Melbourne Sports

Melbourne is known as the host city of the 1956 Summer Olympics (the first Southern Hemisphere Olympics and Oceania with all previous games in the United State and Europe). Melbourne is still the southernmost city for the Olympics. Melbourne also hosted the 2006 Commonwealth Games. The city hosts three major annual sporting events: the Australian Open (one of four Grand Slam tournaments); the Melbourne Cup (horse race); and the Australian Grand Prix (Formula 1). In addition, the Australian Masters Golf Tournament has been held in Melbourne since 1979, after being co-sanctioned by the 2006-2009 European Tour Melbourne has been declared the "most important sports city in the world" in 2006, 2008 and 2010. The city houses the National Sports Museum which was outside the Melbourne Cricket Ground Members Pavilion until 2003. It was reopened in 2008 on the Olympic grounds.

The Australian rules for cricket and football are the most popular sports in Melbourne. The city is home to numerous establishment/proficient groups in national rivalries that incorporate T20 Cricket Club Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars playing in the Big Bash League. The Australian Football Origins Games played the Melbourne Football Club, the oldest professional club in the world in 1858 alongside the MCG. The Australian Football League is based in Docklands Stadium. Nine teams in the league are in metropolitan Melbourne: Collingwood, Carlton, Essendon, Melbourne, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, St Kilda, Richmond and Western Bulldogs. Up to five AFL games are played every week in Melbourne, attracting an average of 40,000 people per game. In addition, the city hosts the AFL Grand Final every year.

The city is home to numerous establishment/proficient groups in national rivalries that incorporate T20 Cricket Club Melbourne Renegades and Melbourne Stars playing in the Big Bash League; Victoria Bushrangers cricket team attending Sheffield Shield and Matador BBQs national competitions for one day; the football teams Melbourne Victory and Melbourne City FC, who play in the A-League competition. The Melbourne Storm Rugby Club playing in the NRL competition; the Union Melbourne Rebels and Melbourne Rising rugby clubs, each participating in the Super Rugby and National Rugby Championships; Netball clubs Melbourne Vixens and Collingwood Magpies Netball, both in the new format (from 2017) Suncorp Super Netball; the Melbourne United Basketball Club, which plays in the NBL competition; Bulleen Boomers and Dandenong Rangers playing in the WNBL; The ice hockey teams Melbourne Mustangs and Melbourne Ice who play in the Australian Hockey League; and the Melbourne Aces Baseball Club, which plays in the Australian Baseball League. Rowing is also an important part of Melbourne's sporting identity, with several clubs on the Yarra River, coached by many Australian Olympic athletes. Previously, the city hosted the largest national long-distance swimming, the annual Race to Prince's Bridge, on the Yarra River. The most important amateur sports clubs include the country's major derby scooter clubs (VRDL) and men (VMRD).

Melbourne hosted the Presidents Cup golf tournament in 1998, making it the first country to host the tournament outside the United States. The event was first held in Melbourne, Victoria in 1998 and again in 2011. The biennial Royal Melbourne Golf Club is again scheduled for 2019 in the same place.