The 9 Best Sports Movies of the 2010s, Ranked

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By , Audacy

Most sports movies typically follow the same formula and could often be cliche, but there are some that manage to rise above that stigma and stand out above the rest.

This past decade certainly had its fair share of quality sports movies. From Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill's roles as front office executives of the Oakland A's to Will Smith's portrayal of Dr. Bennett Omalu's discovery of CTE, many of these films reflect the current landscape and culture of real-life sports.

There were also quite a few Oscar nominations, and even winners, among these movies from the last 10 years.

Here are the best sports films of the 2010s decade:

9 Rush (2013)

Ron Howard directs this brilliant true story of two Formula One racing rivals in the 1970s. Chris Hemsworth stars as English racer while Daniel Bruhl plays his Austrian rival, Niki Lauda. The film follows the two contrasting personalities and style on and off the racetrack.

8 Warrior (2011)

Tom Hardy plays Tommy Conlon, a former Marine who returns home to his father Paddy, a recovering alcoholic played by Nick Nolte, to seek his help in training for a winner-take-all MMA tournament with a $5 million grand prize. Tommy's estranged brother, Brendan — played by Joel Edgerton — is also fighting in the tournament in an effort to save his family from financial ruin as the three are all faced to confront their relationships with one another leading up to the main event. Nolte was nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Oscar in his role.

7 42 (2013)

Chadwick Boseman plays Jackie Robinson in a biopic that illustrates the struggle the Brooklyn Dodgers second baseman went through as he broke MLB’s color barrier in 1947 amid racial tensions in America.

6 Goon (2011)

This is a cult classic for hockey fans as they watch Sean William Scott play a not-so-bright Massachusetts bouncer who gets into a brawl at a minor-league hockey game, leading to a contract of his own with a Canadian hockey team. Jay Baruchel, Liev Schreiber and Eugene Levy star in this comedy.

5 Concussion (2015)

Will Smith portrays Dr. Bennet Omalu, who was the first to discover chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in football players as a result of concussions and repeated blows to the head. The film heightened the focus of concussions and head trauma in football, which has become a crisis in the sport as it tries to prioritize player safety.

4 Creed (2015)

The Rocky franchise, which some consider have produced some of the best sports movies, received a modern-day reboot as Michael B. Jordan starred as the son of Apollo Creed, turning to Rocky Balboa to train him as he tries to follow in his father’s footsteps as a professional boxer. Sylvester Stallone earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

3 Foxcatcher (2014)

Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo star as gold medal-winning Olympic brothers who train for the 1988 Seoul Olympics under eccentric millionaire John du Pont, played by Steve Carell. The path to the Olympics proves to be more destructive than rewarding for all three in a film that garnered five Oscar nominations.

2 Moneyball (2011)

Brad Pitt stars in Michael Lewis’ book-turned-film about Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane, and how his analytical, cost-effective philosophy in 2002 proved to be a successful way to build a winning team in a small-budget market, and thus changing the way MLB front offices operate. The film garnered six Oscar nominations and may even be considered one of the greatest baseball movies of all-time.

1 The Fighter (2010)

Christian Bale and Mark Wahlberg team up to portray the story of boxer Mickey Ward, whom Wahlberg plays, and his path to the world light welterweight title. Bale plays Ward’s half-brother and trainer, Dickey, who is battling a troubled life of drugs and crime who attempts to train Ward as he works his way to the top. Bale won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in this role.

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