2026 will be a banner year for big-time sports events in Philly. These are the ones not to miss.

Philadelphia sports fans of a certain age remember the city’s golden era, when all four professional teams advanced to their league’s championship series or title game in the same calendar year.

“The city was crazy that summer,” said Larry Bowa, the former Phillies shortstop who was a member of the 1980 World Series champion team. “Every team went to the finals, and we were the only one that won.”

Yes, the Sixers, Flyers, and Eagles all came up short of the brass ring in 1980 (and January 1981 for the Birds’ Super Bowl loss), but Philadelphia morphed into a sports nirvana during those 12 months.

Bowa said he thinks the 2026 Philadelphia sports scene will be even more electric, when the City of Brotherly Love hosts a bevy of major sporting events throughout the year. It starts with the March Madness men’s basketball opening rounds at Xfinity Mobile Arena, and stretches through the end of August, when the Philadelphia Cycling Classic is staged.

In between those two marquee events, the 108th PGA Championship will be played at Aronimink Golf Club, followed by six FIFA World Cup matches held at Lincoln Financial Field, the last of which is scheduled for July 4, the 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the Continental Congress.

If that’s not enough, Citizens Bank Park in mid-July will be the host site for the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the fifth time the Midsummer Classic has been played in Philadelphia, but the first at the Phillies’ current home stadium.

Imagine if the four Philly pro teams have a 1980 redux — that would be the cherry on top of Billy Penn’s hat.

“I think it’s going to be awesome,” Bowa said of the upcoming sports extravaganza. “People come from all over, and, whether it’s fair or not, Philly gets a bad rap sometimes. People that don’t live here, they don’t understand the passion that the fans have. It’s a great city. The fans are great. [You] can enjoy some of the history downtown. It’s going to be fun to sit back and watch.”

None of the area men’s basketball teams that constitute the Big 5 (now 6 including Drexel University) is currently in the Top 25 rankings as of this writing, but that could change by the turn of the calendar.

Even if no Philly-area team punches its Big Dance ticket, St. Joseph’s will factor in the 2026 NCAA tourney when the school hosts the first- and second-round games at Xfinity Mobile Arena. The Florida Gators are the defending champions, and when March Madness begins, Philadelphia steps into the college basketball limelight for the opening curtain.

Friday, March 20, and Sunday, March 22; Xfinity Mobile Arena; tickets at xfinitymobilearena.com.

The 108th edition of one of professional golf’s four majors will be staged on the pristine Aronimink Golf Club links. The last time the PGA Championship was staged here was more than 60 years ago, when Hall of Fame legend Gary Player beat Bob Goalby by a stroke.

More recently, Keegan Bradley won the 2018 BMW Championship at Aronimink. Defending champ Scottie Scheffler will be among the star-studded group of golfers descending upon suburban Philly to play for the Wanamaker Trophy. If you miss out on tickets to the PGA Championship, you have another chance to see high-level golf in the region when the U.S. Men’s Amateur Championship comes to Merion Golf Club in mid-August.

May 11-17; Aronimink Golf Club, Newtown Square; tickets at pgachampionship.com.

Soccer’s premiere event was last staged in the U.S. over three decades ago, when the USMNT advanced to the Round of 16, before losing to perennial powerhouse Brazil. Now the men’s national team has another chance to try to do what no U.S. squad has done before — win soccer’s most prestigious award.

Six of the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches will be played at the Linc, including the final of those matches scheduled to take place on Independence Day.

June 14-July 4; Lincoln Financial Field; tickets at fifa.com.

Bowa was an All-Star in 1976, when the Midsummer Classic was played at Veterans Stadium. But in that doughnut-shaped ballpark, “you had to hit ’em to get out of there.” Bowa said he thinks the bandbox Citizens Bank Park will be a great venue for baseball’s All-Star gathering, particularly the Home Run Derby.

“This one, they might be taking the upper deck down with these guys as big and strong as they are, and the way the ball jumps in Philly.”

It will be even more entertaining if defending Home Run Derby champ Kyle Schwarber is suited up in a Phillies jersey next year. But if Schwarber departs in free agency, there is still a group of Phillies — Bryce Harper, Trea Turner, Cristopher Sanchez — who could star for the National League.

July 12-14; Citizens Bank Park; tickets at mlb.com.

One of cycling’s jewel events, the Philadelphia Classic has had numerous name iterations over the years, going back to its start in 1985 when it was called CoreStates U.S. Pro Cycling Championship. That year, Eric Heiden — yes, the former U.S. Olympic gold medal-winning speed skater — was champion.

Tour de France legend Greg LeMond has also been a past participant. The route snakes west of Center City and includes the famed Manayunk Wall, a cycling test of will on Levering Street.

Aug. 30; Planned 14.4-mile circuit goes from Logan Square up Kelly Drive to Manayunk and back; tickets at philadelphiacyclingclassic.com.