The true beauty of sports lies in its uncertainty. Time and again, teams have defied the odds to pull off extraordinary upsets. Here are some iconic examples of the biggest upsets we have seen in the past.
The Miracle on Ice
‘Do you believe in miracles?’ asked iconic commentator Al Michaels, and in that moment, the world did. The underdog U.S. ice hockey team shocked the world by beating the Soviet Union 4-3 in the medal round of the 1980 Winter Olympics.
No sports betting sites today would have offered short odds for the Americans to win, but a determined Team USA pulled off the unthinkable against a star-studded USSR side.
Just days before the game, the Soviets, who had ruled Olympic hockey for years, had destroyed the American side 10-3 in a friendly match. The outcome was therefore highly unexpected and often regarded as the greatest surprise in sports history.
Super Bowl III
Riding a strong 1968 season, the NFL champion Baltimore Colts were clear favorites going into Super Bowl III vs the underdog New York Jets.
After all, the side had destroyed the AFL in the first two Super Bowls and they were the reigning NFL champions. Still, Joe Namath, the Jets' assured young quarterback, famously promised a victory despite the seeming impossible odds.
It didn’t take long after kickoff at the Orange Bowl for everyone to realize Namath meant business.
By beating the Colts 16-7, the Jets delivered a major blow to NFL supremacy and paved the way for the AFL-NFL merger that gave us the NFL we know today.
Buster Douglas KOs Mike Tyson
When Mike Tyson met Buster Douglas in February 1990, he entered the ring as a 42-to-1 favorite and anticipated to sail to his 38th win. But in one of boxing's most incredible upsets, Douglas knocked Tyson out in the 10th round.
Three years earlier, Douglas had been knocked out by Tony Tucker and was sent to the undercard when Tyson beat Michael Spinks.
Losing his heavyweight titles and spending the following six years trying to recover his world champion status, Tyson found the loss a significant setback for his reign at the top of the sport.
Nuggets Beat Sonics in 1994 NBA playoffs
The Denver Nuggets made history in the NBA with an unforgettable upset over the Seattle SuperSonics during the first round of the Western Conference Playoffs.
The eighth-seeded Nuggets, with only a 42-40 record, surprised by coming back from a 2-0 series deficit to beat the Sonics on their home floor in Game 5.
This win was a historic first: the first time in an NBA playoff series a No. 8 seed has ever defeated a No. 1 seed.
The Mets Win the 1969 World Series
Going into the 1969 season, the New York Mets were far from being contenders. The team had never concluded a season with a winning record since its founding in 1962. In fact, their 120 losses in that first year remain an MLB record.
The Mets had ended the previous season in ninth place, claiming just 73 victories. And to start off the new season, they suffered a defeat to the expansion Montreal Expos on Opening Day.
But a remarkable campaign set them up with a World Series meeting with American League champions, the Baltimore Orioles.
The Orioles won the opening match of the series, as expected, and seemed to be on course to become the champions. But the Mets won four matches in a row to seal the series 4-1 and become World Series champions for the first time in history.
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