American Football
- January 3 – Tony Dorsett sets NFL record for longest run from scrimmage by rushing for 99 yard touchdown.
- January 26 – death of Paul "Bear" Bryant, noted college football coach
- Super Bowl XVII – The Washington Redskins win their first Super Bowl title, and first NFL title since 1942, 27-17 over the Miami Dolphins.
- The Miami Hurricanes win their first national championship over the Nebraska Cornhuskers 31-30 in the Orange Bowl.
- Michigan Panthers win United States Football League Championship, 24-22 over Philadelphia Stars
- October 31 – death of George Halas, Chicago Bears founder and coach
Read more about this topic: 1983 In Sports
Famous quotes containing the words american and/or football:
“The Americans are violently oral.... That’s why in America the mother is all-important and the father has no position at all—isn’t respected in the least. Even the American passion for laxatives can be explained as an oral manifestation. They want to get rid of any unpleasantness taken in through the mouth.”
—W.H. (Wystan Hugh)
“You can’t be a Real Country unless you have A BEER and an airline—it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a BEER.”
—Frank Zappa (1940–1993)