January

Bafana Bafana head to Ivory Coast to meet Mali, Namibia and Tunisia during the Africa Cup of Nations group stage.

The Proteas lock horns with India in the second Test in Cape Town, before the players return to their franchises for the second edition of the SA20.

Khuliso Mudau of South Africa celebrates scoring during a 2026 World Cup qualifier match against Benin at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on 18 November 2023. (Photo: Darren Stewart / Gallo Images)

ATP’s world No 1 Novak Djokovic will try to extend his record of 10 wins at the Australian Open and 24 Grand Slam titles in total so far.

Top fighter Dricus du Plessis is scheduled to fight for the middleweight title against Sean Strickland in UFC 297 in Toronto, Canada on 20 January.

February

The European rugby powerhouses will have everything to prove in the 2024 Six Nations after their disappointing showing at the recent World Cup in France.

The US National Football League concludes with the Superbowl, which will be staged in Las Vegas for the first time.

Team Bulls cyclists Axel Roudil Cortinat of France and Alban Lakata of Austria during stage 7 of the 2023 Absa Cape Epic at Val de Vie Estate on 26 March 2023 in Paarl. (Photo: Dino Lloyd / Gallo Images)

March

The endurance and tenacity of some of the world’s toughest competitors will be put to the test in the 46th Cape Town Cycle Tour and in the gruelling eight-day Cape Epic.

South African cricket’s four-day tournament reaches the playoff stage, and a Proteas side missing a number of first-choice players – owing to SA20 and Indian Premier League (IPL) commitments – heads to New Zealand for a two-Test tour.

April

The Bulls, Cheetahs, Lions, Sharks and Stormers will aim to qualify for the semifinals of the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup tournaments for the first time.

Augusta hosts the Masters, the PGA’s first major of the year.

Thousands of runners are due to descend on Cape Town over the Easter weekend for the Two Oceans Marathon.

Filippo Volandri, Jannik Sinner, Lorenzo Musetti, Matteo Arnaldi, Lorenzo Sonego and Simone Bolelli of Italy celebrate with the Davis Cup Trophy after the final against Australia at Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena in Malaga, Spain, on 26 November 2023. (Photo: Giampiero Sposito / Getty Images)

May

Can anyone stop Manchester City from claiming a third consecutive Premier League title, or Mamelodi Sundowns from clinching their seventh Premier Soccer League trophy in succession?

The IPL playoffs are staged this month.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Challenge of clinching the league unbeaten is the perfect stimulant for Sundowns

Further silverware is up for grabs at the French Open in Paris and the Grand Prix in Monaco.

June

The Champions League final at Wembley Stadium should whet the appetite for the European Championship staged in Germany over the next five weeks.

The Proteas will be desperate to end their poor run in International Cricket Council events when they go to the West Indies and US for the Twenty20 World Cup.

The battle for the US Open title plays out in Pinehurst, North Carolina.

The Comrades Marathon on 9 June is an “up” run.

Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after winning the Wimbledon final against Novak Djokovic on 16 July 2023. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Tolga Akmen)

July

The Paris Olympics start. Team South Africa finished the previous Games in Tokyo with three medals and will be desperate for better results in 2024.

Fans are spoilt for choice with Wimbledon, the Tour de France and golf’s Open Championship.

The Durban July is scheduled for 6 July.

The Springboks will meet Ireland in a series of two Tests: On 6 July at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria and on 13 July at Kings Park in Durban.

The Currie Cup will run from July to September to avoid clashes with the European club competitions.

Wyndham Clark of the US celebrates his US Open victory at the Los Angeles Country Club on 18 June 2023. (Photo: EPA-EFE / Caroline Brehman)

August

The Paralympics bring down the curtain on a spectacular sporting summer in France.

The Boks turn their attention to the Rugby Championship, while their female counterparts prepare for the final stages of the Women’s Premier Division.

The final Grand Slam event of the season plays out in New York with the US Open.

September

The Proteas Women made history when they became the first senior South African cricket side to qualify for a World Cup final in February 2023. They could go one better, though, when they compete in the next instalment of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh.

The group stages of the Davis Cup – otherwise known as the world cup of tennis – get under way in Spain.

Emirates Team New Zealand Team in action during the 37th America’s Cup Preliminary Regattas on 14 September 2023 in Vilanova i la Geltru, Spain. (Photo: Eric Alonso / Getty Images)

October

Barcelona hosts the 37th edition of the America’s Cup, which will be contested by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (the defenders) and the winner of the Challenger Selections series.

The Rugby Championship reaches the final stages, with the Boks aiming for their first southern hemisphere title since 2019.

The Proteas take on Bangladesh in a two-Test series.

South Africa captain Selvyn Davids gets his pass away as he is challenged by Akuila Rokolisoa of New Zealand during day two of the 2023 HSBC Cape Town Sevens at Cape Town Stadium on 10 December 2023. (Photo: Ryan Wilkisky / BackpagePix)

November

The Springboks head to Europe for their traditional end-of-season tour, while the respective South African franchises battle away in the United Rugby Championship.

The Davis Cup reaches its final stages.

Thousands of runners are due to descend on Cape Town for the Two Oceans Marathon. (Photo: Gallo Images)

December

The Proteas begin the new cricket season by hosting Sri Lanka and then Pakistan, while the women’s side plays England across all formats.

The club rugby season shifts into high gear with the Champions Cup and Challenge Cup kicking off in Europe and South Africa, while the Blitzboks and Imbokodo compete in the first two legs of the World Rugby Sevens Series.

Read more in Daily Maverick: European Champions Cup kicks off as SA Rugby set to finalise lucrative equity deal

The Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, in which South Africa are the defending champions, is scheduled for 2024. But no dates for the tournament, to be held in Morocco, had been finalised at the time of publishing. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper, which is available countrywide for R29.

Page 1. P1. Front page. 16 December 2023.