2024 in sports: Columbus welcomed fans to variety of world-class events

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Ohio’s capital has been growing and with it has come a variety of worldwide sporting events to the city.

Central Ohio hosted a plethora of the world’s best athletes in 2024 across multiple sports. From the ice and the links to the pitch and the gridiron, this past year had something for every Columbus sports fan.

NBC4 is looking back at an exciting year of sports and we continue by recapping all the amazing events central Ohio hosted.

Scottie Scheffler wows at 49th Memorial Tournament

Dublin, Ohio, was the center of the golf world as the best male golfers came for the 49th Memorial Tournament, which took place one week later then usual. Fans had a blast the day before the opening round for the pro-am, which included movie star Chris Pratt, Football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and more celebrities and star athletes.

Then came the competitive golf over four days at Muirfield Village Golf Club that ended up being a two-man race between Scottie Scheffler and Collin Morikawa. Despite shooting 2 over par Sunday, world No. 1 Scheffler claimed victory by a stroke over Morikawa.

Scheffler’s win was coupled with victories at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Players Championship, Masters, Olympics and Tour Championship in what was one of the best seasons in golf history.

Summer of Soccer: Worldwide stars come to Columbus

Columbus embarked on a stretch of major soccer events it’s never had before. Before the summer of soccer kicked off, the U.S. women’s team played Canada in the SheBelieves Cup final in April at Lower.com Field.

U.S. star Sophia Smith scored twice before a late Canada goal sent the match to penalty kicks. The seven-round shootout ended with an American win in one of the last international games for striker Alex Morgan and goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who retired later in 2024.

The summer of soccer began in late July when the best of MLS and Liga MX showed off at the Skills Challenge and played in the All-Star Game at Lower.com Field. Liga MX beat MLS 4-1, but the lone MLS goal was scored by the Crew’s Cucho Hernandez. Three days later, the Crew played English club Aston Villa in an exhibition match it won 4-1.

Fans packed Ohio Stadium one week later to see Manchester City play Chelsea. In front of over 70,000, Man City striker Erling Haaland scored a hat trick in a 4-2 victory. Arguably the world’s greatest player, Lionel Messi played at Lower.com Field on Oct. 2 when Inter Miami beat the Crew 3-2, thanks to two goals from him.

America’s best figure skaters come to town

Columbus was picked for the first time to welcome the best figure skaters in the country. The U.S. Figure Skating Championships took place at Nationwide Arena in late January and brought thousands of winter sports fans to Downtown.

All the best skaters from across the country performed in front of the central Ohio crowd to start their busy seasons. 20-year-old Ilia Malinin cruised to the men’s individual title, and Amber Glenn took the women’s title in what was a solid 2024 campaign for her.

NBC4 broadcast the championships all week with NBC Sports commentators expressing their excitement at being in Columbus. Many attendees will look back at this event when they watch these skaters at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

Ohio Stadium rocks for Buckeyes playoff game

While Ohio’s capital shows up for any sporting event thrown in front of them, nothing was quite like the atmosphere on Dec. 21 at Ohio Stadium.

For the first time the Buckeyes played a home football game in December as they took on Tennessee in the first round of the College Football Playoff. The new 12-team format gave four at-large teams home games, and Ohio State closed out the opening round with a stellar performance.

The Buckeyes scored three quick touchdowns in the first quarter to hype up their fans in the crowd of 100,000. It led to the 42-17 victory over the Volunteers to regain momentum after a fourth straight loss to Michigan on Nov. 30.