From breaking glass ceilings to breaking viewership records, here's a timeline of the top women's sports moments of 2020

Meredith CashDec 31, 2020, 21:32 IST

From left: Sarah Fuller, Katie Sowers, Jewell Loyd, Sabrina Ionescu, and Kim Ng.Matthew Maxey/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images/Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports/Julio Aguilar/Getty Images/Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports/oseph Guzy/Miami Marlins Handout Photo via USA TODAY Sports

2020 has been an unprecedented year on many fronts, and women's sports are no exception.
From the Marlins' Kim Ng and the 49ers' Katie Sowers to Vanderbilt's Sarah Fuller and Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu, women in sports shattered glass ceilings and achieved countless firsts this year.
The NWSL made history as the first league back during the pandemic, the WNBA made waves through its social justice initiatives, and both leagues excelled in viewership metrics.
Breanna Stewart, Sophia Popov, and Tiana Mangakahia enjoyed epic and heartwarming comebacks, and many athletes reached major milestones in their sports.
Check out Insider's timeline of 2020's top moments in women's sports below:

January 14: The WNBA and WNBPA reach agreement on a new CBA that increases player salaries, ensures maternity leave, and improves marketing and travel for the league

Candace Parker (left) attacks Alyssa Thomas during their 2020 WNBA playoff matchup. Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

January 16: San Francisco Giants assistant coach Alyssa Nakken becomes the first female to join an MLB coaching staff in league history

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

January 29: Canada's Christine Sinclair becomes the worldwide all-time leading scorer among men and women with her 185th international goal

AP Photo/Delcia Lopez

February 2: Carli Lloyd kicks a field goal in Super Bowl commercial

AP Photo/Matt Rourke

February 2: San Francisco 49ers offensive assistant coach Katie Sowers becomes the first woman - and first out LGBTQ individual - to coach during the Super Bowl

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

February 24: Sabrina Ionescu makes history as the first college player - man or woman - to accrue 2,000 points, 1,000 assists, and 1,000 rebounds in her career mere hours after eulogizing Kobe and Gigi Bryant

Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

February 24: Sabrina Ionescu makes history as the first college player - man or woman - to accrue 2,000 points, 1,000 assists, and 1,000 rebounds in her career mere hours after eulogizing Kobe and Gigi Bryant

March 21: Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird make the most of COVID-19 quarantine by starting Instagram Live series "A Touch More"

Megan Rapinoe/Instagram

June 27: The NWSL became the first professional domestic contact sports league to return to action after the COVID-19 pandemic with the start of the 2020 Challenge Cup

Tziarra King (right) dribbles past a goalkeeper during an NWSL Challenge Cup game. Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

July 1: WNBA superstar Maya Moore reunites with Jonathan Irons after pausing her basketball career to help overturn his wrongful conviction

Maya Moore. Jessica Hill/AP Images

July 21: Alyssa Nakken becomes the first woman to coach on the field during an MLB game

Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

July 21: The NWSL announces that Natalie Portman, Serena Williams, and more than a dozen women's soccer icons have joined a star-studded ownership group for a league expansion team in LA

Angel City/NWSL

July 21: The NWSL announces that Natalie Portman, Serena Williams, and more than a dozen women's soccer icons have joined a star-studded ownership group for a league expansion team in LA

July 26: The underdog Houston Dash win the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup

Jeffrey Swinger-USA TODAY Sports

August 4: WNBA players openly endorse Rev. Raphael Warnock in Georgia's Senate race to rebel against Kelly Loeffler, a co-owner of the Atlanta Dream

Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

August 21: WNBA legend Diana Taurasi told referees "I'll see you in the lobby later" in response to a foul call she didn't like

AP Photo/Ralph Freso

August 23: 304th-ranked Sophia Popov wins AIG Women's British Open after losing tour card, battling Lyme disease, and nearly quitting professional golf

Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

August 23: Diana Taurasi dropped 34 points on Kobe Bryant's birthday while wearing the late legend's name and number

Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images

September 9: NWSL and Japan national team star Yuki Nagasato becomes the first female soccer star to play professionally with a men's club

Yuki Nagasato poses for a photograph with her new Hayabusa Eleven jersey. The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images

September 10: Victoria Azarenka caps historic post-motherhood career resurgence by besting Serena Williams in the US Open semifinal

Danielle Parhizkaran-USA TODAY Sports

September 12: Naomi Osaka wins the US Open after wearing masks honoring victims of police brutality while taking the court for each of her seven matches

AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

September 16: Phoenix Mercury's Shey Peddy nails a buzzer-beating three to eliminate the Washington Mystics from the WNBA playoffs just weeks after the team cut her

Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

October 1: Legendary point guard Sue Bird sets WNBA single-game playoffs record with 16 assists in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals

AP Photo/Elaine Thompson

October 5: Manchester United jerseys for USWNT stars Tobin Heath and Christen Press outsold all of the players on the men's side

Michael Regan/Getty Images

October 6: Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart completes epic comeback by earning WNBA Finals MVP honors just 18 months after tearing her Achilles

Mary Holt-USA TODAY Sports

October 6: WNBA successfully completes 2020 season without a COVID-19 outbreak thanks to "Wubble" in Bradenton, Florida

A WNBA staffer cleans and sanitizes the ball before gameplay. Julio Aguilar/Getty Images

October 8: Future USWNT star Catarina Macario earns her first national team call up and becomes a US citizen on the same day

Brad Smith/ISI Photos/Getty Images

October 16: NWSL ratings were reported to have increased 493% year-over-year

Bryan Byerly/ISI Photos/Getty Images

October 30: Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe announce their engagement

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

November 13: Kim Ng becomes the first female general manager in MLB history

Joseph Guzy/Miami Marlins Handout Photo via USA TODAY Sports

November 18: Diana Taurasi made a surprise NBA Draft appearance, subtly promoting the WNBA on one of basketball's biggest stages

AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File

November 27: Kristie Mewis scores and plays alongside sister, Sam, in first USWNT appearance in 6 years

Piroschka van de Wouw/Pool via AP

November 27: Former kindergarten teammates Sophia Smith and Jaelin Howell earn first USWNT caps on the same day

Brad Smith/ISI Photos/Getty Images

November 28: Sarah Fuller becomes the first woman to play in a Power 5 college football game

Vanderbilt place kicker Sarah Fuller L.G. Patterson/AP

November 29: Syracuse basketball star Tiana Mangakahia returns to the court after breast cancer, chemotherapy, and a double mastectomy derailed her senior season

Rich Barnes/Getty Images

December 1: USWNT players secure similar resources and accommodations as the men's team through a settlement with US Soccer Federation

AP Photo/Seth Wenig

December 12: Sarah Fuller becomes the first woman to score in a Power 5 college football game

Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

December 13: Stanford Cardinal star Fran Belibi becomes the first DI women's college basketball player to dunk in a game since 2013

AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn

December 14: Sports Business Journal names the WNBA's iconic orange hoodie the best fashion statement of 2020

AP Photo/Michael Owen Baker

December 30: Becky Hammon becomes the first woman head coach in NBA history after Gregg Popovich was ejected early in a Spurs game against the Lakers

Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

Now check out Insider's 50 best soccer players in the world in 2020:

Matthias Hangst/Bongarts/Getty Images; Daniel Mihailescu/AFP via Getty Images; Xinhua/Aurelien Morissard via Getty Images; Alex Caparros - FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images; Nicolò Campo/LightRocket via Getty Images; Samantha Lee/Insider

6 sports photographers share the favorite images they captured in 2020

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From breaking glass ceilings to breaking viewership records, here's a timeline of the top women's sports moments of 2020

January 14: The WNBA and WNBPA reach agreement on a new CBA that increases player salaries, ensures maternity leave, and improves marketing and travel for the league

January 16: San Francisco Giants assistant coach Alyssa Nakken becomes the first female to join an MLB coaching staff in league history

January 29: Canada's Christine Sinclair becomes the worldwide all-time leading scorer among men and women with her 185th international goal

February 2: Carli Lloyd kicks a field goal in Super Bowl commercial

February 2: San Francisco 49ers offensive assistant coach Katie Sowers becomes the first woman - and first out LGBTQ individual - to coach during the Super Bowl

February 24: Sabrina Ionescu makes history as the first college player - man or woman - to accrue 2,000 points, 1,000 assists, and 1,000 rebounds in her career mere hours after eulogizing Kobe and Gigi Bryant

March 21: Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird make the most of COVID-19 quarantine by starting Instagram Live series "A Touch More"

June 27: The NWSL became the first professional domestic contact sports league to return to action after the COVID-19 pandemic with the start of the 2020 Challenge Cup

July 1: WNBA superstar Maya Moore reunites with Jonathan Irons after pausing her basketball career to help overturn his wrongful conviction

July 21: Alyssa Nakken becomes the first woman to coach on the field during an MLB game

July 21: The NWSL announces that Natalie Portman, Serena Williams, and more than a dozen women's soccer icons have joined a star-studded ownership group for a league expansion team in LA

July 26: The underdog Houston Dash win the 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup

August 4: WNBA players openly endorse Rev. Raphael Warnock in Georgia's Senate race to rebel against Kelly Loeffler, a co-owner of the Atlanta Dream

August 21: WNBA legend Diana Taurasi told referees "I'll see you in the lobby later" in response to a foul call she didn't like

August 23: 304th-ranked Sophia Popov wins AIG Women's British Open after losing tour card, battling Lyme disease, and nearly quitting professional golf

August 23: Diana Taurasi dropped 34 points on Kobe Bryant's birthday while wearing the late legend's name and number

September 9: NWSL and Japan national team star Yuki Nagasato becomes the first female soccer star to play professionally with a men's club

September 10: Victoria Azarenka caps historic post-motherhood career resurgence by besting Serena Williams in the US Open semifinal

September 12: Naomi Osaka wins the US Open after wearing masks honoring victims of police brutality while taking the court for each of her seven matches

September 16: Phoenix Mercury's Shey Peddy nails a buzzer-beating three to eliminate the Washington Mystics from the WNBA playoffs just weeks after the team cut her

October 1: Legendary point guard Sue Bird sets WNBA single-game playoffs record with 16 assists in Game 1 of the WNBA Finals

October 5: Manchester United jerseys for USWNT stars Tobin Heath and Christen Press outsold all of the players on the men's side

October 6: Seattle Storm star Breanna Stewart completes epic comeback by earning WNBA Finals MVP honors just 18 months after tearing her Achilles

October 6: WNBA successfully completes 2020 season without a COVID-19 outbreak thanks to "Wubble" in Bradenton, Florida

October 8: Future USWNT star Catarina Macario earns her first national team call up and becomes a US citizen on the same day

October 16: NWSL ratings were reported to have increased 493% year-over-year

October 30: Sue Bird and Megan Rapinoe announce their engagement

November 13: Kim Ng becomes the first female general manager in MLB history

November 18: Diana Taurasi made a surprise NBA Draft appearance, subtly promoting the WNBA on one of basketball's biggest stages

November 27: Kristie Mewis scores and plays alongside sister, Sam, in first USWNT appearance in 6 years

November 27: Former kindergarten teammates Sophia Smith and Jaelin Howell earn first USWNT caps on the same day

November 28: Sarah Fuller becomes the first woman to play in a Power 5 college football game

November 29: Syracuse basketball star Tiana Mangakahia returns to the court after breast cancer, chemotherapy, and a double mastectomy derailed her senior season

December 1: USWNT players secure similar resources and accommodations as the men's team through a settlement with US Soccer Federation

December 12: Sarah Fuller becomes the first woman to score in a Power 5 college football game

December 13: Stanford Cardinal star Fran Belibi becomes the first DI women's college basketball player to dunk in a game since 2013

December 14: Sports Business Journal names the WNBA's iconic orange hoodie the best fashion statement of 2020

December 30: Becky Hammon becomes the first woman head coach in NBA history after Gregg Popovich was ejected early in a Spurs game against the Lakers

Now check out Insider's 50 best soccer players in the world in 2020: