–41 but here, and in the West Indies, a small number of first-class matches are arranged and played each season until after the war without being part of an official competition.
- not contested due to World War II
- not contested due to World War II
World Figure Skating Championships
- not contested due to World War II
Men's professional
- Masters Tournament – Craig Wood
- 1941 U.S. Open – Craig Wood
- British Open – not played due to World War II
- PGA Championship – Vic Ghezzi
Men's amateur
- British Amateur – not played due to World War II
- U.S. Amateur – Bud Ward
Women's professional
Steeplechases
- Cheltenham Gold Cup – Poet Prince
- Grand National – not held due to World War II
Hurdle races
Flat races
- Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Skipton
- Canada – Queen's Plate won by Budpath
- France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Le Pacha
- Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Sol Oriens
- English Triple Crown Races:
- United States Triple Crown Races:
- Stanley Cup – Boston Bruins defeat the Detroit Red Wings 4 games to 0.
The Boat Race
- Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race is not contested due to World War II
- 1941 New Zealand rugby league season
- 1941 NSWRFL season
- 1940–41 Northern Rugby Football League Wartime Emergency League season / 1941–42 Northern Rugby Football League Wartime Emergency League season
- Five Nations Championship series is not contested due to World War II
Speed Skating World Championships
- not contested due to World War II
Australia
- Australian Men's Singles Championship – not contested
- Australian Women's Singles Championship – not contested
England
- Wimbledon Men's Singles Championship – not contested
- Wimbledon Women's Singles Championship – not contested
France
- French Men's Singles Championship – Bernard Destremau (France) defeats Henri Cochet (France) 8–6, 6–2
- French Women's Singles Championship – Alice Weiwers (Luxembourg) † details to be ascertained
USA
- American Men's Singles Championship – Bobby Riggs (USA) defeats Frank Kovacs (USA) 5–7, 6–1, 6–3, 6–3
- American Women's Singles Championship – Sarah Palfrey Cooke (USA) defeats Pauline Betz Addie (USA) 7–5, 6–2
Davis Cup
- 1941 International Lawn Tennis Challenge – not contested
Awards
- Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Joe DiMaggio, Major League Baseball
- Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Betty Hicks Newell, golf