Sports documentaries are no longer just for diehard fans. They have become some of the most gripping, emotionally charged stories in modern filmmaking. Whether you're watching a climber scale a cliff without ropes or a footballer navigate fame and scandal, these films pull you into the stakes behind the scoreboard. Here are 17 essential titles that prove the drama off the field is just as riveting as what happens on it.
19 Highly-Rated Sports Documentaries To Watch On Netflix, Prime Video, JioHotstar And More
The Greatest Rivalry: India vs Pakistan
Where to watch: Netflix
This documentary traces the history and emotional weight of the India-Pakistan cricket rivalry. Featuring players, journalists, and political voices, it explores how a cricket match became a reflection of national identity and diplomatic tension.
Bandon Mein Tha Dum
Where to watch: JioHotstar
An inside look at India’s historic Test series win in Australia during the 2020-21 tour. With injury setbacks, bio-bubbles, and a team written off by pundits, this is a story of underdogs rewriting history on Australian soil.
Icarus
Where to watch: Netflix
What begins as a DIY doping experiment becomes a geopolitical thriller when filmmaker Bryan Fogel stumbles into the inner workings of Russia’s state-run cheating machine. It's not just about steroids. It’s about murder, betrayal, and the biggest scandal in Olympic history.
Bad Sport
Where to watch: Netflix
A collection of true-crime sports stories where winning crosses over into corruption. Athletes, coaches, and investigators recount tales of point-shaving, drug smuggling, and race-fixing. Real scandals told by the people at the centre of them.
The Last Dance
Where to watch: Netflix
Michael Jordan’s final season with the Chicago Bulls becomes a lens into one of the most iconic careers in sport. This ten-part series is part origin story, part psych profile, and a deep dive into what it takes to dominate a global game.
Senna
Where to watch: Prime Video (rent)
Ayrton Senna was not just fast. He was electric, principled, and fearless. This documentary tracks his rise from prodigy to legend, and captures the fatal crash that turned him into a martyr. A portrait of genius behind the wheel.
Pumping Iron
Where to watch: Prime Video (rent)
Long before fitness influencers, there was Arnold. Part documentary, part flexed-up psychodrama, this 1977 cult classic follows the rivalry between Schwarzenegger and Lou Ferrigno at the height of bodybuilding’s golden age.
Free Solo
Where to watch: TBD
Climbing El Capitan without a rope is less sport, more near-death art. Alex Honnold attempts it anyway. A film about control, fear, and the line between courage and compulsion. It will make your palms sweat.
Diego Maradona
Where to watch: Prime Video
The beautiful game meets beautiful chaos. This film captures the volatile brilliance of Diego Maradona, from his transfer to Napoli to his transformation into a near-mythical figure loved, feared, and eventually destroyed by his fame.
Lorena, Light-Footed Woman
Where to watch: Netflix
Lorena Ramírez runs ultramarathons through mountains wearing traditional sandals. She’s a member of Mexico’s Indigenous Rarámuri community, and this quiet, powerful documentary follows her strength without spectacle.
Man on Wire
Where to watch: YouTube
Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk between the Twin Towers was illegal, absurd, and totally mesmerising. This documentary plays out like a heist film. One man, a wire, and a dream that bordered on delusion.
Sunderland ’Til I Die
Where to watch: Netflix
Football isn’t just a game in Sunderland. It’s lifeblood. This docuseries tracks the club’s struggle to climb back after a brutal relegation. More than sport, it’s about community, identity, and what it means when your team lets you down.
Formula 1: Drive to Survive
Where to watch: Netflix
A show that turned Formula 1 into a global obsession. Behind every crash and checkered flag is a war of egos, money, and mind games. The racing is real, but the drama between drivers and team bosses is what makes it addictive.
Athlete A
Where to watch: Netflix
A devastating exposé of the systemic abuse in USA Gymnastics. Focused on the journalists, lawyers, and gymnasts who took down predator doctor Larry Nassar, this documentary is hard to watch but impossible to ignore.
100 Foot Wave
Where to watch: JioHotstar
Big-wave surfer Garrett McNamara chases the impossible: a 100-foot wave off the coast of Nazaré, Portugal. What follows is a decade of obsession, injury, and some of the most spectacular ocean footage ever captured.
The Deepest Breath
Where to watch: Netflix
A film about love, ambition, and the lure of depth. It follows a free diver and her safety partner as they push past the limits of breath-hold diving. The risk is total. So is the beauty.
Beckham
Where to watch: Netflix
A four-part deep dive into David Beckham’s journey from working-class East London to global celebrity. It covers football, fame, family, and the media circus that came with marrying a Spice Girl.
Break Point
Where to watch: Netflix
The tennis version of Drive to Survive, this series follows the next generation of players as they try to break out of the shadow of the Big Three. Pressure, injuries, tantrums, and some very raw moments behind the glamour.
The Test: A New Era for Australia's Team
Where to watch: Prime Video
After the sandpaper scandal in 2018, Australia’s cricket team faced national disgrace. This docuseries captures their path back, chronicling the rebuild of team culture, leadership, and public trust.
