There is no major football competition in England, Scotland or France due to World War II. In England, several regional leagues are played but statistics from these are not counted in players’ figures.
The highlight of the year is the World Heavyweight title fight between two current world champions, Joe Louis and Billy Conn, won by Louis with a 13th-round knockout.
During the 1940–41 season, although the Sheffield Shield is not contested, a number of interstate cricket matches are played for patriotic funding. For the 1941–42 season, seven three-day interstate matches are scheduled but only one is played before the urgency of the Pacific War puts an end to Australian first-class cricket until November 1945.
New Zealand and West Indies
New Zealand abandons the Plunket Shield for 1940–41 but here, and in the West Indies, a small number of first-class matches are arranged and played each season until after the war without being part of an official competition.