Sheffield has a long sporting heritage. In 1857 a collective of cricketers formed the worlds first ever official football club, Sheffield F.C. & the world's second-ever, Hallam F.C. who also play at the worlds oldest football ground in the suburb of Crosspool. By 1860 there were 15 football clubs in Sheffield, with the first ever amateur League and Cup competitions taking place in the city.

Sheffield is also home to the Sheffield Steelers Ice hockey team who play out of the 8,500 seater Sheffield Arena. They play in the 10 team professional Elite Ice Hockey League. Many of Sheffield's sporting facilities were built for the World Student Games, which the city hosted in 1991. They include the Don Valley International Athletics Stadium, the largest athletics stadium in the UK with a capacity of 25,000, Sheffield Arena, & the Ponds Forge International diving & Swimming Complex. Ponds Forge is also the home of Sheffield City Swimming Club, a local swimming club competing in the Speedo league.

The Sheffield Ski Village is the largest artificial ski resort in Europe. The city also has three indoor climbing centres. Sheffield was the UK's first National City of Sport & is now home to the English Institute of Sport Sheffield, where British athletes are training for the 2012 Olympics.

Sheffield also has close ties with Snooker, with the city's Crucible Theatre being the venue for the World Snooker Championships. The English Institute of Sport hosts most of the top fencing competitions each year, including the National Championships for Seniors, Juniors (U20's) & Cadets (U17's) as well as the 2011 Senior European Fencing Championships.

The English squash open is also held in the city every year. The International Open & World Matchplay Championship Bowls tournaments have both been held at Ponds Forge. The city also hosts the Sheffield Eagles rugby league, Sheffield Tigers rugby union, Sheffield Sharks basketball, Sheffield University Bankers hockey, Sheffield Steelers Ice hockey & Sheffield Tigers speedway teams.