2025 was yet another year filled with sporting brilliance, especially notable for individuals and teams that won against the odds. From cricket to football and even chess, trophy droughts were ended, records were broken, and history was made.

Sportstar takes a look at the 10 best maiden wins and performances of the year:

Lando Norris becomes F1 champion

After 17 long years, Lando Norris delivered McLaren its first Formula One drivers’ crown after a gritty third-place finish in the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi. Norris, who became Britain’s 11th Formula One world champion, ended the season with 423 points, with four-time reigning champion Max Verstappen on 421 and teammate Oscar Piastri on 410.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru wins IPL

Royal Challengers Bangaluru captain Rajat Patidar lifts the IPL trophy, surrounded by teammates, after beating Punjab Kings in the final.
| Photo Credit:
VIJAY SONEJI

After 17 years and 286 games, Royal Challengers Bengaluru lifted the Indian Premier League trophy by beating Punjab Kings by six runs in the final. Following defeats in the final in the 2009, 2011, and 2016 editions, the Rajat Patidar-led side went through the campaign with all the ingredients of a champion side, finishing second in the league stage with nine wins and four losses before beating PBKS in the qualifier 1 and final.

Indian women’s cricket team wins ICC ODI World Cup

Indian women’s team captain carries the ODI World Cup trophy towards her teammates after beating South Africa in the final.
| Photo Credit:
EMMANUAL YOGINI

The Indian women’s team created history as it beat South Africa by 52 runs in the Women’s ODI World Cup 2025 final to clinch a maiden ICC crown.

A bit of fortune helped the team scrape through to the knockout stage, but what followed was nothing short of brilliance.

The women in blue stunned giant Australia in the semifinal, thanks to Jemimah Rodrigues and Harmanpreet Kaur, before late replacement Shafali Verma and Player of the Tournament Deepti Sharma stepped up in the final and helped them cross the barrier that had stopped them in 2005 and 2017.

India wins Blind Women’s T20 Cricket World Cup

India’s players pose with the trophy after winning against Nepal at the Blind Women’s Twenty20 World Cup 2025 final match in the P. Saravanamuttu Stadium in Colombo.
| Photo Credit:
AFP

Days after the senior women’s cricket team lifted the World Cup, India won the inaugural Blind Women’s T20 World Cup in Colombo after defeating Nepal in the final.

Paris Saint-Germain wins UEFA Champions League

PSG’s Marquinhos holds up the trophy as he celebrates with his teammates after winning the Champions League final against Inter Milan.
| Photo Credit:
AP

More than a decade after its Qatari takeover, Paris Saint-Germain finally got its hands on the UEFA Champions League trophy after thrashing Inter Milan 5-0 in the final—the biggest win ever in a summit clash in the tournament.

The title helped the Parisians complete the treble and become only the second French club, after Marseille in 1993, to secure the title. Additionally, Luis Enrique became only the second manager (after Pep Guardiola) to win the treble twice, having won it previously with Barcelona in 2015.

Divya Deshmukh wins FIDE Women’s World Cup

FIDE Women’s World Cup champion Divya Deshmukh poses with her trophy and medal.
| Photo Credit:
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Nineteen-year-old Divya Deshmukh became the first Indian to win the FIDE Women’s World Cup 2025 after beating compatriot Koneru Humpy in the final.

It was a fairytale finish for the girl from Nagpur, who prevailed 2.5-1.5 after the two classical-format games ended in draws. With the win, Divya became India’s 88th Grandmaster and only the fourth woman from the country to achieve this status.

Neeraj Chopra crosses the 90m mark

The 90.23m throw is India’s National Record mark.
| Photo Credit:
PTI

Neeraj Chopra broke the 90m barrier for the first time in his career, with a throw of 90.23 at the Doha Diamond League.

The two-time Olympic medallist recorded 90.23m in his third attempt during the javelin final at the event. However, on the night, Neeraj had to settle for second place after finishing behind Germany’s Julian Weber, who recorded 91.06m.

Vaibhav Suryavanshi announces himself to the world

With a knock of 101 runs off 38 balls, Rajasthan Royals’ Vaibhav Suryavanshi scored the second-fastest century in IPL history.
| Photo Credit:
SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

Teenage batting sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi made his mark in the cricket world when he featured for Rajasthan Royals during IPL 2025. The 14-year-old became the youngest centurion in men’s T20 cricket in just his third match with a 101-run knock off 38 balls—the second-fastest century in IPL history.

Furthermore, he blasted an unbeaten 108 off 61 balls for Bihar against Maharashtra in the SMAT 2025, becoming the youngest player ever to record a century in the tournament’s history.

In Bihar’s first game of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Suryavanshi smashed 190 runs off just 84 balls against Arunachal Pradesh. Towards the end of the year, he was conferred the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar by President Droupadi Murmu.

Oklahoma City Thunder wins NBA title

This was Oklahoma City Thunder’s first NBA title since its relocation from Seattle to Oklahoma in 2008.
| Photo Credit:
AP

Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 of the NBA 2025 Finals for the first title of its short history.

Powered by general manager Sam Presti and regular season and Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder managed a 68-win regular season before beating Memphis Grizzlies, Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, and the Pacers to clinch the championship.

Crystal Palace wins FA Cup for its first-ever trophy

Marc Guehi and Joel Ward of Crystal Palace lift the FA Cup trophy after their team’s victory in the FA Cup final against Manchester City.
| Photo Credit:
Getty Images

Premier League club Crystal Palace secured the first major trophy of its 164-year-old history after beating Manchester City 1-0 in the FA Cup final.

Local boy Eberechi Eze scored just 16 minutes into the game as Oliver Glasner’s men held off the seven-time winner City to create history.

Published on Dec 30, 2025