Bubbles, postponements ... and champions: Sports in 2020 brought challenges, triumphs
Sports in 2020 faced challenges that no labor or contract disputes could match.
With an NBA player's lax attitude toward the virus and his subsequent positive test in March, the sports world and nation essentially came to a screeching halt.
Here's a look back at what sports went through and a recap of how their seasons went in 2020.
NBA
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert’s positive COVID-19 test in March arguably was the catalyst for what became a nationwide crackdown to prevent the virus’ spread.
When news of Gobert testing positive came out March 11 — just before tipoff against the Oklahoma City Thunder — the NBA announced it would suspect its season indefinitely after that night’s games.
“The NBA will use this hiatus to determine next steps for moving forward in regard to the coronavirus pandemic.”
Gobert had been criticized for his apparent fearlessness over the virus. After a shootaround March 9, with reporters' microphones on stage with him but reporters themselves kept at a distance, Gobert touched every microphone on stage. He tested positive two days later.
It was months before teams got back together, and the NBA spearheaded a plan that was later used by the NHL and, in a modified form, by Major League Baseball.
The NBA went to a bubble format — a system by which teams would gather in one geographic location with no in-and-out privileges until players either decided to opt-out or their teams were eliminated.
The NBA season finally resumed July 30 at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando, Florida, with a “reseeding” tournament to decide playoff matchups. Teams were housed in Walt Disney World hotels, and players faced discipline for breaking protocols for leaving the confines of the bubble.
When the season continued, there were no other virus-related holdups. Players protesting in the wake of Jacob Blake’s shooting by police in Wisconsin stopped play for a few days in late August.
The Lebron James-led Los Angeles Lakers won the NBA title, defeating the Miami Heat in six games for the franchise’s 17th championship. It marked James’ fourth title, and he became the first player in NBA history to win one with three teams (Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers and Lakers).
It also marked a triumph for a franchise mourning the death of Kobe Bryant in a helicopter crash at the beginning of the year.
NHL
The NHL also paused its season March 12 as the coronavirus began its stranglehold on the country. The league was a little more than three weeks away from completing its regular-season and beginning the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
A little more than two months after pausing, the NHL announced in late May it would abandon its regular season and change its playoff format when the league restarted at a later date.
The league adopted a 24-team postseason format, including a round-robin, instead of its usual 16-team playoff.
Among the changes was the creation of a two-city bubble — one for the Eastern Conference and one for the Western Conference, both of which were in Canada, where the surge in COVID-19 cases was significantly lower than in the U.S. No fans were in attendance throughout.
Toronto, Canada’s largest city, hosted the Eastern Conference tournament. Edmonton hosted the Western Conference tournament and also the Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars. The Lightning won their second title, beating Dallas in six games.
MLB
Major League Baseball was slated to be the first league to begin its regular season during the pandemic. Teams had been amid Spring Training before the league shut down.
The league played a truncated schedule starting July 23, with a focus on in-division opponents. Teams played in their home ballparks, with no fans in attendance.
Teams flew from city to city but were under strict quarantining procedures, having to stay in hotel rooms and abide by masking rules around the parks.
The league and players’ union agreed to a 60-game schedule, a far cry from the usual 162-game slate.
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Shortly after the season began the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals had COVID-19 outbreaks, leading to a slew of schedule changes and numerous doubleheaders as the league grappled with how to ensure all teams played all of their games.
MLB instituted a 16-team postseason format for its shortened season, compared to its normal 10-team tournament.
MLB moved to a bubble format for the postseason, with Los Angeles, Houston, San Diego and Arlington, Texas, hosting games. Limited numbers of fans were allowed to attend. Fans were kept in packs and had to wear masks.
The Los Angeles Dodgers, often falling short of expectations the past decade despite having among the highest payrolls in MLB, broke through to win the World Series, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in six games.
Shortly after, the Dodgers and third baseman Justin Turner were scrutinized after Turner celebrated — maskless — with teammates after they were crowned champions. Turner had been removed from Game 6 after he was found to have tested positive for COVID-19. He and the Dodgers were not disciplined.
NFL
The Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory in February came just a little more than a month before the pandemic began its stranglehold on the country.
And aside from limited spring workouts and the cancellation of preseason games, the new NFL season remained largely unscathed by the pandemic, especially as compared to the other major sports.
Whether a limited number of fans were allowed inside stadiums depended on local regulations. The NFL did not adopt a “bubble” format. Teams played their games in their home stadiums with one exception: The San Francisco 49ers played two home games in Arizona because of regulations in Santa Clara County that put a temporary end to live sports.
Teams had their issues with outbreaks throughout the season, and a handful of games were postponed and the NFL jockeyed its schedule to keep things as close to normal as possible.
The New England Patriots, Tennessee Titans, Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens all had outbreaks within their facilities. The outbreaks caused game postponements, unscheduled bye weeks and even games on a Monday and Wednesday afternoon in an effort to avoid forfeitures or having to extend the season by a week.
Throughout the season, the NFL has altered its protocols, including limiting the amount of time players and staff can spend at team facilities and shutting down facilities when teams had positive tests.
"We cannot grow complacent — not the players, not the coaches, not the rest of personnel," Commissioner Roger Goodell said in October. "Ninety percent is not good enough in this environment."
Super Bowl LV is scheduled to be played Feb. 7, 2021, at Tampa Bay’s Raymond James Stadium.
College football and basketball
The college football season went through a disjointed period. The Big Ten conference, for example, originally planned not to play at all. It went back on that decision but did not play any games until November. Meanwhile, other conferences began playing, but dozens of postponed and canceled games due to COVID-19 protocols marred the season for some.
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Some conferences played truncated schedules, others scrambled to find new teams to play when their schedules opened up because of postponements.
Alabama coach Nick Saban was among high-profile people to test positive for COVID-19. Numerous NFL players-to-be opted out of the season, holding out for the NFL Combine in 2021 rather than risking injury or illness by playing this season.
In one of the biggest blows, the Washington Huskies were deemed ineligible to play in the Pac-12 championship game because they couldn’t field the minimum 53 scholarship players required to play. Positive cases and contact-tracing protocols put the Huskies below the required number of players for a specific position, as well.
Perhaps the biggest success in college football was the Sun Belt Conference. Only one out of 40 conference games didn't get played, and eight of 10 schools played a full, eight-game league schedule.
"I think this is a successful season. There's no question about it," Sun Belt Commissioner Keith Gill said. “We started the season knowing there would be disruption. We've kind of played through that disruption.”
The college basketball season has also seen its share of virus-related postponements and cancellations. The season began just as the country found itself in the throes of a startling surge in cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
A handful of men’s and women’s teams around the country put their seasons on hold amid outbreaks.
The NCAA has said it plans to host its normal 68-teams men’s basketball tournament in one location in the spring.
NASCAR
NASCAR was one of the first sports to return to its circuit, with restrictions. The season was suspended from March 16 until May 3.
When racing returned, teams had to limit the number of personnel working in their garages, there was no qualifying and no practice and in some weeks, there were multiple races. Fans were allowed at some races as the season progressed.
Future hall-of-famer and seven-time Cup Series champion Jimmie Johnson was the most notable driver to test positive for COVID-19. He missed one race — the first of his career — and expressed frustration after he tested negative twice in the days after the race, calling into question whether he received a false positive. He never experienced symptoms.
NASCAR also was at the forefront of racial tension in the aftermath of George Floyd's killing by Minneapolis police in May. A rope appearing to look like a noose was found in the garage area of Black driver Bubba Wallace at Talladega. An ensuing investigation discovered the rope had been there prior to Wallace's assignment to that garage.
NASCAR also made the decision to ban the confederate flag from track grounds and events.
The Cup Series ran its complete 36-race season. Chase Elliot, the 25-year-old son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Bill Elliot, won the Cup Series championship, taking the checkered flag at the season finale at Phoenix.
Other sports
The golf and soccer seasons weren’t spared during the pandemic.
In golf, the Open Championship, slated for mid-July in England, was canceled. The Masters, U.S. Open and PGA Championship were delayed. The Masters — usually the first major tournament of the season — was scheduled for April 9-12 but was played Nov. 12-15 at Augusta National in Georgia. Dustin Johnson won.
The PGA Championship scheduled for mid-May was played in early August. Collin Morikawa, 23, won by two strokes to win his first major. And in the U.S. Open, played in September instead of June, 27-year-old Bryson DeChambeau also won his first major.
Major League Soccer suspended its season from March 12 until July 8, when it held an “MLS is Back” tournament in Florida until Aug. 11. The regular season began the day after and ended Nov. 8. Columbus Crew SC defeated the Seattle Sounders, 3-0, to win the MLS Cup on Dec. 12.
The Associated Press contributed.