1990 in sports

• Alpine Skiing World Cup
  • Men's overall season champion: Pirmin Zurbriggen, Switzerland

• January 1 – Sugar Bowl (1989 season):
  • The Miami Hurricanes won 33-25 over the Alabama Crimson Tide to win the national championship
• January 28 – Super Bowl XXIV – San Francisco 49ers won 55-10 over the Denver Broncos
• November 11 – Derrick Thomas has 7 sacks for Kansas City Chiefs against Seattle Seahawks.

• West Germany won the Football World Cup in Rome, Italy, defeating defending champion Argentina 1-0 in the final.
• Ecuador – Ecuadorian Serie A Champions: Liga Deportiva Universitaria de Quito

• 1990 Commonwealth Games held in Auckland, New Zealand
• 1990 European Athletics Championships held in Split, SR Croatia, Yugoslavia

• Australian Football League
  • The Victorian Football League is renamed the Australian Football League
  • Collingwood wins the 94th AFL premiership (Collingwood 13.11 (89) to Essendon 5.11 (41))
  • Brownlow Medal awarded to Tony Liberatore (Footscray)

• March 17 – Taiwan Professional Baseball League, a first official game held.
• June 11 – Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers pitched a no-hitter against the Oakland Athletics.
• The Cincinnati Reds sweep the Oakland A's in the World Series.
• Ira Smith becomes the first player in NCAA history to win consecutive batting titles after hitting .519 with the Maryland Eastern Shore Hawks.

NBA Finals

• Detroit Pistons win four games to one over the Portland Trail Blazers

National Basketball League (Australia) Finals

• Perth Wildcats defeated the Brisbane Bullets 2-1 in the best-of-three final series.

Events

• UNLV wins the NCAA Division I Men's championship
• Yugoslavia wins the FIBA World Championship.
• March 4 – American player Hank Gathers died after collapsing during the semifinals of a West Coast Conference Tournament game.[1]

• February 11 – Buster Douglas defeated Mike Tyson by a knockout in round 10 to win the world's unified Heavyweight title, in what many consider boxing's biggest upset ever.
• March 31 – Thunder Meets Lightning: Julio César Chávez defeated Meldrick Taylor to unify boxing's world junior welterweight title
• September 22 to October 7 – Asian Games held in Beijing, China
• November 24 to December 3 – Central American and Caribbean Games held in Mexico City

• Grey Cup – Winnipeg Blue Bombers 50-11 over the Edmonton Eskimos
• Vanier Cup – Saskatchewan Huskies win 24-21 over the St. Mary's Huskies

• Giro d'Italia won by Gianni Bugno of Italy
• Tour de France – Greg LeMond of the United States
• UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race – Rudy Dhaenens of Belgium

• Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Champion –
  • Susan Butcher won with lead dogs: Sluggo & Lightning

• Phil Taylor (darts player) wins his first world title

• Men's World Cup held in Lahore won by the Netherlands
• Men's Champions Trophy held in Melbourne won by Australia
• Women's World Cup held in Sydney won by the Netherlands

• World Figure Skating Championships –
  • Men's champion: Kurt Browning, Canada
  • Ladies' champion: Jill Trenary, United States
  • Pair skating champions: Ekaterina Gordeeva & Sergei Grinkov, Soviet Union
  • Ice dancing champions: Marina Klimova / Sergei Ponomarenko, Soviet Union

• Camogie
  • All-Ireland Camogie Champion: Kilkenny
  • National Camogie League: Kilkenny
• Gaelic football
  • All-Ireland Senior Football Championship – Cork 0-11 died Meath 0-9
  • National Football League – Meath 2-7 died Down 0-11
• Ladies' Gaelic football
  • All-Ireland Senior Football Champion: Kerry
  • National Football League: Kerry
• Hurling
  • All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship – Cork 5-15 died Galway 2-21
  • National Hurling League –

Men's professional

• Masters Tournament – Nick Faldo
• U.S. Open – Hale Irwin
• British Open – Nick Faldo
• PGA Championship – Wayne Grady
• PGA Tour money leader – Greg Norman – $1,165,477
• Senior PGA Tour money leader – Lee Trevino – $1,190,518

Men's amateur

• British Amateur – Rolf Muntz
• U.S. Amateur – Phil Mickelson
• European Amateur – Klas Erikson

Women's professional

• Nabisco Dinah Shore – Betsy King
• U.S. Women's Open – Betsy King
• LPGA Championship – Beth Daniel
• Classique du Maurier – Cathy Johnston-Forbes
• LPGA Tour money leader – Beth Daniel – $863,578
• The inaugural Solheim Cup match was won by the United States who beat Europe 11½ – 4½

• North America Cup – Apaches Fame
• United States Pacing Triple Crown races –
  1. Cane Pace – Jake And Elwood
  2. Little Brown Jug – Beach Towel
  3. Messenger Stakes – Jake And Elwood
• United States Trotting Triple Crown races –
  1. Hambletonian – Harmonious
  2. Yonkers Trot -
  3. Kentucky Futurity – Star Mystic
• Australian Inter Dominion Harness Racing Championship –
  • Pacers: Thorate
  • Trotters: Real Force

Steeplechases

• Cheltenham Gold Cup – Norton's Coin
• Grand National – Mr Frisk

Flat races

• Australia – Melbourne Cup won by Kingston Rule
• Canadian Triple Crown Races:
  1. Queen's Plate – Izvestia
  2. Prince of Wales Stakes – Izvestia
  3. Breeders' Stakes – Izvestia
  • For the second straight year, a horse sweeps the series.
• France – Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe won by Saumarez
• Ireland – Irish Derby Stakes won by Salsabil
• Japan – Japan Cup won by Better Loosen Up
• English Triple Crown Races:
  1. 2,000 Guineas Stakes – Tirol
  2. The Derby – Quest for Fame
  3. St. Leger Stakes – Snurge
• United States Triple Crown Races:
  1. Kentucky Derby – Unbridled
  2. Preakness Stakes – Summer Squall
  3. Belmont Stakes – Go and Go
• Breeders' Cup World Thoroughbred Championships:
  1. Breeders' Cup Classic – Unbridled
  2. Breeders' Cup Distaff – Bayakoa
  3. Breeders' Cup Juvenile – Fly So Free
  4. Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies – Meadow Star
  5. Breeders' Cup Mile – Royal Academy
  6. Breeders' Cup Sprint – Safely Kept
  7. Breeders' Cup Turf – In the Wings

• Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading scorer during the regular season: Wayne Gretzky, Los Angeles Kings
• Hart Memorial Trophy for the NHL's Most Valuable Player: Mark Messier, Edmonton Oilers
• Stanley Cup – Edmonton Oilers won 4 games to 1 over the Boston Bruins
• World Hockey Championship
  • Men's champion: Soviet Union defeated Sweden
  • Junior Men's champion: Canada defeated Soviet Union
  • Women's champion: in the inaugural event, Canada defeated United States

• The 6th World Lacrosse Championship is held in Perth, Australia. The United States win, and Canada is the runner-up.
• The Philadelphia Wings beat the New England Blazers 17-7 in the Major Indoor Lacrosse League Championship.
• The Brooklin Redmen win the Mann Cup.
• Orangeville wins the Founders Cup.
• The St. Catharines Athletics win the Minto Cup.

• The first World Radiosport Team Championship held in Seattle, United States Gold medals won by John Dorr K1AR and Doug Grant K1DG of the United States.
• Fifth Amateur Radio Direction Finding World Championship held in Štrbské Pleso, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia).

• 1990–91 French Championship season
• 1990 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France
• 1990 New Zealand rugby league season
• 1990 NSWRL season
• 1990 Pacific Cup
• 1989–90 Rugby Football League season / 1990–91 Rugby Football League season
• 1990 State of Origin series
• 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup

• 96th Five Nations Championship series is won by Scotland who complete the Grand Slam

• World Snooker Championship – Stephen Hendry beats Jimmy White 18-12
• World rankings – Stephen Hendry becomes world number one for 1990/91

• March 24 – Tom Jager betters his own world record (22.12) in the 50m freestyle (long course) twice at a swimming meet in Nashville, Tennessee, swimming 21.98 in the heats and 21.81 in the final.

• Grand Slam in tennis men's results:
  1. Australian Open – Ivan Lendl
  2. French Open – Andrés Gómez
  3. Wimbledon championships – Stefan Edberg
  4. US Open – Pete Sampras
• Grand Slam in tennis women's results:
  1. Australian Open – Steffi Graf
  2. French Open – Monica Seles
  3. Wimbledon championships – Martina Navratilova
  4. US Open – Gabriela Sabatini
• Davis Cup – United States won 3-2 over Australia in world tennis.

• ITU World Championships held in Orlando, United States
• ETU European Championships held in Linz, Austria

• FIVB World League 1990 held in Osaka, Japan won by Italy
• 1990 FIVB Men's World Championship held in Rio de Janeiro won by Italy
• 1990 FIVB Women's World Championship held in Beijing won by USSR

• Asian Games held in Beijing, China
• Winter Asian Games held in Sapporo, Japan
• Central American and Caribbean Games held in Mexico City, Mexico
• Commonwealth Games held in Auckland
• Summer Goodwill Games held in Seattle, United States

• Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year – Joe Montana, National Football League
• Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year – Beth Daniel, LPGA golf
• BBC Overseas Sports Personality of the Year – Mal Meninga, Australian rugby league footballer