With regard to football films, don’t expectThe Blind Side(2009) on this list.Rocky(1976),Raging Bull(1980),Million Dollar Baby(2004) — those boxing movies are among the most renowned in all of cinema, and won’t be included, either. The same thing goes for baseball andA League of Their Own(1992), along with basketball andHoosiers(1986).
And even if you don’t recognize the titles featured on the list, you should know a lot of the directors at the helm, or at least the members of their star-studded casts. All that said, these are the most underrated sports films ever made, ranked.
2542 (2013)
An absolute legend of baseball, Jackie Robinson was portrayed in42(2013) by an equally legendary actor in Chadwick Boseman. He transforms himself into the role: in this case, the first black player to compete during the modern era of Major League Baseball. But Jackie Robinson’s name almost transcends the sport, and the number on the back of his jersey — which was retired in 1997 across all MLB teams — is what the film’s title refers to.
It follows Robinson from his start in the Major Leagues with the Brooklyn Dodgers until their run to the 1947 World Series. And the result is a nearly perfect sports film that resonated fondly with critics and audiences alike, but not nearly to the extent that it deserves.42should legitimately be considered amongthe greatest baseball movies ever made, and for that, it ultimately kicks off the list.
24Concussion (2015)
Far from the best movie you’ll read about today,Concussion(2015) still manages to hit home on an emotional level, even if you struggle to get past the jarring nature of Will Smith’s on-screen accent. Make no mistake: he performs brilliantly as Bennet Omalu, a forensic pathologist conducting research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy — abbreviated as CTE — within the National Football League.
Smith even earned a Best Actor nomination at the Golden Globes for his efforts, and the film as a whole will entertain from start to finish. It’s not the most conventional of sports dramas, but it nonetheless deserves this spot on the list.
23All the Right Moves (1983)
This one isn’t of as high a quality, butAll the Right Moves(1983) was also somewhat panned upon release. There’s a fairly fine balance when ranking films as underrated, with this stint about Tom Cruise asa high school football cornerbackcoming in at number twenty-three not just because of its lackluster reception from critics, but also because of a rather poor showing in theaters.
This isn’t the best film you’ll read about today, either. But it’s also better than its numbers of success may imply. Cruise shines here as Stefen Djordjevic, with other early performances from Chris Penn and Craig T. Nelson acting as the icing on the underrated cake. If you’ve never seenAll the Right Moves, it’s still worth a watch today.
22Draft Day (2014)
This one features Kevin Costner as the lead with supporting roles from Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary, Chadwick Boseman, Terry Crews, and Sam Elliot, along with dozens of notable others. But the two names most prominently worth mentioning — aside from Costner and Gardner, who share an interesting dynamic as the latter is pregnant with the former’s child — are Ivan Reitman and Jim Brown.
A former football player himself, Brown turned into a superstar actor once his athletic career ended. He appears in a minor role as himself, but it’s noteworthy for being his final acting effort before his death in 2023. The same thing goes for Reitman, with the discrepancies being that he was the directorwho passed away in 2022. Still, this was his final movie. Those are two legends, andDraft Day(2014) should get more love for that fact alone. It helps that it’s a solidly entertaining sports romp about the titular, NFL draft day that’s well worth a watch.
21Million Dollar Arm (2014)
This biographical sports drama from Walt Disney Pictures features American actor Jon Hamm in the starring role as J.B., a sports agent who discovers the talent of baseball pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel. Their prowess was put on notice by winning a reality show competition, and from there, an underrated sports film unravels that should’ve resonated more fondly with critics upon release.
It had a decent enough showing at the worldwide box office, but ultimately, you may not have known that this project even exists. It features great acting efforts — other performers include Alan Arkin, Bill Paxton, and Lake Bell — and a resonant soundtrack to boot. For that,Million Dollar Arm(2014) deserves a spot on the list.
20Borg vs. McEnroe (2017)
Sverrir Gudnason portrays one half of the titular duo in Björn Borg, while Shia LaBeouf rounds out the title as John McEnroe. And together, the twoportrayals of the real-life figuresprovided tennis fans with the most intense back-and-forth matches the court had ever seen, chronicled in brilliant fashion as the finale ofBorg vs McEnroe(2017).
These are two disparate personalities that inherently provide a great dynamic, driving the plot with their athletic prowess but also with their personal developments, and the story runs the gamut of emotion. Hilarious through and through — thanks mainly to the controlled chaos of LaBeouf’s performance — it’s also a touching tale about a professional rivalry that in many ways transcended tennis itself. AndBorg vs. McEnroecaptured the rivalry to sheer perfection.
19Race (2016)
Although everyone knows Jesse Owens, you might not recognize this biographical sports drama from director Stephen Hopkins. Obviously, it revolves around track and field, specifically at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games where Owens won a record-breaking four gold medals.
He’s portrayed by Stephen James, with other notable names among the cast ofRace(2016) including Jason Sudeikis, Jeremy Irons, Carice van Houten, and William Hurt. But this is of course the story of Jesse Owens, who’s portrayed with a particular passion by James. His performance alone warranted a warmer response from critics.
18Goon (2011)
Perhaps the single funniest film on the list,Goon(2011) stars Sean William Scott asa hockey playerwho can barely even skate. His specialty is punching guys in the face: that’s where his titular moniker was born. The enforcer in hockey plays a prominent, mostly entertaining role by fighting opposing team members who use dirty or violent means to block a goal or stifle momentum.
And there may not have been a better fit for the role. Sean William Scott shines as the dim-witted but endlessly loyal Doug Glatt, and his costars are just as noteworthy: Live Schreiber, Alison Pill, Jay Baruchel, and Eugene Levy. Ultimately,Goonis essential viewing for fans of sports comedies even if they missed their chance in theaters. It comes in here at number eighteen.
17The Boxer (1997)
Some of the most respected performers of their respective generations have portrayed boxers on the silver screen — be it a fictional character, or one based on a real-life figure. Robert De Niro as Jake LaMotta, Christian Bale as Dickie Eklund. But then, there’s the man of the hour: Daniel Day-Lewis, who plays Danny Flynn.Fresh out of prison, he’s looking to turn things around by opening up a boxing gym for local youths.
The Boxer(1997) features Emily Watson as his co-star, and together the two provided a dynamic that acted as the film’s most devastating punch. It’s worth the watch for their performances alone, let alone the poignance of its plot.
Related:The 10 Finest Performances in American Boxing Films
16Leatherheads (2008)
Off the bat, it’s worth noting regardingLeatherheads(2008) the impressive nature of its star-studded cast: George Clooney, John Krasinski, Jonathan Pryce, and Renée Zellweger. It’s a comedy film, mostly, that chronicles the early era of professional American football.
And it’s easily among the best comedies the genre has ever seen, going down as fairly underrated with a 52% on critical consensus website Rotten Tomatoes and $41 million made at the worldwide box office off a $58 million budget. Those are some of the worst numbers on the list, but they shouldn’t be indicative of the film’s overall quality.Leatherheadsis definitely worth your time.
