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This list shows notable sports-related deaths, events, and notable outcomes that occurred in January 2006. Deaths
24: Carlos Martínez 19: Tom Nugent 19: Geoff Rabone 17: Seth Morehead 14: Bubba Morton 14: Mark Philo 11: Eric Namesnik 10: Dave Brown 9: Andy Caldecott 9: Jack Snow 8: Elson Becerra 7: Heinrich Harrer 5: Rod Dedeaux 2: Steve Rogers 1: Paul Lindblad
Sporting seasons Cricket 2005–06: Australia; West Indies Football (soccer) 2005–06: England: Premier League; England (general) Scotland Denmark: Superliga France: Ligue 1; UEFA Champions League; UEFA Cup Argentina Australia: Hyundai A-League Rugby union 2005–06: Heineken Cup U.S. and Canadian sports 2005–06: NFL Playoffs; NHL; NBA
31 January 2006 (Tuesday) Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group D: Nigeria 2–1 Senegal Nigeria finishes with a perfect record in the group. Senegal backs into the quarterfinals thanks to Zimbabwe's win over Ghana. Group D: Ghana 1–2 Zimbabwe NCAA Men's College Basketball: (1) UConn 80, (9) Pittsburgh 76: The homestanding Huskies, behind 22 points from Rudy Gay, win a physical matchup against the Panthers. (6) Illinois 66, Wisconsin 51: For the second straight year, the Fighting Illini go to the Badgers' fortress home court, Kohl Center, and come away with a win. The Illini get 16 points from Dee Brown and Rich McBride, and take command of the game with a 19–0 run late in the first half. They also take sole possession of the Big Ten lead. Creighton 63, (25) Northern Iowa 55: The Panthers go into Omaha as a ranked team for the first time, but leave the same way as they have every year since 1996—losing to the Bluejays.
30 January 2006 (Monday) Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group C: Tunisia 0–3 Guinea Guinea makes 3 wins out of 3 in a surprise defeat of the title holders. Both countries progress to the quarter-finals. Group C: Zambia 1–0 South Africa FA Cup: In the fifth-round draw, Manchester United and Liverpool will meet on the weekend of February 18. NCAA College Basketball: AP Polls Men's: UConn, Duke, and Memphis remain in the top three spots. In other highlights: George Washington rises to No. 10, their first top-10 ranking since 1956. Northern Iowa enters the rankings for the first time ever, at No. 25. Women's: As expected, North Carolina earns its first No. 1 ranking in history. Duke remains #2. Other highlights: Tennessee drops to No. 5 after losses to Duke and Kentucky. Kentucky enters the poll for the first time since 1993, at No. 21. This is also the first time since 1990 that Kentucky's women have been ranked and their men have not. St. John's enters the poll at No. 25 after an even longer absence, since 1984.
29 January 2006 (Sunday) Football 2006 African Cup of Nations Group B: Angola 3–2 Togo Group B: Cameroon 2–0 Congo DR Cameroon top the group with a perfect record from three matches. Congo DR backs into the knockout phase; if Angola or Cameroon had scored one more goal, Angola would have advanced instead. FA Cup fourth round Portsmouth 1–2 Liverpool Wolverhampton Wanderers 0–3 Manchester United Tennis: Australian Open: Roger Federer defeats Marcos Baghdatis 5–7, 7–5, 6–0, 6–2 to win the men's championship. It is Federer's seventh Grand Slam title. NCAA Women's College Basketball: (3) North Carolina 74, (2) Duke 70: In a showdown between the last two unbeaten women's teams in Division I, the Tar Heels come back from a 13-point halftime deficit at Duke. With this win and Tennessee's two losses in the past week, the Tar Heels are all but assured of their first-ever Number 1 women's ranking.
28 January 2006 (Saturday) Football 2006 African Cup of Nations Group A: Egypt 3–1 Ivory Coast Egypt top the group; Ivory Coast, which had already qualified for the knockout phase, finish second. Group A: Libya 0–0 Morocco FA Cup Fourth round Stoke City 2–1 Walsall Cheltenham Town 0–2 Newcastle United Coventry City 1–1 Middlesbrough Reading 1–1 Birmingham City: Championship leaders Reading earns a replay at Birmingham City's home. Bolton Wanderers 1–0 Arsenal: The defending cup holders are eliminated thanks to Stelios Giannakopoulos' goal at Reebok Stadium. Aston Villa 3–1 Port Vale Brentford 2–1 Sunderland: The Premiership's current wooden spoon holders are ousted by a League One team. Manchester City 1–0 Wigan Athletic Everton 1–1 Chelsea Preston North End 1–1 Crystal Palace West Ham United 4–2 Blackburn Rovers Colchester United 3–1 Derby County Charlton Athletic 2–1 Leyton Orient College football bowl game: Senior Bowl: In the concluding game of the 2005–06 college football season, the North squad's Jay Cutler threw a winning touchdown pass as the North won the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, over the South, 31–14. (ESPN) Tennis: 2006 Australian Open: Amélie Mauresmo defeats Justine Henin-Hardenne to win the Australian Open in Melbourne. Mauresmo wins the first set 6–1, and leads 2–0 in set 2, when Henin-Hardenne retires because of a stomach ailment. (AP/Yahoo!) The men's doubles pairing of American twin Bob and Mike Bryan defeat Martin Damm (CZE) and Leander Paes (India) in the final 4–6, 6–3, 6–3. Boxing: Former WBO world Jr. Welterweight champion Randall Bailey collapses before a fight. He is taken to a local hospital. His fight is cancelled. Arturo Gatti scores an eleventh-round knockout of Thomas Damgaard, in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
27 January 2006 (Friday) Football 2006 African Cup of Nations Group D: Ghana 1–0 Senegal Group D: Nigeria 2–0 Zimbabwe FA Premier League 2005-06 Man United defender Gary Neville is charged with improper conduct by the Football Association for his goal celebration in his team's win over Liverpool. (BBC) Euro 2008 The draw for the qualifying rounds for the UEFA Championships was held in Montreux, Switzerland, with defending champion Greece slotted in Group C. The top two teams from the seven pools will join co-hosts Austria and Switzerland in the summer of 2008 for the final round.
26 January 2006 (Thursday) Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group C: Zambia 1–2 Guinea Group C: Tunisia 2–0 South Africa Both winners advance to the knockout phase. Real Zaragoza ended FC Barcelona's 18-match Copa del Rey winning streak in the first leg of their tie, winning 4–2. NCAA Women's College Basketball: Kentucky 66, (1) Tennessee 63: In a rare women's game at Rupp Arena, the Wildcats beat the Lady Vols for the first time in 20 years. Tennessee coach Pat Summitt goes 0–2 since winning her 900th game as coach, and the Lady Vols lose their second straight game for the first time since 1997.
25 January 2006 (Wednesday) NBA: The on-again, off-again trade between the Sacramento Kings and the Indiana Pacers is completed, with Peja Stojaković going from Sacramento to Indiana for Ron Artest. MLS: The franchise formerly known as the San Jose Earthquakes, having moved to Houston, is renamed as Houston 1836. Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group B: Angola 0–0 Congo DR Group B: Cameroon 2–0 Togo Cameroon advance to the knockout phase, while Togo are eliminated. NCAA Men's College Basketball: South Carolina 68, (5) Florida 62: The homestanding Gamecocks hand the Gators their second consecutive loss after a 17–0 start. Marshall 58, (9) West Virginia 52: The Thundering Herd hold the Mountaineers to their lowest point total of the season and shock their in-state rivals in Charleston. Mark Patton led the Herd with 16 points and 10 rebounds; Kevin Pittsnogle scored 20 for the Mountaineers. Cricket: The Second Test between Pakistan and India at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad, ends in a draw. The three-Test series is tied 0–0, with one Test to be played.
24 January 2006 (Tuesday) NHL: Mario Lemieux announces his second — and likely last — retirement at the age of 40 from the Pittsburgh Penguins, effective immediately due to heart conditions. He became the first man to be a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, and play on, be president of and have a stake as a team owner. (Story from nhl.com) Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group A: Libya 1 – 2 Ivory Coast: Ivory Coast advances to the elimination stage. Group A: Egypt 0 – 0 Morocco
23 January 2006 (Monday) Auto racing Toyota announces its will enter the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup and Busch Series for the 2007 season; its Camry will be the first car from marking the first time since the late 1950s that a car from a manufacturer operating principally abroad since the late 1950s. Toyota Press Release on NASCAR.com In addition, NASCAR announces the phasing in of its "Car of Tomorrow" program starting with the short tracks and road courses during the 2007 season. The program will be fully implemented by 2009. Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group D: Nigeria 1–0 Ghana (BBC) Group D: Zimbabwe 0–2 Senegal (BBC) NCAA College Basketball: Men's: (12) Pittsburgh 80, (25) Syracuse 67: The Panthers, behind a career-high 32 points from guard Carl Krauser, bounce back at home from their first loss of the season. The Orange lose their third game in eight days, all to teams ranked 12th or better. Women's: (2) Duke 75, (1) Tennessee 53: In front of a sellout crowd of Cameron Crazies, five Blue Devils score in double figures during their rout of the Lady Vols.
22 January 2006 (Sunday) NBA Kobe Bryant scored 81 points — the most by an NBA player since March 2, 1962, when Wilt Chamberlain recorded his 100-point performance against the New York Knicks — in the Los Angeles Lakers' 122–104 win over the Toronto Raptors. He would score 55 points in the second half, while the rest of his team combined scored 18. Seattle SuperSonics 152, Phoenix Suns 149 (2 OT): Ray Allen's three point basket with time expiring was the difference in this game. The teams combined for the most points (301) since April 1, 1995, and it was the first time a team posted 150 points on the scoresheet since March 15, 1998, when the Dallas Mavericks beat the Houston Rockets, 156–147 which was also in double overtime. NFL Playoffs: Conference Championships AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 34, Denver Broncos 17: The Steelers become the first No. 6 playoff seed to advance to the Super Bowl. Ben Roethlisberger completes 21 of 29 passes for 275 yards and two touchdowns and runs for a third score. Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer throws two interceptions and loses two fumbles. NFC: Seattle Seahawks 34, Carolina Panthers 14: The Seahawks advance to their first Super Bowl. Seattle's defense holds Steve Smith to 33 receiving yards and intercepts Jake Delhomme three times. Shaun Alexander rushes for 132 yards and two touchdowns. In non-playoff news, Dick Jauron, who served as interim coach of the Detroit Lions after Steve Mariucci's firing, was announced as the new head coach of the Buffalo Bills, and after the AFC Championship Game, the Houston Texans named Broncos offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak as their new coach. Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group C: Tunisia 4–1 Zambia The African champions successfully begin the defence of their title with a hat-trick from Francileudo dos Santos. (BBC) Group C: South Africa 0–2 Guinea (BBC) Snooker, Saga Insurance Masters: Scotsman John Higgins comes back to take the last two frames of the Masters final, beating Ronnie O'Sullivan by ten frames to nine. (BBC) Speed skating: American Joey Cheek wins the men's World sprint speed skating championships in Heerenveen, Netherlands ahead of Russian Dmitry Dorofeyev and Dutchman Jan Bos. In the women's championship, Svetlana Zhurova becomes the first Russian since 1982 to win a women's sprint title. (Reuters)
21 January 2006 (Saturday) Football: 2006 African Cup of Nations Group A: Morocco 0–1 Ivory Coast (BBC) Group B: Cameroon 3–1 Angola (BBC) Group B: Togo 0–2 Congo DR (BBC) NCAA Men's College Basketball: