The 16 Best Farewells in Sports History

Some walked out on top, some walked out in tears, and one of them did both on the same night.

1. 1
   Kobe Bryant

   Sixty points in his last NBA game, April 2016.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Derek Jeter

   A walk-off single in his final home game at Yankee Stadium.
   856pts
3. 3
   Sachin Tendulkar

   A speech at the Wankhede in 2013 that stopped a country.
   719pts
4. 4
   Shawn Michaels

   Lost a career-versus-streak match to The Undertaker at WrestleMania 26 and stayed gone.
   582pts
5. 5
   Bjorn Borg

   Quit at 26 with eleven majors and left the tour without a press conference.
   513pts
6. 6
   Serena Williams

   A last US Open run in 2022 that lasted three rounds longer than anyone expected.
   513pts
7. 7
   The Undertaker

   The Final Farewell at Survivor Series in November 2020, thirty years to the night after his debut.
   513pts
8. 8
   Michael Jordan

   The shot against Utah in 1998 that should have been the last thing he ever did in basketball.
   434pts
9. 9
   John Elway

   Retired straight after winning a second consecutive Super Bowl as MVP.
   434pts
10. 10
    Roger Federer

    The Laver Cup doubles match with Rafael Nadal, both of them in tears.
    434pts
11. 11
    Rocky Marciano

    Walked away undefeated at 31 and never came back.
    434pts
12. 12
    Zinedine Zidane

    A World Cup final, a headbutt and a walk past the trophy in 2006.
    342pts
13. 13
    Pele

    Played one half for Santos and one for the Cosmos in the same 1977 exhibition.
    233pts
14. 14
    Ray Bourque

    Traded at 39, won the Stanley Cup in his last game and was handed it first.
    233pts
15. 15
    David Ortiz

    Hit .315 with 38 home runs in his final season at 40.
    233pts
16. 16
    Lou Gehrig

    The luckiest man on the face of the earth, Yankee Stadium, July 1939.
    103pts