Rafael Nadal, fresh from sealing his fifth French Open title and reclaiming the world number one spot from Roger Federer, storms to victory at Wimbledon for the second time after breezing past Tomas Berdych in straight sets in the final in July. The 24-year-old Spaniard, who did not drop a set on his way to the title, hailed his triumph in SW19 as "more than a dream".

Spain beat Holland 1-0 after extra time in the 2010 World Cup final to win their first crown as a tempestuous affair brought a close to what was a largely disappointing tournament in South Africa. While few would deny Vicente del Bosque's side as worthy winners, this will be remembered as a tournament that ultimately failed to inspire as a footballing spectacle.

In Golf, Louis Oosthuizen wins the Open Championship at St Andrews after beating Lee Westwood by seven shots, with Rory McIlroy, Paul Casey and Henrik Stenson tied for third.

Phillips Idowu and Jessica Ennis are amongst the gold medal winners at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona as Team GB win six gold medals. Britain finished third in the medals table behind France and first-placed Russia.

Alberto Contador wins his third Tour de France in four years as seven-time champion Lance Armstrong finishes the race for the final time. The 27-year-old Spaniard had held off a next-to-last day challenge from Andy Schleck of Luxembourg, who is Contador's runner-up for a second consecutive year.

Snooker mourns as two-time world champion Alex 'Hurricane' Higgins dies aged 61 following a long battle with throat cancer.

In cricket, Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan claims a record 800th and Test wicket against India in Galle and England defeat Australia 3-2 to win the home One-Day series despite losing the final two matches.

Martin O'Neill quits as Aston Villa manager just days before the new Premier League season is set to get underway in August with reserve team manager Kevin MacDonald taking temporary charge of first team affairs.

Martin Kaymer of Germany seals victory at the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits at the age of 25 after Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson both suffer penalty strokes on the final hole.

British number one Andy Murray wins his first title of 2010 after retaining his Toronto Masters crown by beating Roger Federer in straight sets in the final. In doing so, the 23-year-old Scot becomes the first man since Andre Agassi 15 years earlier to win Toronto Masters titles back to back.

Spot-fixing allegations against members of the Pakistan cricket team cast a humiliating shadow over the fourth Test against England.

September saw all-rounder Andrew Flintoff announce his retirement from all forms of cricket after failing to shake off a chronic knee problem which had kept him out of action for a year.

Rafael Nadal joins six of tennis' greatest players in having won all four grand slam titles after sealing his first US Open crown by beating Novak Djokovic in four sets in New York. The triumph caps a remarkable year for the world No1 after he won three of the four majors.

Ricky Hatton is handed a £20,000 drugs fine for taking cocaine and has his boxer’s licence withdrawn by the British Boxing Board of Control.

In October, Captain Colin Montgomerie leads Europe to victory in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor in the competition's first Monday conclusion after severe weather disrupted the schedule in Wales. Lee Westwood then takes over from Tiger Woods as the world's number one golfer, ending the American's 281-week reign at the top of the golf rankings.

The Liverpool takeover saga finally reaches its conclusion as John W Henry wins a High Court battle against joint owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett to complete a £220m buyout of the Merseyside club.

Germany's Sebastian Vettel becomes Formula 1's youngest-ever world champion after winning the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix in November aged 23 years and 134 days. The Red Bull driver finished ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button in what was a thrilling finish to the 2010 season. Red Bull also capture the constructors' championship.

In boxing, David Haye outclasses Audley Harrison in Manchester to retain his WBA Heavyweight title.

Meanwhile in rugby union, Chris Ashton scores two tries as England storm to a memorable 35-18 victory over Australia at Twickenham.

England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup is spectacularly shunned by Fifa's executive committee in December after it receives only two of 22 votes at the host announcement in Zurich. Russia is awarded the right to host the 2018 competition as Qatar is controversially named as the host of the 2022 tournament.

Two Premier League clubs part company with their managers in the space of two weeks as Chris Hughton is axed at Newcastle and Sam Allardyce is shown the door at Blackburn.

Sporting fixtures across the country fall foul of the wintry weather as heavy snowfall triggers a host of postponements, including the much-anticipated Premier League clash between Chelsea and Manchester United.

Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell overhauls a four-shot deficit on Tiger Woods to beat the American on the first play-off hole to win the Chevron World Challenge. The 31-year-old hails 2010 as "the stuff of dreams" and ends the year as the number-six ranked golfer in the world.

England retain the Ashes Down Under for the first time in 24 years with a Test match to spare after winning the fourth Test by an innings and 157 runs in Melbourne.

Carlo Ancelotti's Chelsea finally end their winless run of six Premier League games by edging Bolton 1-0 at Stamford Bridge. Manchester finish the year at the summit of England's top flight, level on points with rivals City, but having played two matches less.

World Cup and Champions League final referee Howard Webb and golfer Graeme McDowell are made MBEs in the New Year Honours List.

Read Part One of our Sport Review of the Year 2010.

Roy Hodgson's future as the manager of Liverpool is in serious doubt following an angry reaction from fans after the Reds’ defeat at the hands of relegation-threatened Wolves on Wednesday.

Fenway Sports Group principle owner John W Henry, and club chairman Tom Werner are believed to be seriously concerned following Liverpool's loss to lowly Wolves and the backlash from the Anfield faithful who ironically chanted "Hodgson for England" and called for the appointment of club legend Kenny Dalglish.

Hodgson's post-match attack on the Anfield supporters did nothing to help improve his position with either the fans or the clubs owners, with his comments about hoping "fans would become supporters" being out of line with the calculated approach FSG have taken to handling the media since arriving on Merseyside.

The Liverpool boss on Friday admitted he regretted making the comments and insisted that “the last thing in my mind is walking away from a club like this”.

Anything but a win in Liverpool's next game against Bolton on New Year's Day would likely see Hodgson's position at Anfield become untenable, with the patience so far shown by the club's board running out.

Liverpool's owners had been reluctant to end Hodgson's tenure at Anfield half way through the season, with their plan originally being to wait until the summer to review the position of the former Fulham boss. But a continuation of the Reds’ poor run of form could force the owners to relieve Hodgson of his duties just six months after his appointment.

Liverpool's tough run of games may be the only factor which works in the favour of the 63-year-old, with a clash with Manchester United in the FA Cup and a Merseyside derby falling within the Reds’ next five games – a run of fixtures Liverpool would not want to face without a manager.

Though FSG are believed to be reluctant to make a short-term appointment, should Hodgson leave the Liverpool owners may be tempted to appoint Dalglish in a caretaker role until a new long-term manager can be found, with rumoured targets including former Barcelona manager Frank Rjikaard and current Marseille boss Didier Deschamps.