Global Cup 2019

Global Cup Progress - 31 December 2019

Submitted by hansstocker on 21 December, 2019 - 20:59
F.Pellegrini (Italy), Olympic and Swimming World Champ. gold medallist and women’s 200 m freestyle world record holder – AP/Lee

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: Italy, Japan, Germany

Sport has come to a global standstill in April due to the Covid-19 pandemic and none of the monthly tournaments tracked by GSN have been staged.

Mikael Kingsbury (Canada), 2020 Freestyle Skiing World Cup champion

Profiling the top sporting nations: Netherlands, Australia, Canada

In the fourth article profiling the world’s top sporting nations, we look at some of the countries occupying the top 10 positions in the 2016-19 quadrennial Global Cup tab...

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The year's best - 27 countries for 77 sports

Greatest Sporting Nation’s mission is to spotlight the world’s best sporting nations, irrespective of their size, power and wealth.

The USA won the 2019 women’s Football World Cup

USA the world’s best sporting nation in 2019

The USA has won the Global Cup for the 12th consecutive time, topping GSN’s table of t...

Mathieu Van der Poel (Netherlands), Cyclocross world champion in 2019 - pict.: CXMagazine.com

The Year’s Best – Netherlands best Cycling nation in 2019

In this article on the final 2019 sport group rankings, we look at Cycling, a group that aggregates the results of five different disciplines: Road Cycling, Track Cycling...

Abdulrashid Sadulaev (Russia) won gold at the Free Wrestling World Championship in the 97 kg category

The Year’s Best – Russia triumphs in Combat sports, South Korea tops Target sports

One of the most distinctive features of GSN’s unique sport stats is the ability to aggregate the results

Caleb Dressel (USA) won multiple golds at the 2019 Swimming World Championships

The Year’s Best – USA top nation in Aquatics, Ball Team Sports in 2019

One of the most distinctive features of GSN’s unique sport stats is the ability to aggregate the results of sibling sports, like Football, Futsal and Beach Soccer

Brazil was runner-up in the 2019 Volleyball women’s Nations League

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: Brazil, Norway, Spain

In our third article profiling the world’s top sporting nations, we analyse three countries that are extremely different sportswise:

Ajee Wilson (USA), the women’s 800m Diamond League champion in 2019 – pict.: G. Colombo

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: the USA

Competitive sport has restarted in many countries, though the majority of international sporting tournaments are still on hold.

France won the men’s FIFA Football World Cup in 2018

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: Russia, France

Competitive sport is slowly restarting in what everyone hopes is a post-pandemic world.

Striker Harry Kane played a big part in England’s 2018 FIFA World Cup run – pict.: Getty Images

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: China, Great Britain

While competitive sport is still on hold pretty much everywhere, we continue to zoom in on the world’s top sporting nations.

Beat Feuz of Switzerland, Alpine Skiing Downhill World Cup champion in 2020

Profiling the world’s top sporting nations: Switzerland, Sweden, S. Korea

The world is fighting the battle against Covid-19, and sport has come to a standstill.

Simone Biles (USA) won 5 golds at the 2019 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships – pict.: Associated Press

China climbs to third in Global Cup as USA surges ahead

In October, the USA topped yet again the monthly table in the Global Cup, the ranking of the world...

Will New Zealand be able to mesmerise its Per Capita Cup competitors in the last part of the 2019 sporting year? Photo: Reuters/

New Zealand gains 5 places as race for sportiest nation title heats up

After the first 7 months of the year, the table in the Per Capita Cup, GSN’s ranking of the world’s sportiest nations (see below* for more details on how the ranking...

Three-time Olympic gold medallist Sebastian Brendel (Germany) won the C 500 at the Canoe/Kayak Sprint Worlds in August

Germany top sporting country in August, ahead of Japan, Belarus

Germany was the leading country in world sports in the month of August, narrowly winning the monthly Global C...

Da-bin Lee of South Korea kicking for gold in the women’s 73 kg category at the Taekwondo World Championships

South Korea Triumphs in Taekwondo, Norway Wins Snow & Ice Sports

GSN’s sporting month of May was dominated by two events, the Taekwondo World Championships and the men’s Ice Hockey World Championships,

South Africa beat England in the 2019 Rugby World Cup final

South Africa wins November after triumph in Rugby World Cup

Three sports took centre-stage in November: Rugby Union, with the men’s World Cup; Tennis, with, among others, the Federation Cup and Davis Cup finals;

Not as fast as Usain Bolt, but the world’s sporting landscape is changing – pict.: Getty Images

USA supreme, France, Japan, Norway, Netherlands ascendant: sport’s evolving elite

Four-year periods are crucial in the world of sports.

Ajee Wilson of the USA was the women’s 800m Diamond League Champion in 2019 – pict.: G. Colombo

USA extends Global Cup lead, France, China, Japan climb table in September

The USA won the monthly ranking of the Global Cup in September, yet another record-breaking sporting mo...

Blast from the past? Are we back to the days of USA-Russia superpower sport rivalry (pic from the dramatic 1972 Olympics Basketb

Race for third place tight as USA, Russia dominate Global Cup

The last third of the sporting year has started, there are 30 major international tournaments still to play for, including the Athletics World Championships

England won the Cricket World Cup after a thrilling final against New Zealand

Great Britain, Australia, Italy rising as USA dominates Global Cup

The month of July was one of the highest-scoring months in the history of the Global Cup, the ranking of the world’s best sporting nations.

Megan Rapinoe, captain of the USA's Women’s Football team - picture: Franck Fife

USA tops Global Cup halfway through sporting year
Halfway through the sporting year 2019, Global Cup champion the USA has finally put its nose in front...
Caeleb Dressel (USA) won a record 8 medals (6 golds) at the Swimming World Championships – Photo: LaPresse

USA top nation in July, ahead of Great Britain, Russia
The USA topped the July monthly ranking in the Global Cup by scoring a record total of 1,858 points,...
Kadidiatou Diani scored twice for France in a friendly win against USA (3-1) on 19 January 2019

France - USA Women’s World Cup 1/4 final key to 2019 Global Cup title?

The Women’s Football World Cup quarter-final between the USA and host nation

Brady Ellison of the US Archery team – picture: World Archery Federation

USA wins month of June ahead of South Korea, Netherlands

June was a month of major summer tournaments, and a major month for the USA, which edged

Melissa Sasmos Kevich, left, and Annie Pankowski of the USA celebrate a goal during the 2019 IIHF Women's World Championships

USA, Russia, Germany in pursuit as Norway still leads Global, Per Capita Cup

Norway is still holding on to the top spot in both the Global Cup and the Per Capita Cup rankings after April...

Tiger Woods wins the 2019 Golf Masters at Augusta, his fifth win in the tournament and the first major he won since 2008

USA wins month of April ahead of China, Kenya

The USA finished top of the April monthly table in the Global Cup, the ranking of the world’s bes...

Biathlon Olympic gold-medal winner Tiril Eckhoff (Norway) and 2019 World Cup winner Dorothea Wierer (Italy)

Norway Leads Global Cup, Per Capita Cup after March

The first quarter of the 2019 sporting year is over and, like last year, the spotlights are all on Norway.

Marcel Hirscher (Austria) won slalom gold at the Alpine Skiing World Championships in Are, Sweden

USA leads Global Cup after February, Austria wins Alpine Skiing Worlds

February was a busy, hotly contested sporting month, featuring a spate of tournaments ranging from the men’s Football Asian Cup to

Denmark powered their way to victory in the 2019 Handball men’s World Championships

Germany tops January 2019 Global Cup ranking

The sporting year got off to a busy start in January, with the Handball men’s World Championships, the Luge World Championships

Therese Johaug (Norway) won three golds at the 2019 Cross Country Skiing World Championships

Norway Wins March Global Cup Ranking

March 2019 was the year’s first bumper sporting month, with 7,999 GSN points awarded.