Sport

Popular Sports in the UK

• Cricket — originated in England; played widely in Commonwealth countries
• Football (soccer) — the most popular sport in the UK
• Rugby — both Rugby Union and Rugby League; originated in England
• Tennis — played at all levels; Wimbledon is the most famous tournament
• Golf — the famous St Andrews course is in Scotland
• Horse racing — popular with events like the Grand National and Royal Ascot

Major Sporting Events

Event	Sport	Location/Details
The Ashes	Cricket	Test series between England and Australia
Wimbledon	Tennis	Oldest tennis tournament in the world
The Grand National	Horse racing	Held at Aintree, Liverpool
The Six Nations	Rugby	Annual tournament: England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, Italy
The FA Cup	Football	Oldest football competition in the world
Royal Ascot	Horse racing	Famous horse racing event attended by the Royal Family

Notable Athletes

• Sir Roger Bannister — first person to run a mile in under four minutes (1954)
• Sir Bobby Moore — captain of England's 1966 World Cup-winning football team
• Mary Peters — won Olympic gold in the pentathlon (1972); promoted sport in Northern Ireland
• Sir Steve Redgrave — won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games (rowing)
• Dame Kelly Holmes — won two gold medals in athletics at the 2004 Olympics
• Sir Mo Farah — won gold in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the 2012 Olympics
• Sir Andy Murray — won Wimbledon and Olympic gold medals in tennis
• Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill — won gold in the heptathlon at the 2012 Olympics
• Sir Chris Hoy — won multiple Olympic gold medals in cycling

Key Facts

• The rules of many sports were first developed in the UK
• The UK hosted the Olympic Games in 1908, 1948, and 2012 (London)
• The Paralympics are also held alongside the Olympic Games