Oct 20, 2022 - Sports

Sports Equinox 2022: NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB games collide

Kendall Baker

sports balls like planets — Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios

Happy Sports Equinox! Thursday is the 27th time in history that the "Big Four" leagues (NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB) are all in action on the same day.

The big picture: There was a 16-year period (1985-2001) without a single Sports Equinox. But now that "Thursday Night Football" is a fixture, the World Series starts later, and the NBA season starts earlier, they're much more frequent.

1971: Sunday, Oct. 17
1972: Sunday, Oct. 15 and Oct. 22
1973: Sunday, Oct. 14 and Oct. 21
1978: Sunday, Oct. 15
1979: Sunday, Oct. 14
1980: Sunday, Oct. 12 and Oct. 19
1985: Sunday, Oct. 27
2001: Sunday, Nov. 4
2009: Sunday, Nov. 1; Monday, Nov. 2
2010: Monday, Nov. 1
2015: Sunday, Nov. 1
2016: Sunday, Oct. 30
2017: Thursday, Oct. 19; Sunday, Oct. 29
2018: Thursday, Oct. 18; Sunday, Oct. 28
2019: Sunday, Oct. 27
2020: Thursday, Sept. 10; Sunday, Sept. 13; Thursday, Sept. 17
2021: Thursday, Oct. 21; Sunday, Oct. 31

Plus: The second round of the MLS playoffs also kicks off tonight, and there's some good college football, golf and European soccer action, too.

Looking ahead: There will be a record four Sports Equinoxes this year, with back-to-back this upcoming Sunday and Monday, then another one on Halloween (Monday, Oct. 31).

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Sports Equinox 2022: NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB games collide

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