Dozens of sports records seemingly fall every night, most of which don’t get much recognition. However, some records cause stoppages in play to occur so that athletes can be properly celebrated based on how difficult records are to break. Earlier in the 2023-2024 NBA season, LeBron James broke Kareem Abdul-Jabar’s all-time scoring record in the NBA. That record was once thought of as unreachable, but James pulled it off. Scoring consistently in the NBA is one of the most challenging things to do in sports.
Another all-time record that will be hard for any baseball player to beat is Joe DiMaggio’s 56 consecutive games with a hit. The greatest baseball players in history only get a hit in one out of every three at-bats, and that’s if they’re one of the greatest ever. Showing up to the ballpark without an off night for almost two straight months of playing is quite an impressive feat for DiMaggio.
Winning games is challenging to do at any level. The UConn women’s basketball team showed what true dominance over time looks like for fans. They won 111 consecutive games. This spans roughly two and a half years in women’s college basketball, including the tournament. Zero off nights for two and a half straight seasons shows how locked in and focused the team was, no matter which opponent was on the other side of the court. (For more sports content, click here to read about the most successful athletes from the 21st century.)
To compile this list of sports records that will probably never be broken, 24/7 Tempo consulted sports-related sources, including ESPN and CBS Sports.
Wayne Gretzky’s Career Points: 2,857
A common debate amongst sports fans is who the greatest player in each league is. For the most part, there are a couple of players in each league who boast legitimate arguments for being the best. That’s not the case in hockey, though. Every fan of the sport agrees that Wayne Gretzky is the best player ever – and his stats back it up. While he played in the 1980s and 90s, Gretzky established himself as a force to be reckoned with.
His career point total is arguably the greatest achievement of any athlete in any sport. During his Hall of Fame career, Gretzky amassed 2,857 career points. For reference, Jaromir Jagr is in second place with 1,921 career points. Gretzky almost has 1,000 more points than second place. What might be even more impressive is Gretzky’s 1,963 career assists. If you only counted Gretzky’s assists for his point total, he’d still be in first place. Nobody has ever dominated a sport like Gretzky did to hockey.
Cal Ripken Jr’s Consecutive Games Played Streak: 2,632
As an athlete, being ready and available to play every day takes incredible amounts of dedication. There’s an art to keeping your body in shape for a grueling season. While it might not seem like it, a lot of physical strain goes into playing baseball. Consider that these athletes are outside in hot weather for five hours per day every day. Then, think about them having to fly from city to city every few days.
Cal Ripken Jr. broke what was once thought to be an unbreakable record when he played in 2,632 straight games. For reference, there are 162 games in an MLB season. It would take a player more than 16 seasons of playing every game to catch this record. That means no injuries, no sickness, and no family emergencies. Ripken showed up every day for his job and wanted to put on a show for the fans, which is something he likely took great pride in.
Joe DiMaggio’s Hit Streak: 56
Hitting a baseball is arguably the hardest thing to do in professional sports. The greatest baseball players fail 70% of the time. However, for Joe DiMaggio, he was able to track the baseball unlike most hitters can. During the 1941 season, the New York Yankees legend got a hit in 56 straight games.
Pete Rose, the player with the most hits in MLB history, got a hit in 45 straight games. That was the longest recent streak in memory. It took place in 1978. In 2024, there’s been more emphasis put on players hitting home runs and for power, rather than getting on base. Unless players approach hitting the ball differently in the near future, there’s a high likelihood that this record won’t ever come close to being broken.
LeBron James’ Career Points: 40,409 and counting
Scoring in the NBA is more challenging than it might look watching the games… Unless you’re LeBron James, of course. The former teenage phenom has lived up to the hype surrounding him when he first came out of Akron, Ohio in 2003. He’s won four championships, four NBA Finals MVPs, and is the leading scorer in NBA history.
James has scored more than 40,000 points and he doesn’t appear to be stopping for the next season or so. He’s long talked about how he wants to play with his son, Bronny James, at some point. That would imply James is going to play at least the 2024-25 season in the NBA. For a player to break James’ scoring record now, they’d have to average 24 points per game for 20 straight seasons. Even though scoring is up in the NBA, the odds of someone having this longevity is not likely.
Bill Russell and Henri Richard’s Championships Won: 11
Winning is the goal for most athletes who step on the field or court of their respective sport. Each season, there can only be one team that calls themselves champions. Players put their bodies through tremendous strain to be the best they can be. Few athletes have ever won how Bill Russell and Henri Richard did.
During Russell’s playing career, he won 11 championships with the Boston Celtics. While there were less teams in the league, Russell was able to consistently deliver in the biggest moments. Richard played for the Montreal Canadiens, a face of the entire NHL. Like Russell, Richard didn’t have to compete with as many teams and players during his quest to win. He delivered as well, though. With how much parody there is in sports these days, there probably won’t be another athlete with 11 titles.
UCLA Men’s Basketball Consecutive Titles Won: 7
The late 1960s and early 1970s for the UCLA men’s basketball team was one of the highest of highs for any team in the history of sports. They dominated college basketball unlike how modern teams could fathom today. From 1967 to 1973, the Bruins won the NCAA tournament each season. Coach John Wooden recruited the best players each season to continue his stretch of dominance.
To illustrate how difficult that was, only two teams have won back-to-back titles since the 2000 season. Nobody’s won three straight, and even if they did, they still wouldn’t be halfway there. UCLA is considered one of the blue bloods in college basketball, and for good reason.
UConn Women’s Basketball Consecutive Winning Streak: 111
Women’s basketball has really taken off in the United States in 2024. Players like Angel Reese and Caitlyn Clark are the faces of the sport. Before them, the UConn women’s team was dominating year in and year out. It wasn’t a foregone conclusion they were going to win the title each year, but they were the heavy favorites each season. The team didn’t just show up come tournament time, though. They showed up in the regular season as well.
From 2014 to 2017, the UConn Huskies didn’t lose a game. They won 111 straight until losing to Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Final Four of the 2017 tournament by two points in overtime. Being mentally ready to play each night is hard for an athlete at any age, let alone college students who are juggling classwork as well. This record will likely stand forever.
Wilt Chamberlain’s Single Points in One Game: 100
While there’s some discrepancy over the legitimacy of this record, it’s still in the history books. On March 2, 1962, Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a single NBA game. There’s no video footage of it seen by anyone, and the only people who can corroborate the claim are those who were inside the building when it happened.
The closest player to score this many points in a game was Kobe Bryant when he put up 81 against the Toronto Raptors. In order for a player to score this many points in an NBA game, they’d have to be hot from the field and only take breaks during time-outs. Since there are 48 minutes in a single NBA game, not counting overtime, a player would have to score more than two points per minute.
Jerry Rice’s Career Receiving Yards: 22,895
Football has become much more about passing the ball rather than running it and playing good defense over the last two decades. However, Jerry Rice’s career receiving yards record likely won’t ever be broken. He’s considered by many to be the greatest non-quarterback to play offense in history. What’s even more impressive is that he gained these yards during a time where teams ran the ball more.
There are now 17 games in a season. In order to reach Rice’s career total of 22,895 receiving yards, a player would need to average 135 receiving yards per game if they played 10 seasons in the NFL, which is hard to do. Since football is a violent sport, most players don’t maintain careers that long. Finding a player who’s skilled enough to do that and stay healthy will be hard to do.
Ricky Henderson’s Career Stolen Bases: 1,406
Stealing bases in baseball is a great way to help your team win games. If you can get into scoring position without having to wait for another batter to come up, you make it more likely for your team to score a run. No baseball player in history was better at stealing bases than Rick Henderson. During his Hall of Fame career, he stole 1,406 bases. Nobody else in baseball history has even stolen 1,000 bases.
If a player were to steal a base in every single regular season game, of which there are 162 in a season, it would still take them more than eight seasons to match Henderson’s record. The best players steal around 50 bases per season. It would then take the best player more than 25 years to break this record, while maintaining that average. Henderson’s record will likely stand tall for the rest of time.
Simone Biles’ Gymnastics Gold Medals: 23
Preparing for gymnastics at the Olympic level starts when you’re five years old. After years of putting your body through the strain of training every day, only a select few get to make the United States team. Simone Biles is a gymnastics icon, and her gold medal record is further proof of that.
During her career, she won a total of 23 gold medals in the Olympic games. This record is going to be challenging for any gymnast to beat. For starters, many gymnasts only participate in two Olympics at the most. Their bodies go through so much training and the constant landing on the ground is hard on most people. Biles fought through and became a legend in the United States.
Michael Phelps’ Swimming Gold Medals in One Olympic Game: 8
Michael Phelps is considered the greatest swimmer in history by many people. There have been multiple studies done suggesting Phelps has the perfect physique to be a swimmer. His height, wingspan, and feet are all reasons why Phelps won several medals throughout his swimming career. However, the 2004 Olympic Games were different for Phelps.
Rather than focus on one or two different swim techniques, he wanted to do as many as he could to break Mark Spitz’s record for most gold medals in one Olympic Games by a swimmer. Phelps accomplished his goal as he won eight medals in one games. With so many athletes focusing on one type of swimming technique, it’s going to be hard for this record to be broken.
Emmitt Smith’s Career Rushing Yards: 18,355
The Dallas Cowboys were an unstoppable force in the 1990s thanks to players like Emmitt Smith. During that decade, Smith won three Super Bowls and established himself as one of the greatest players in history. His ability to run the ball and keep drives going was part of the reason the Cowboys had so much success.
During his career, Smith rushed for 18,355 yards. Considering NFL running backs usually don’t play more than five seasons at most, this is a record that likely won’t fall anytime soon. For a player entering the league, they’d need to average just under 108 yards per game consistently for 10 seasons. With how likely it is to be injured in the NFL as a running back, the odds of this record falling are slim.
Cy Young’s Career Complete Game Total: 749
In the early 1900s, MLB pitchers didn’t monitor their arms the same way they do in 2024. Because of this, players like Cy Young have countless records that seemingly will stay forever. The most impressive record is how many complete games Young threw in his career. A complete game is when the pitcher stays in for every out the other team makes. Usually, this involves throwing more pitches than a manager or team would like. The best pitchers throw two or three per year.
During his career, Young threw 749 complete games. If the average pitcher starts 30 games per season, every start they had would need to be a complete game for 19 straight seasons. It helped that Young started more games per season than most pitchers do today. This record won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
Wilt Chamberlain’s Average Points Per Game in One Season: 50.4
It’s hard to imagine how dominant Wilt Chamberlain was. Looking at his stats, most of them seem fake or made up. Kids playing video games struggle to do what Chamberlain was doing in real life every game. One of the best indicators for how dominant Chamberlain was on the court comes from the 1961-62 season. During that year, Chamberlain averaged 50.4 points per game.
This means that every game he played, his team could expect to get roughly 50 points from the center. Players in the NBA in 2024 average around 35 points per game, if they’re lucky. With offense being so lopsided and players still not even coming close to Chamberlain’s record, it’s safe to assume he will maintain it for a long time.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Losing Streak: 26
TAMPA, FL - OCTOBER 29: Jameis Winston #3 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fumbles the ball after being sacked by Julius Peppers #90 of the Carolina Panthers in the second quarter of a game at Raymond James Stadium on October 29, 2017 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
The goal for most athletes is to win every game they play. However, losing comes with the territory every so often. That is… unless you’re the 1976 and 1977 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Between both seasons, the Buccaneers lost 26 straight games, which is an NFL record. For a long time, the Buccaneers weren’t a good football team.
They had a quality stretch in the early 2000s where they won Super Bowl XXXVII. However, after that win, the team was irrelevant until Tom Brady came to town. He installed a winning culture among the team and made sure they were in good hands. Brady even helped them win a Super Bowl. The Buccaneers losing streak from the 70s likely won’t ever be broken.
Lance Armstrong Consecutive Wins at the Tour de France: 7
The physical and mental endurance it takes to ride in the Tour de France just once is high. Winning it seven straight times is almost an impossible feat. Lance Armstrong pulled that off for the world to see. Although he did use steroids to help himself physically, the mental side of what he went through for seven years is hard to quantify.
It’s not shocking an athlete leaned on steroids as a level of assistance to pull off the feat, and that’s exactly what Armstrong did. Over time, Armstrong has become an interesting figure in pop culture. His Livestrong wristbands were a popular item in the mid 2000s to wear before the steroids scandal was publicized. For more sports content, click here to read about the most embarrassing records in baseball history.