Winning streak (sports)

In sports, a winning streak refers to a consecutive number of games won. A winning streak can be held by a team, as in baseball, football, basketball, hockey, or by an individual, as in tennis. A winning streak that extends through a single season is known as a perfect season.

The longest winning streak in any professional sports may have been Jahangir Khan's 555 consecutive wins in squash from 1981 to 1986. Currently, Esther Vergeer is on a 418-match winning streak in wheelchair tennis since January 30, 2003, which included a streak of 250 consecutive sets won.

A winning streak is not to be confused with an unbeaten streak, where teams can tie as well as win and keep their streak. For example, if a football team wins four games in a row, plays a draw, wins three more, plays two draws in a row, and then loses, they had a 10-game unbeaten streak. Their longest winning streak in this sequence was four. If a sports league declares overtime losses different from regulation losses in that they are scored like ties (such as ice hockey leagues where there is both a 4-on-4 overtime and a penalty shootout to break ties), an unbeaten streak (unlike a winning streak) continues if at the end of regulation, the game is tied. This is because losses in overtime and shootout are declared regulation ties, and teams accumulate one point for the draw. As such, if a team wins four consecutive games, then loses two consecutive games in overtime, then loses in a shootout, and then wins three consecutive games, that team has a ten-game unbeaten streak (seven wins and three ties at the end of regulation).

Men's 3m Springboard
11 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1972 Munich, West Germany

Men's 10m Platform
7 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1956 Melbourne, Australia

Women's 3m Springboard
8 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1960 Rome, Italy

Women's 3m Springboard
5 consecutive titles at World Championships — Guo Jingjing
 * Streak started 2001 Fukuoka, Japan
 * Retired, 2011

Note: gold medalist in the same event at Athens and Beijing Olympics

Women's 3m Springboard Synchro
5 consecutive titles at World Championships — Guo Jingjing
 * Streak started 2001 Fukuoka, Japan
 * Retired, 2011

Note: gold medalist in the same event at Athens and Beijing Olympics

Women's 10m Springboard Synchro
5 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 2001 Fukuoka, Japan

Men's 4×100m Medley Relay
12 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA Note: excluding boycotted Moscow Olympics
 * Streak started 1960 Rome, Italy (Inaugural Competition)

Women's 4×100m Freestyle Relay
6 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA Note: excluding boycotted Moscow Olympics
 * Streak started 1960 Rome, Italy
 * Streak ended 1988 Seoul, South Korea

Men's 4×100m Freestyle Relay
8 consecutive titles at World Championships — USA
 * Streak started 1973 Belgrade, Yugoslavia
 * Streak ended 2001 Fukuoka, Japan

College (USA)
31 consecutive NCAA Men's Division III titles — Kenyon College
 * Streak started 1980
 * Streak ended 2011

Synchronized Swimming
6 consecutive World Championships team titles — Russia
 * Streak started 1998 Perth, Australia

Women's Team
6 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — South Korea
 * Streak started 1988 Seoul, South Korea (Inaugural Team Competition)

5 consecutive world championships titles — South Korea
 * Streak started 2001 Beijing, China

Men's 400m Hurdles
122 races — Edwin Moses Note: this streak included an Olympic gold medal and two improvements of his own world records.
 * Streak started September 2, 1977 Düsseldorf, West Germany
 * Streak ended June 4, 1987 Madrid, Spain (second to Danny Harris)

Long-distance running
75 races — Emil Zatopek
 * Streak started 26 September 1948 (10,000 m race in Bucharest)
 * Streak ended 11 July 1951 (second place in a 3000 m race in Prague)

Men's Discus Throw
4 consecutive Olympic titles — Al Oerter
 * Streak started 1956 Melbourne, Australia
 * Streak ended 1976 Montreal, Canada

Men's Long Jump
65 consecutive competitions - Carl Lewis
 * Ended by Mike Powell when he jumped his 8.95M world record during the 1991 World Championships

4 consecutive Olympic titles — Carl Lewis
 * Streak started 1984 Los Angeles, USA
 * Streak ended 2000, Sydney, Australia

8 consecutive Olympic titles — USA
 * Streak started 1924 Paris, France
 * Streak ended 1964 Tokyo, Japan

Men's Pole Vault
6 consecutive World Championships — Sergey Bubka
 * Streak started 1983 Helsinki, Finland
 * Streak ended 1999 Seville, Spain

16 consecutive Olympic titles — USA
 * Streak started 1896 Athens, Greece
 * Streak ended 1972 Munich, West Germany

Men's Cross Country
5 consecutive World Championships (tie)


 * Paul Tergat
 * Streak started 1995, Durham, United Kingdom
 * Streak ended 2000, Vilamoura, Portugal


 * Kenenisa Bekele
 * Streak started 2002, Dublin, Ireland
 * Streak ended 2007, Mombasa, Kenya

Men's 110 Meter Hurdles
9 consecutive Olympic titles — USA
 * Streak started 1932 Los Angeles, USA
 * Streak ended 1976 Montreal, Canada

Men's High Jump
8 consecutive Olympic titles — USA
 * Streak started 1896 Athens, Greece
 * Streak ended 1932 Los Angeles, USA

Men's 4×100m Relay
8 consecutive Olympic titles — USA
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1960 Rome, Italy

Men's 3000m Steeplechase
7 consecutive Olympic titles - Kenya
 * Streak started 1984 Los Angeles, USA

Women's high jump
140 to 150 competitions — Iolanda Balaş Note: this streak included 2 Olympic gold medals and 14 improvements of the world record.
 * Streak started December 1956
 * Streak ended June 1967

Formula One
7 wins — Michael Schumacher
 * Streak started May 30, 2004
 * Streak ended August 29, 2004

World Rally Championship
7 consecutive World Championships — Sébastien Loeb
 * Streak started 2004

NASCAR Cup Series
10 wins — 1967 Richard Petty

Note: Many NASCAR Cup Series records are differentiated between pre-1972 and post-1972 records. Three major changes were made for that season:
 * The schedule was shortened from 48 to 31 races. (The Sprint Cup Series now has 36 races.)
 * All dirt track races were removed from the schedule; since then, almost all Cup Series races have been held on oval tracks, with the remainder on road courses.
 * A minimum race distance was established — originally 250 miles (402.3 km), later shortened to 300 km (186.4 miles).

Many NASCAR streaks came when the series had shorter races — some were under 100 miles. As a result, some NASCAR records are differentiated that way, similar to the NBA differentiating "fewest points" records with pre and post-1954 records, when the 24-second shot clock was introduced.

4 wins (tie) (length of shortest race, in miles, in brackets):
 * Post-1972

- 1976 Cale Yarborough (216.8)

- 1981 Darrell Waltrip (250)

- 1987 Dale Earnhardt (250)

- 1991 Harry Gant (250)

- 1992 Bill Elliott (300)

- 1993 Mark Martin (220.5)

- 1998 Jeff Gordon (220.5)

- 2007 Jimmie Johnson (263)

Note: In seven of the eight instances, at least one of the wins was in a 500-mile race. Mark Martin's 1993 streak ended at Darlington, where the Mountain Dew Southern 500 was stopped 16 laps early because of darkness.

Olympics
7 Consecutive Men's titles at Olympic Games — USA
 * Streak started 1936 Berlin, Germany
 * Streak ended 1972 Munich, West Germany

NBA
33 games — 1971-1972 Los Angeles Lakers
 * Streak started November 5, 1971 (defeated Baltimore Bullets, 110-106)
 * Streak ended January 7, 1972 (ended by Milwaukee Bucks, 104-120)

All games
90 games — Connecticut
 * Streak started November 18, 2008 (defeated Georgia Tech 82–71)
 * Streak ended December 30, 2010 (defeated by Stanford 59-71)

Note: The Wayland Baptist University women's basketball team achieved a winning streak of 131 games which started November 7, 1953 and ended March 20, 1958 (ended by Nashville Business School 42-46). However, a national organizing structure for women's intercollegiate basketball did not exist until the AIAW was established in 1971; the NCAA did not begin organizing women's sports until 1981. Wayland Baptist instead played in competitions sponsored by the Amateur Athletic Union.

Regular-season games only
By NCAA convention, the "regular season" does not include games in conference tournaments or in any national postseason tournament.

71 games — Connecticut
 * Streak started February 9, 2008 (defeated Seton Hall 82-36)
 * Streak ended December 30, 2010 (defeated by Stanford 59-71)

All games
88 games — UCLA
 * Streak started January 30, 1971 (defeated UC Santa Barbara 74-61) following 82-89 loss to Notre Dame, January 23, 1971
 * Streak ended January 19, 1974 (ended by Notre Dame 70–71)

Regular-season games only
By NCAA convention, the "regular season" does not include games in conference tournaments or in any national postseason tournament.

74 games — UCLA
 * This streak was a subset of UCLA's overall winning streak of 88 games, with the same starting and ending date

An interesting streak is The University of North Carolina's home winning streak over Clemson University. Clemson is 0-55 in such games, never once beating the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill. The streak started in 1926.

Men
9 consecutive World Cup titles — Cuba
 * Streak started 1984 Havana, Cuba
 * Streak ended 2007 Taipei, Taiwan

Women
7 consecutive World Championships — USA
 * Streak started 1986 Auckland, New Zealand

By a team
26 games — New York Giants
 * Streak started September 7, 1916 (defeated Brooklyn Dodgers, 4-1)
 * Streak ended September 30, 1916 (ended by Boston Braves, 3-8)

Note: The Giants tied the Pirates in the second game of a doubleheader 1-1 on September 18, 1916. Major League Baseball excludes all games which end in ties from their official statistics. The longest winning streak without ties in Major League Baseball is 21 games, achieved by the Chicago Cubs in 1935. The Oakland Athletics hold the American League record at 20 games, set in 2002.

By a pitcher
24 consecutive winning decisions — Carl Hubbell, New York Giants
 * Streak started July 17, 1936 (defeated Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-0)
 * Streak ended May 30, 1937 (ended by Brooklyn Dodgers, 3-10)

Note: Hubbell's streak was achieved in 27 games as he also pitched three no-decisions. In baseball, only losing decisions can end winning streaks by pitchers.

NCAA Division I
34 games (tie):


 * Texas
 * Streak started February 18, 1977 (defeated Texas Wesleyan 3-1)
 * Streak ended March 26, 1977 (defeated by Rice 3-4)


 * Florida Atlantic
 * Streak started February 19, 1999 (defeated Clemson 3-0)
 * Streak ended March 17, 1999 (defeated by Florida 9-4)

NCAA Division II
46 games — 2000 Savannah State University

NCAA Division III
44 games — 2008 Trinity College (Connecticut)

NAIA
41 games — 1990 Point Park College (Pittsburgh, PA)

Test
16 matches — Australia
 * Streak started October 17, 1999 (defeated Zimbabwe by 10 wickets at Harare) (scorecard)
 * Streak ended March 15, 2001 (lost to India by 171 runs at Calcutta) (scorecard)

Note: Australia equalled this record with another 16 wins in a row from December 2005 until January 2008.

ODI
21 matches — Australia
 * Streak started January 11, 2003 (defeated England by 7 runs at Hobart) (scorecard)
 * Streak ended May 25, 2003 (lost to West Indies by 31 runs at Port of Spain) (scorecard)

World Cup
25 matches — Australia
 * Streak started June 20, 1999 (defeated Pakistan by 8 wickets at Lord's) (scorecard)


 * Streak ended March 5, 2011 (no result against Sri Lanka at Colombo) (scorecard)

Twenty20 International
8 matches - England
 * Streak started May 6 2010 (defeated Pakistan by 6 wickets at Bridgetown) (scorecard)
 * Streak ended January 14 2011 (lost to Australia by 4 runs at Melbourne) (scorecard)

International Cricket (All Forms)
20 matches (17 ODIs and 3 tests) - Australia
 * Streak started January 11, 2003 (defeated England by 7 runs in an ODI at Hobart) (scorecard)
 * Streak ended May 13, 2003 (lost to West Indies by 3 wickets in a test match at St John's) (scorecard)

Domestic or Club Twenty20
25 matches - Sialkot Stallions (Pakistan)
 * Streak started February 24, 2006 (defeated Lahore Eagles by 8 wickets at Karachi) (scorecard)
 * Streak ended October 14, 2010 (lost to Rawalpindi Rams by 13 runs at Lahore) (scorecard)

Professional
87 — Julio César Chávez (light welterweight) Note: After two more wins Chávez lost to Frankie Randall on 29 January 1994 to end an unbeaten streak of 90 matches.
 * Streak started 5 February 1980 (defeated Andres Felix) (Chávez's first professional bout)
 * Streak ended 10 September 1993 (draw with Pernell Whitaker)

Longest unbeaten streak

103 — Jimmy Wilde (flyweight) Note: all fights were in the UK against boxers of the UK. The records for international fights are:
 * Streak started 26 December 1910 (defeated Les Williams) (Wilde's first professional bout)
 * Streak ended 25 January 1915 (defeated by Tancy Lee)

93 — Pedro Carrasco (lightweight)
 * Streak started 22 April 1964 (defeated Giuliano Scatolini)
 * Streak ended 18 February 1972 (defeated by Mando Ramos)

91 — Sugar Ray Robinson (middleweight)
 * Streak started 19 February 1943 (defeated Jackie Wilson)
 * Streak ended 10 July 1951 (ended by Randy Turpin)

Olympics
3 consecutive Olympic gold medals (tie)


 * László Papp
 * Streak started 1948 London, UK
 * Streak ended 1960 Rome, Italy


 * Teófilo Stevenson
 * Streak started 1972 Montreal, Canada
 * Streak ended 1984 Los Angeles, USA (boycotted by Cuba)


 * Félix Savón
 * Streak started 1992 Barcelona, Spain
 * Streak ended 2004, Athens, Greece

7 consecutive Olympic heavyweight titles — Cuba
 * Streak started 1972 Munich, West Germany
 * Streak ended 2008 Beijing, China

Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles and Seoul Olympics

World Championship
6 consecutive heavyweight World Championships — Félix Savón
 * Streak started 1986 Reno, USA
 * Streak ended 1999 Houston, USA

Note: winner of 3 consecutive Olympic gold medals (1992–2000)

Judo
6 consecutive titles at World Championships — Ryoko Tani
 * Streak started 1993 Hamilton, Canada
 * Streak ended 2005 Cairo, Egypt

Men
20 fights — Miguel Torres
 * Streak started March 27, 2000
 * Streak ended November 22, 2003

Women
22 fights — Megumi Fujii
 * Streak started August 9, 2004
 * Streak ended October 28, 2010, at Bellator 34

Longest unbeaten streak

32 fights (30 wins, 1 draw, 1 no contest) — Igor Vovchanchyn
 * Streak started January 23, 1996
 * Streak ended May 1, 2000

Men's Freestyle
187 consecutive matches including 1964 Tokyo Olympics — Osamu Watanabe

Note: The only modern Olympian to go unbeaten throughout his entire career.

6 consecutive Men's heavyweight Olympic titles — USSR Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles Olympics
 * Streak started 1964 Tokyo, Japan
 * Streak ended 1992 Barcelona, Spain

Men's Greco-Roman
13 years including 3 consecutive Olympics titles (1988–1996) — Alexander Karelin 
 * Streak started 1988
 * Streak ended 2000 Sydney, Australia — lost to Rulon Gardner

6 consecutive Men's heavyweight Olympic titles — USSR Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles Olympics
 * Streak started 1972 Munich, West Germany
 * Streak ended 2000 Sydney, Australia

Men's Freestyle
6 consecutive titles at World Championships — Sergey Beloglazov
 * Streak started 1981 Skopje, Yugoslavia
 * Streak ended 1989 Martigny, Switzerland

19 consecutive team titles at World Championships — USSR
 * Streak started 1967 New Delhi, India
 * Streak ended 1993 Toronto, Canada

Men's Greco-Roman
9 consecutive titles at World Championships — Alexander Karelin
 * Streak started 1989 Martigny, Switzerland
 * Streak ended 2000 Retired after Sydney Olympics

Note: winner of 3 consecutive Olympic gold medals (1988–1996)

21 consecutive team titles at World Championships — USSR and Russia
 * Streak started 1973 Tehran, Iran
 * Streak ended 2001 Patras, Greece

Women's Freestyle
6 consecutive team titles at World Championships — Japan
 * Streak started 2002 Chalcis, Greece
 * Streak ended 2009 Herning, Denmark

College (USA)
159 matches — Cael Sanderson, Iowa State

Note: never lost a single NCAA match in entire collegiate career (1998–2002)

High school (USA)
459 consecutive matches — Brandon High School, Brandon, Florida
 * Streak started January 28, 1974
 * Streak ended January 5, 2008

Sumo
69 matches — Futabayama Sadaji
 * Streak started January 7, 1936
 * Streak ended January 3, 1939 (ended by Akinoumi Setsuo)

Women
5 consecutive Women's sprint world championships - Félicia Ballanger Note: winner of 3 Olympic gold medals in cycling
 * Streak started 1995 Bogotá, Colombia
 * Streak ended 2000 Manchester, United Kingdom

15 consecutive Women's sprint world championships - USSR
 * Streak started 1958 Paris, France
 * Streak ended 1973 San Sebastian, Spain

Dressage
7 consecutive Olympic Team titles — Germany
 * Streak started 1984 Los Angeles, USA

9 consecutive World Championships — Germany
 * Streak started 1974 Copenhagen, Denmark
 * Streak ended 2010 Lexington, Kentucky

By a racehorse
56 races — Camarero
 * Streak started April 19, 1953
 * Streak ended August 1, 1955

By a jockey
12 races — Gordon Richards
 * Streak started October 3, 1933
 * Streak ended October 5, 1933

International
19 FIFA World Cup appearances — Brazil Note: Brazil is the only national football team to have played in every World Cup.
 * Streak started 1930, Uruguay (Inaugural World Cup)

15 consecutive FIFA World Cup second round qualifications — Germany
 * Streak started 1954, Switzerland

15 games — Spain
 * Streak started June 26, 2008 (defeated Russia, 3-0)
 * Streak ended June 24, 2009 (ended by United States, 0-2)

Note: Spain (7 Feb 2007 - 24 Jun 2009) also shares with Brazil (16 Dec 1993 - 21 Jan 1996) the unbeaten record of 35 games. Brazil's loss at the 1996 CONCACAF Gold Cup was by the under-23 (Olympic) team, but is officially counted as a loss of the national team. Otherwise the Brazil national team wouldn't lose until 30 May 1997 (2:4 vs Norway), thus extending it to 45 games.

Uruguayan League
32 games — 1940-1942 Nacional

Portuguese Liga
29 games — 1971-1973 S.L. Benfica

A-League
28 games — 2010- present Brisbane Roar

Croatian League
28 games — 2007-2008 Dinamo Zagreb

Scottish Premier League
25 games — 2003-2004 Celtic F.C.

Copa do Brasil-Campeonato Paranaense
24 games — 2011-still running Coritiba Foot Ball Club

Eredivisie
22 games — 1987-1988 PSV Eindhoven

Serie A
17 games — 2006-2007 F.C. Internazionale Milano

La Liga
16 games — 2010-2011 F.C. Barcelona

Fußball-Bundesliga
15 games — 2005-2006 Bayern Munich

Premier League
14 games — Arsenal F.C.
 * Streak started February 10, 2002
 * Streak ended August 18, 2002

Major League Soccer
15 games — Los Angeles Galaxy
 * Streak started September 7, 1997
 * Streak ended May 17, 1998

Note: This streak was achieved when MLS used a shootout rule to eliminate tie games. Only one of those wins was achieved through a shootout. After the 1999 season, MLS abolished the shootout in favor of the international model of letting regular-season ties stand.

Australian Football League
23 wins — 1952-53 Geelong Cats

National Football League
Consecutive Games Won (Regular Season and Playoffs)

21 games — New England Patriots
 * Streak started October 5, 2003 (defeated Tennessee Titans, 38-30)
 * Streak ended October 31, 2004 (ended by Pittsburgh Steelers, 20-34)

Consecutive Regular Season Games Won

23 games — Indianapolis Colts
 * Streak started November 2, 2008 (defeated New England Patriots, 18-15)
 * Streak ended December 27, 2009 (ended by New York Jets, 15-29)

United Football League
Consecutive Regular Season Games Won

6 games - Florida Tuskers

College football
NCAA Division I

47 games — Oklahoma Sooners
 * Streak started October 10, 1953 (defeated Texas, 19-14)
 * Streak ended November 16, 1957 (ended by Notre Dame, 0-7)

Longest unbeaten streak

63 games (59-0-4) — Washington Huskies
 * Streak started November 28, 1907 (tied Idaho, 0-0)
 * Streak ended November 3, 1917 (ended by California, 0-27)

NCAA Division II

40 games — Grand Valley State Lakers
 * Streak started August 27, 2005 (defeated Ferris State 30-10)
 * Streak ended December 8, 2007 (ended by Northwest Missouri State, 16-34)

Note: This streak includes playoff games.

NCAA Division III

55 games — Mount Union Purple Raiders
 * Streak started September 2, 2000 (defeated Allegheny, 48-21)
 * Streak ended December 20, 2003 (defeated by St. John's (MN), 6-24)

Note: This streak includes playoff games. Mount Union also holds the record for most consecutive regular season victories, winning 110 games between 1994-2005.

AF2
24 wins — Quad City Steamwheelers
 * Streak started April 15, 2000 (defeated Tulsa Talons, 66-27)
 * Streak ended May 12, 2001 (ended by Tulsa Talons, 47-49)

American Indoor Football Association
Consecutive Games Won (Regular Season and Playoffs) 16 wins — Baltimore Mariners
 * Streak started March 6, 2010 (defeated Harrisburg Stampede, 55-48)

Consecutive Regular Season Games Won 15 wins — Baltimore Mariners
 * Streak started June 27, 2009 (defeated D.C. Armor, 70-22)

United Indoor Football
40 games — Sioux Falls Storm
 * Streak started July, 2005
 * Streak ended March 29, 2008 (ended by Omaha Beef, 18-34)

Canadian Football League
22 games — Calgary Stampeders Note: The streak only includes the regular season. It was also achieved back when the Stampeders played in the Western Interprovincial Football Union, which later became the Canadian Football League West Division. The CFL was not formally founded until 1958, although the records of the WIFU and the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union in Eastern Canada (forerunner to the Canadian Football League East Division) were incorporated into the league.
 * Streak started August 25, 1948
 * Streak ended October 22, 1949

Canadian Interuniversity Sport football
19 games — Laval Rouge et Or
 * Streak started Sept. 25, 2004 (defeated Acadia Axemen 21-18)
 * Streak ended Nov. 19, 2005 (ended by Saskatchewan Huskies 27-29)

Note: The streak also includes playoff games.

Test matches
18 matches — Lithuania 17 matches (tie)
 * All nations
 * Streak began on May 27, 2006 with a 23–17 away win over Hungary.
 * Streak ended on May 8, 2010 with a 27–16 loss to Ukraine in Šiauliai.
 * "Tier 1" nations
 * New Zealand:
 * Streak began on September 18, 1965 with a 20–3 win over South Africa in Auckland.
 * Streak ended in July 1970 with a 17–6 loss to South Africa in Pretoria.
 * South Africa:
 * Streak began on August 23, 1997 with a 61–22 win over Australia in Pretoria.
 * Streak ended on December 6, 1998 with a 13–7 loss to England at Twickenham.

Rugby league
NRL - Canterbury Bulldogs (17) - Round 3 to Round 21 2002


 * However it was found that the Bulldogs had breached the NRL salary cap and they were subsequently stripped of all competition points resulting from this streak, resulting in the New Zealand Warriors being awarded the Minor Premiership in their stead.

Men's Major Championships
4 consecutive wins - Tiger Woods
 * Streak started 2000 U.S. Open
 * Streak ended 2001 Masters

In 1930, Bobby Jones won the 4 major championships that he, as an amateur, was eligible to enter - the U.S. Open, the Open Championship, the British Amateur Championship and the U.S. Amateur Championship.

PGA Tour
11 wins — 1945 Byron Nelson

LPGA Tour
5 wins (tie):

1978 — Nancy Lopez

2004-2005 — Annika Sörenstam

Women
10 consecutive Women's Team all-around titles at Olympic Games — USSR and Unified Team Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles Olympics
 * Streak started 1952 Helsinki, Finland
 * Streak ended 1996 Atlanta, USA

World Championships
9 consecutive World Championships — USSR
 * Streak started 1963 Stockholm, Sweden
 * Streak ended 1972 Prague, Czechoslovakia

National Hockey League
Longest Winning Streak by a Team

17 games — Pittsburgh Penguins
 * Streak started March 9, 1993 (defeated Boston Bruins, 3-2)
 * Streak ended April 15, 1993 (ended by New Jersey Devils, 6-6†)

Note: Pittsburgh tied New Jersey 6-6 on April 10, 1993 to end the regular season. They won an additional three games to start the 1993 playoffs before losing for the first time in 21 games on April 25, 1993 to New Jersey, 1-4.

Longest Unbeaten Streak by a Team

35 Games — Philadelphia Flyers Note: The 35 game stretch includes 10 ties.
 * Streak started October 14, 1979 (defeated Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-3)
 * Streak ended January 6, 1980 (ended by Minnesota North Stars, 1-7†)

Longest Winning Streak By a Goaltender

17 games — 1975-1976 Gilles Gilbert, Boston Bruins

Canadian Hockey League
25 games — 1984 Kitchener Rangers

Note: The London Knights hold the CHL record for the longest unbeaten streak with 31 games in 2004. During that streak, the Knights compiled a record of 29-0-2-0.

American Hockey League
18 games — Syracuse Crunch
 * Streak started Mar. 9, 2008
 * Streak ended Oct. 17, 2008

Note: The longest winning streak in one season was achieved by the Philadelphia Phantoms with 17 games between Oct. 22, 2004 and Nov. 27, 2004.

Federal Hockey League
21 games — New York Aviators
 * Streak started Dec. 31, 2010 (Defeated Danbury Whalers 8-1)
 * Streak ended February 25, 2011 (Defeated by Danbury Whalers 4-1)

Austrian Hockey League
17 games — EC KAC
 * Streak started Oct. 8, 2010
 * Streak ended Dec. 10, 2010

Elite Ice Hockey League
22 games — Cardiff Devils
 * Streak started October 30, 2010 (defeated Hull Stingrays, 7-4)
 * Streak ended January 16, 2011 (ended by Dundee Stars, 2-1)

National Lacrosse League
22 games — Buffalo Bandits
 * Streak started Feb. 8, 1992
 * Streak ended Feb. 5, 1994

Men's Collegiate Lacrosse Association
33 games-- Sonoma State University
 * Streak started February 2002
 * Streak ended April 2003

Boy's High School Lacrosse
68 games-- Summit High School, Summit, NJ
 * Streak started April 2009

Chess
25 games — 1873-1882 Wilhelm Steinitz

Women's Singles
7 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 2001 Seville, Spain

Women's Doubles
9 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1997 Glasgow, United Kingdom

5 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — China
 * Streak started 1996 Atlanta, USA

Men's Team
5 consecutive titles at the World Team Championships — Indonesia
 * Streak started 1994 Jakarta, Indonesia
 * Streak ended 2004 Jakarta, Indonesia

Women's Team
6 consecutive titles at the World Team Championships — China
 * Streak started 1998 Hong Kong, China
 * Streak ended 2010 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Squash
555 matches — Jahangir Khan
 * Streak started 1981 (defeated Geoff Hunt)
 * Streak ended 1986 (ended by Ross Norman)

Note: This is the longest winning streak in sports history (in number of wins).

NB: Heather McKay (Australia) may hold a claim to having the longest winning streak as she went unbeaten for 19 years (1962–1981)

Men's Doubles
10 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1993 Gothenburg, Sweden

5 consecutive titles at Olympics Games — China Notes: The doubles events were replaced by team events in 2008 Beijing Olympics.
 * Streak started 1988 Seoul, South Korea (Inaugural Competition)

Women's Singles
6 consecutive titles at World Championships — Angelica Rozeanu 6 consecutive titles at Olympics Games — China
 * Streak started 1950 Budapest, Hungary
 * Streak ended 1956 Tokyo, Japan
 * Streak started 1988 Seoul, South Korea (Inaugural Competition)

9 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1995, Tianjin, China

Women's Doubles
6 consecutive titles at World Championships — Mária Mednyánszky and Anna Sipos 12 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1930 Berlin, Germany
 * Streak ended 1936 Prague, Czechoslovakia
 * Streak started 1989, Dortmund, Germany

5 consecutive titles at Olympics Games — China Notes: The doubles events were replaced by team events in 2008 Beijing Olympics.
 * Streak started 1988 Seoul, South Korea (Inaugural Competition)

Women's Team
8 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1993 Gothenburg, Sweden
 * Streak ended 2010 Moscow, Russia

Mixed Doubles
11 consecutive titles at World Championships — China
 * Streak started 1991 Chiba City, Japan

Men
46 matches — Guillermo Vilas (Open era record)


 * Streak started July 11, 1977 (defeated Alvin Gardener in Kitzbühel)
 * Streak ended Oct 1, 1977 (ended by Ilie Năstase in Aix en Provence)

Note: Open era winning streaks on different playing surfaces are also recognized. Roger Federer holds the record for the longest winning streak on grass courts (65 matches) and hard courts (56 matches), Rafael Nadal holds the record for the longest winning streak on clay courts (81 matches), while Ivan Lendl holds the record for the longest winning streak on indoor courts (66 matches). Vilas won his 46 consecutive matches all on clay courts. Also, John McEnroe has the record for best start to a year, going 42-0 in 1984. Novak Djokovic had 43-match winning streak until his loss to Roger Federer in the semi-finals of the 2011 French Open, a streak that included a 41-0 start to 2011.

Women
74 matches — Martina Navratilova
 * Streak started February 1984 (defeated Nancy Yeargin)
 * Streak ended December 1984 (ended by Helena Suková)

Note: Chris Evert currently holds the record for the longest winning streak on clay courts (125 matches), that is also the longest winning streak on single surface (male or female).

10 consecutive US Open women's doubles titles — Margaret Osborne duPont
 * Streak started 1941
 * Streak ended 1951

Wheelchair
418 matches — Esther Vergeer
 * Streak started January 30, 2003

NCAA Men's Team
137 Matches — University of Miami (Note: Miami had won 72 consecutive matches prior to the streak...and had a 59 match streak before that...meaning Miami won 268 of 270 matches over a 15-year period...1949-1964)
 * Streak started 1957 after loss to Presbyterian, March 23, 1957
 * Streak ended April 3,1964 with 5-4 loss to Princeton

NCAA Women's Team
89 Matches — Stanford University
 * Streak started 2003
 * Streak ended 2007

Men's Eights
8 consecutive titles at Olympic Games — USA
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1960 Rome, Italy

America's Cup
25 Cups — United States
 * Streak started 1851 (inaugural race), beating England
 * Streak ended 1983 (beaten by Australia II from Australia).

Note: With 132 years, this is the longest winning streak (in years) in sports history.

Olympics
4 consecutive Olympic titles — Paul Elvstrøm
 * Streak started 1948 London, Britain
 * Streak ended 1964 Tokyo, Japan

Beach volleyball
112 match wins, 19 tournament wins — Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh, United States
 * Streak started August 24, 2007 (defeated Ania Ruiz and Yarleen Santiago; 21-11, 21-9)
 * Streak ended August 31, 2008 (ended by Elaine Youngs and Nicole Branagh; 19-21, 21-10, 23-25)

Division I
109 matches — Penn State women's volleyball
 * Streak started September 21, 2007
 * Streak ended September 11, 2010 by Stanford (28–26, 25–12, 25–18) in Gainesville, Florida

Note: winner of 4 consecutive NCAA championships (2007–2010)

Division II
75 matches - Concordia University, Saint Paul women's volleyball
 * Streak started August 29, 2008 vs UC San Diego in 3-1 win
 * Streak ended September 3, 2010 by Grand Valley State in an 0-3 loss

Note: winner of 4 consecutive NCAA championships (2007–2010)

Olympics
3 consecutive Olympic gold medals (tie)


 * Naim Süleymanoğlu
 * Streak started 1988 Seoul, South Korea
 * Streak ended 2000 Sydney, Australia


 * Pyrros Dimas
 * Streak started 1992 Barcelona, Spain
 * Streak ended 2004 Athens, Greece


 * Kakhi Kakhiashvili
 * Streak started 1992 Barcelona, Spain
 * Streak ended 2004 Athens, Greece


 * Halil Mutlu
 * Streak started 1996 Atlanta, USA
 * Streak ended 2008 Beijing, China

7 consecutive heavyweight Olympic titles — USSR
 * Streak started 1960 Rome, Italy
 * Streak ended 1992 Barcelona, Spain

Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles Olympics

6 consecutive super heavyweight Olympic titles — USSR
 * Streak started 1972 Munich, West Germany (Inaugural Competition)
 * Streak ended 2000 Sydney, Australia

Note: excluding boycotted Los Angeles Olympics

World Championships
8 consecutive titles at World Championships — Vasiliy Alekseyev
 * Streak started 1970 Columbus, USA
 * Streak ended 1978 Gettysburg, USA

Biathlon
8 consecutive women's relay World Championships — USSR
 * Streak started 1984 Chamonix, France
 * Streak ended 1993 Borovets, Bulgaria

Figure skating
3 consecutive Olympic gold medals (tie)


 * Sonja Henie
 * Streak started 1928 St. Moritz, Switzerland
 * Streak ended 1948 St. Moritz, Switzerland


 * Irina Rodnina
 * Streak started 1972 Sapporo, Japan
 * Streak ended 1984 Sarajevo, Yugoslavia


 * Gillis Grafström
 * Streak started 1920 Antwerp, Belgium
 * Streak ended 1932 Lake Placid, USA

Ladies
10 consecutive titles (1927–1936) at World Figure Skating Championships — Sonja Henie

Pairs
10 consecutive titles at World Figure Skating Championships — Irina Rodnina
 * Streak started 1969 Colorado Springs, USA
 * Streak ended 1979 Vienna, Austria — won by Tai Babilonia and Randy Gardner

Note: winner of three consecutive Olympic titles from 1972 to 1980

10 consecutive titles at European Figure Skating Championships — Irina Rodnina
 * Streak started 1969 Garmisch-Partenkirchen, West Germany
 * Streak ended 1979 Zagreb, Yugoslavia — won by Marina Cherkasova and Sergei Shakhrai

12 consecutive Olympic titles — USSR, Unified Team and Russia Note: this streak includes a win reduced to a draw after the 2002 Olympics.
 * Streak started 1964 Innsbruck, Austria — Ludmila Belousova and Oleg Protopopov
 * Streak ended 2010 Vancouver, Canada — won by Shen Xue and Zhao Hongbo

14 consecutive titles at World Figure Skating Championships — USSR 17 consecutive titles at European Figure Skating Championships — USSR
 * Streak started 1965 Colorado Springs, USA
 * Streak ended 1979 Vienna, Austria
 * Streak started 1965 Moscow, USSR
 * Streak ended 1982 Lyon, France

Luge
105 consecutive women's World Cup races — Germany
 * Streak started December 6, 1997 — Barbara Niedernhuber at Igls
 * Streak ended February 12, 2011 - Alex Gough at Paramonowo

11 consecutive women's singles World Championships — Germany
 * Streak started 1995 Lillehammer, Norway
 * Streak ended 2009 Lake Placid, USA

8 consecutive mixed team relay World Championships — Germany
 * Streak started 2000 St. Moritz, Switzerland

Long track
53 consecutive 5000 m races — Hjallis Andersen
 * Streak started 19 March 1949 Tromsø, Norway
 * Streak ended 2 January 1954 Bislett Stadion in Oslo, Norway (fall)

12 consecutive 10000m World Championships — Netherlands
 * Streak started 1996 Hamar, Norway

9 consecutive men's allaround World Championships — Netherlands
 * Streak started 1995 Baselga di Pinè, Italy
 * Streak ended 2004 Hamar, Norway

15 consecutive women's allaround World Championships — USSR
 * Streak started 1952 Kokkola, Finland
 * Streak ended 1967 Deventer, Netherlands

Short track
83 consecutive world cup, world championship, and Olympic 500 m races — Wang Meng Note: Wang Meng also has a current winning streak of six 500 m Short Track Speed Skating World Cups (2005–2010)
 * Streak started September 30, 2005 Hangzhou, China
 * Streak ended February 8, 2009 Sofia, Bulgaria (fall in semifinals)