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Ultra-competitive cheerleading squads, tennis prodigies, footballing superstars, era-defining NBA legends and the greatest gymnast of all time – over the past few years, Netflix has stealthily cornered the market on jaw-dropping, pulse-racing, highly bingeable sports shows. Genuinely eye-opening and often supremely feelgood, they make for a perfect comfort watch, as well as an accessible entry point to a sport you may previously have known very little about, but with which you’ll quickly become obsessed. These are the five we can’t stop streaming.
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Cheer (2020)
Bones are broken, ribs bruised, limbs dislocated, heads concussed, and dreams both achieved and shattered in Greg Whiteley’s epic paean to cheerleading, which, for once, shows the sport not with the peppy cutesy-nees of Bring it On, but in its true, gritty, tough-as-nails glory. Our subjects are the hard-headed athletes who make up the 14-time national championship-winning Navarro College cheer team from sleepy Corsicana, Texas – resilient “top girl” Morgan, rebellious tumbler Lexi, and formidable coach Monica, among many, many others – all on the hunt for their next title and determined to let nothing get in their way. The six-part nail-biter’s glorious finale is one of the most compelling episodes of TV you’ll ever watch, and its breathtaking climax is one which never fails to make me cry. (And I’ve seen it more times than I care to admit.) Granted, the second season doesn’t reach the same gravity-defying heights, but the first is an unqualified masterclass.
The Last Dance (2020)
In my humble and incredibly biased opinion, Jason Hehir’s account of the lives and careers of NBA gods Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and coach Phil Jackson – who spearheaded the Chicago Bulls to six championships between 1991 and 1998, became a global phenomenon, and propelled the sport onto the world stage – is one of the best TV shows ever made. It’s got airborne dunking montages set to the decade’s biggest bangers, an irresistible parade of oversized suits and shades courtesy of Jordan, the surprising origin story of the iconic Nike trainers named after him (possibly my favourite episode), appearances by fans Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and a kind of hazy, grainy, high-flash ’90s nostalgia that makes you want to live in this (in many ways simpler) world. It was a Covid-era mega hit – it’s easy to see why – but I’ve also binged it so many more times since, with its 10-hour running time somehow always passing in the blink of an eye. And it’s made me hugely, unfathomably invested in a sport I never cared about before.
Naomi Osaka (2021)
More quiet and ruminative than the other, more zippy and crowd-pleasing shows on this list, Garrett Bradley’s three-part sketch of the Japanese-born, US-raised, trailblazing tennis champion Naomi Osaka is essential viewing, regardless: a fascinating portrait of an overnight sensation who toppled her childhood hero, Serena Williams, at the US Open, and then struggled under the relentless glare of the spotlight. Through childhood home videos, interviews with her parents, and her own thoughtful narration, we begin to understand her drive, fears, frustrations, disillusionment and hope for the future, and consider how much we ask of the young athletes we are quick to place on a pedestal, forgetting that they are still in the process of finding their voice.
Beckham (2023)
Whether or not you remember David Beckham’s meteoric rise, dominance, move from Manchester United to Real Madrid, transfer stateside and subsequent retirement the first time around or not, Fisher Stevens’s brilliant retelling of the newly-knighted Sir David’s life story is a must-watch. Across four rip-roaring episodes, we’re treated to remarkably candid interviews with everyone from Gary Neville and Alex Ferguson to wife Victoria (the latter of which, of course, yielded the show’s most memorable and memed moment), plus a revealing look at the barrage of hate the sporting hero faced in the second half of his career and how that actually impacted him. It’s sometimes infuriating, frequently startling and, at points, incredibly life-affirming stuff. Be sure to revisit it before Netflix’s upcoming follow-up, a docuseries wholly (and rightfully) focused on Mrs Beckham.
Simone Biles: Rising (2024)
How did seven-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles rule Rio, drop out at Tokyo and then return to form in spectacular fashion in Paris? Katie Walsh’s four-part deep dive restores the humanity to a woman we’ve come to think of as a Herculean goddess – one who has wobbles (including a debilitating case of “the twisties”) and comes back fighting; one who has endured unimaginable things, from her early life in foster care, to relentless racism, and abuse at the hands of the now-imprisoned former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar, and is still processing it all. It’s heartbreaking to watch her break down, a thrill to see her return to prominence and soar, but an even bigger joy to witness her building a life beyond the gym and giving herself the space to enjoy it.