Four was very much the magic number as far as Manchester City were concerned, James Anderson’s fine innings as a cricket ended with more than 700 Test wickets as 2024 is summed up in numbers
Looking at sport through numbers can sometimes be misleading, but other times it tells the entire story.
Manchester City fans will forever love the number four as they became the first team in English history to claim the top flight four years on the bounce. In their pursuit of their own legacy, that is one they can hold over Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United, whose best effort was three.
Away from the club game there was more heartbreak for England, who fell short in a major tournament again as 2024 spelled the end of Gareth Southgate’s immensely successful tenure. Losing to Spain means that the Three Lions hold one of the unwanted records in international football.
A week prior to that though and much of the nation saw Lewis Hamilton return to the top step of the podium in Northamptonshire. Silverstone has been the scene of some of his greatest triumphs and, after more than two years without a win, it seemed fitting that the Mercedes driver would claim one of the maddest races of the year.
Hamilton is a Sir following his exploits on and off the track. One of his compatriots who may one day match that achievement is James Anderson, otherwise known as Jimmy. He called time on his Test cricket career in the summer, going out in a fitting manner with the history books doing the talking for him.
We take a look at the last 365 days in numbers with some incredible, historic and perhaps unwanted stats depending on where your allegiances lie.
Football
4 – Manchester City won an unprecedented fourth straight Premier League title.
105 – Erling Haaland, who won his second successive Golden Boot, went on to complete a century of City goals in only 105 appearances in all competitions.
3 – all three promoted sides – Sheffield United, Burnley and Luton – suffered immediate relegation, for only the second time in a Premier League season.
104 – the Blades conceded a Premier League-record number of goals.
5 – Chelsea won a fifth successive Women’s Super League title ahead of manager Emma Hayes’ departure to take over the United States national team.
2 – England’s men reached, and lost, a second major final of Gareth Southgate ’s managerial reign at Euro 2024. He then resigned after 102 games in charge, third-most of any England manager behind Walter Winterbottom (139) and Sir Alf Ramsey (113).
15 – Real Madrid extended their record with a 15th Champions League or European Cup win.
1 – Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen lost only once in all competitions last season – in their 51st of 52 games, the Europa League final against Atalanta.
Olympics and Paralympics
1,000 – Great Britain won their 1,000th all-time Olympic medal, across summer and winter Games combined, with silver in the men’s team pursuit cycling.
65 – total medals for Team GB at the Paris Olympics, including 14 gold as they finished seventh on the medal table.
2 – Britain’s Paralympians then finished second behind China with 49 gold medals and 124 in all.
30 – Paralympic medals for Dame Sarah Storey after her two golds in Paris. Storey has won gold in all 14 Paralympic cycling events she has ever entered.
Cricket
12,472 – Sir Alastair Cook’s record as England’s all-time leading Test run-scorer was passed by Joe Root – with his Test-best innings of 262 against Pakistan in Multan.
704 – James Anderson’s final wicket tally as he retired from Test cricket in July. It is an England record and the most of any seamer in Test history.
Tennis
4 – Britain’s Alfie Hewett won the Wimbledon men’s wheelchair singles to complete the set of all four grand slam titles.
0 – Novak Djokovic went through a calendar year without winning a slam for the first time since 2017, as Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz won two apiece. Djokovic shares the all-time record of 24 with Margaret Court.
Formula One
4 – Max Verstappen won his fourth successive drivers’ title, only the sixth man to reach that tally.
9 – Lewis Hamilton won his ninth British Grand Prix, a record at a single event, to end a run of 56 races without a victory.
Rugby
3 – Ireland completed back-to-back title wins in the men’s Six Nations for only the third time. They have won the competition and its predecessors 24 times including shared titles.
10 – England won all 10 of their women’s internationals and have now won 50 of their last 51 games, the one exception being the 2022 World Cup final against New Zealand.
24 – Wigan Warriors won their 24th league title and seventh of the Super League era, beating Hull KR 9-2 in the Grand Final.
Other sports
16 – age of Luke Littler when he reached the PDC World Darts Championship final in January. He went on to win the Premier League, World Series and Grand Slam of Darts in a stunning first full professional season.
4 – American golfers won all four men’s majors – two for Xander Schauffele and one each for Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau – and have now won seven in a row since Spaniard Jon Rahm’s 2023 Masters triumph.
43 – Ronnie O’Sullivan became snooker’s oldest Masters champion, aged 43 – as well as still holding the record as the youngest, aged 19 when he won in 1995.
