It's been 10 days since Brisbane pulled off its remarkable Houdini act to stun Fremantle in the 2026 AFL Grand Final and complete a sensational three-peat.
Trailing by 17 points with just four minutes and 18 seconds on the clock, the Lions had blown out to 100-1 shots with some bookmakers only to respond by booting four unanswered red-time goals to snatch the most improbable victory from the jaws of defeat. It's undoubtedly one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history. In fact, I'm convinced there are only six other sporting comebacks that deserve to be spoken about in the same breath as what we recently witnessed at the MCG.
Sure, there might be instances of greater leads being overcome, but how many have occurred on their respective sport's biggest days? That's why for this exercise I'm only considering comebacks that are in championship games or a sport's showpiece event, not a meaningless Round 6, Week 25, or exhibition clash. There's got to be hardware on the line or at least around the corner!
Before I start, a few honourable mentions. There's Australia II's stunning upset win over the United States in the 1983 America's Cup, Ben Stokes' heroic solo effort in the 2019 Headingley Test, and the 'Miracle on Manchester', where the Los Angeles Kings overcame a 5-0 deficit to defeat the Edmonton Oilers 6-5. If that was in the Stanley Cup it would be hard to top as the greatest comeback in sports history!
There have been other nominations. Steven Bradbury's Olympic speed skating triumph in 2002, while improbable, wasn't really a comeback. Tiger Woods' famous Masters victory in 2019 might have been a great come back story, as was Niki Lauda returning to Formula One just 42 days after his horrific, near-fatal crash, but they weren't the improbable come-from-behind victories I'm looking for here.
Anyway, here are the six comebacks that rival Brisbane's wild escape. In no particular order.
New England Patriots def. Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI
It's arguably the most famous comeback in sports history. So famous it became a meme.
The Falcons held a commanding 28-3 lead late in the third quarter of the 2017 Super Bowl and appeared on the cusp of the franchise's first championship. The team's owner, Arthur Blank, was so certain of victory he left his box and headed to the sideline to bask in what would turn out to be the most premature celebration in sport. Blank had a front row seat as Tom Brady and the Patriots picked themselves off the canvas and orchestrated a comeback for the ages, one that transcends the NFL.
New England scored three touchdowns, plus a field goal, in the final quarter and change to tie the game at 28-28 and force the first overtime period in Super Bowl history. The Patriots won the coin toss and scored another touchdown on the first drive of overtime to win 34-28 and claim their fifth championship title, setting more than 30 team and individual Super Bowl records in the process.
Rafael Nadal def. Daniil Medvedev in 2022 Australian Open final
Daniil Medvedev appeared to have one hand and four fingers on the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup in 2022 after establishing a seemingly insurmountable lead against Rafael Nadal in the men's Australian Open final.
The reigning US Open champion had pocketed the first two sets against Nadal and carved out three break point chances at 2-3, 0-40 in the third. If he wins one of them, it's just about goodnight, Rafa. But Nadal saved them all, held serve, and then broke the Medvedev serve at 4-4 to shift the match's momentum.
Nadal would break Medvedev again to take the third set, and then the fourth, before completing a remarkable two-sets-to-love comeback in five hours and 24 minutes. The 2-6, 6-7(5-7), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5, triumph -- his 21st major title -- broke a tie between Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Roger Federer for the most in men's tennis history.
Boston Red Sox def. New York Yankees in 2004 ALCS
It's Game 4 of this best-of-seven series and the Red Sox trail the Yankees, their arch-rival, by three games to zip. The 'Curse of the Bambino' is alive, and it's looking like another heartbreaking chapter in a bible's worth for Boston fans. A 4-0 series sweep looked like a formality at the bottom of the ninth and final inning when the Red Sox trailed 4-3 and were moments away from elimination.
But a Kevin Millar lead-off walk, a stolen base from Dave Roberts, and a hit from Bill Mueller led to the game-tying run. Boston would go on to win the game 6-4 in the 12th inning after a two-run walk-off homer by David Ortiz, a famous hit that would spark an historic series comeback -- still the only 0-3 comeback in baseball history.
Making this one even sweeter was that the Red Sox went on to sweep the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series to end both an 86-year championship drought and the Curse of the Bambino.
Liverpool def. AC Milan in 2005 Champions League final
At halftime of the 2005 Champions League final in Istanbul, dejected Liverpool fans were seen departing the Atatürk Olympic Stadium. Trailing 3-0 after a quick-fire goal from Paolo Maldini and a brace from Hernán Crespo, the Reds had crumbled on the biggest stage as Italian heavyweights AC Milan were cruising towards a seventh European title.
But so much can happen in 45 minutes of football. So much can happen in just six minutes!
Inspired by captain Steven Gerrard, Liverpool scored three times in the blink of an eye early in the second half to level up the decider in dramatic fashion. They then held their nerve in a thrilling penalty shootout, sparking wild celebration among those that opted against running out early for a kebab. Never, ever, leave a sporting final before it's over!
New York Knicks def. San Antonio Spurs in Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals
In terms of a pure sporting comeback and the wild celebration that ensued, it's hard to top this one. The Knicks were completely dead in Game 4 of this year's NBA Finals, and after winning the first two games of the series on the road, it appeared to be heading back to San Antonio locked at 2-2, and with the Spurs back in pole position to take the title.
New York trailed by 27 points at halftime and as many as 29 in the third quarter, but head coach Mike Brown refused to wave the white flag, keeping his starters in the game and forcing them to figure it out.
Figure it out they did! From that point on, the Knicks outscored the Spurs 56-25, hitting the front in the final minute before a heads-up OG Anunoby tip-in sealed a wild one-point win, sending Madison Square Garden into delirium. New York would would then wrap up the championship on the road two days later, the franchise's first title in 53 years.
Manchester City def. Queens Park Rangers to win 2011-12 Premier League
Roberto Mancini's Manchester City left their comeback so late against Queens Park Rangers that, 140 miles away at Sunderland, Manchester United believed they were champions of England.
United had earned a 1-0 victory at the Stadium of Light to go top of the table on the final matchday as City simultaneously trailed Queens Park Rangers 2-1 in second half injury time, needing two goals to usurp their cross-town rival and win the title. Edin Dzeko first breathed life into City with a 92nd-minute header (still not quite enough for the title!), before Sergio Aguero etched his name into Premier League folklore with arguably the most famous winner in football history.
Veteran commentator Martin Tyler summed up the wild scenes brilliantly, claiming "I swear you'll never see anything like this ever again."