The 7 Most Impressive Iron Man Streaks In Sports

Being a professional athlete takes a toll on your body, and injuries tend to be a matter of “when” as opposed to “if.” There’s also only so much you can do to prevent your skills from deteriorating as you get older, but some players have managed to defy time and fate while never missing a game and putting together some absurd “Iron Man” streaks.

No athletes have put together lengthier Iron Man streaks than these workhorses

Professional athletes can make millions of dollars a year to play a sport for a living, and you’re obviously expected to suit up for every game when you receive that kind of compensation.

However, that’s easier said than done, as injuries tend to come with the territory in a line of work where you’re usually vying against some fierce competition for a roster spot.

As a result, playing in hundreds (and even thousands) of games without missing a single one can be a tall task, but these people managed to do exactly that while setting some records that are tough to beat.

Cal Ripken Jr.: 2,632 MLB Games In A Row

We’ll kick things off with the Iron Man streak that springs to mind, which comes courtesy of Cal Ripken Jr.

It seemed like no one was ever going to break the record Lou Gehrig set by playing in 2,130 games in a row from 1939 to 1950  as a member of the Yankees; the man who was sitting in second place when he retired was Everett Scott, who had a relatively paltry 1,307.

However, Cal Ripken Jr. ultimately managed to set a new bar that may never be topped.

The Orioles infielder started for the team on May 30, 1982, and he was listed in the starting lineup in Baltimore in 2,632 games in a row before voluntarily bringing the run end at the end of the season in 1998 (three years after he surpassed Gehrig).

The longest active streak for a current MLB player belongs to Braves first baseman Matt Olsen, who will finish the 2026 season sitting at just under 940.

Jeff Gordon: 797 Races In A Row

In 1992, Jeff Gordon stepped into the No. 24 DuPont car that defined his career at the Hooters 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway while making his Winston Cup Series debut.

It marked the start of a legendary career for a man who’d go on to secure 93 wins at the top level of stock car racing, and in 2015, he beat Ricky Rudd’s record for most consecutive starts with the 789th of his career.

It didn’t last for much longer, as he kept it alive before retiring upon the conclusion of his 797th race in a row. Joey Logano is currently the active leader with more than 600 races, but he’ll need around five more uninterrupted seasons to pass Gordon.

Phil Kessel: 1,064 NHL Games In A Row

Hockey players have a reputation for being tough competitors with an uncanny ability to play through the injuries they frequently fall victim to when dealing with a schedule that features 82 games filled with high-paced and physical hockey.

Phil Kessel was largely able to avoid any serious setbacks during an NHL career that spanned 17 seasons. He did have to undergo shoulder surgery in the offseason in 2009, which delayed his debut with the Maple Leafs, but the winger returned to the ice on November 3, 2009.

He would not miss a single game until he was scratched from the lineup while the Golden Knights were competing in the playoffs in 2023. His Iron Man record technically remained intact, and while he hasn’t officially retired, he hasn’t played in a regular season game since appearing in his 1,064th in a row that year.

There is also a chance this could fall before the 2026 NHL season wraps up. Brent Burns heads into the year with a streak of 1,007, and he’ll become the man to beat if he appears in 58 straight as a member of the Avalanche.

Glenn Hall: 502 Consecutive Starts As An NHL Goalie

I’m doubling down on the NHL given the unique nature of goaltending, a position where teams have increasingly focused on giving guys in net a chance to rest and recover over the course of the season.

The rise of tandem goalie pairs and strategic rotation means it’s very unlikely anyone will ever come close to unseating Glenn Hall, who started 502 games in a row for the Blackhawks and Red Wings between 1955 and 1962.

He managed to do so during an era where goalies didn’t wear masks, and the streak is actually 552 games if you include the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

He was also not relieved in any of those contests, as the streak came to an end when he was forced to head to the locker room after suffering a back injury ten minutes into the first period of a showdown with the Bruins on November 7, 1962 (he missed three games before returning).

Brett Favre: 297 NFL Games In A Row (As A Non-Punter)

I’m not trying to engage in any Punter Erasure here, as Jeff Teague technically holds the record when it comes to the NFL’s Iron Man streak with 352 uninterrupted games.

However, that particular position doesn’t subject players to the kind of wear and tear guys on offense and defense have to endure, including quarterbacks.

That’s the position Brett Favre played during the two decades he spent in the NFL. He headed into the 1992 season as the backup for Packers QB Don Majkowski, but earned the starting job ahead of a showdown with the Steelers on September 27, 1992 and never looked back.

Favre never missed a game during the remainder of his time in Green Bay, and the streak remained intact during his brief tenure with the Jets. It also stayed alive when he joined the Vikings, but it ended at 297 games when he was designated as inactive on December 10, 2010 due to a shoulder injury that induced numbness in his throwing hand.

The current streak belongs to Falcons offensive tackle Jake Matthews, who is closing in on 200 by starting every game since making his debut with Atlanta in 2014. He’s chasing his father Bruce, who had a 229-game streak of his own, but he’ll need to stick around until the NFL into his 40s if he wants to end up topping Favre.

Joe Thomas: 10,363 Consecutive NFL Snaps

It’s one thing to appear in an NFL game as a starter, but taking every single snap you’re eligible for over the course of a contest is another thing entirely.

Joe Thomas was an absolute workhorse who spent a decade as an offensive tackle for the Browns. The Hall of Famer lived up to the hype after Cleveland selected him with the third overall pick in 2007, and he not only started in every game as a rookie but played every snap on the offensive side of the ball that season.

That remained the case until he suffered a triceps injury against the Titans in 2017 during the 10,363rd snap of his career. It also ended up being his last, as the setback ended his season before he opted to retire.

A.C. Green: 1,192 NBA Games In A Row

A.C. Green spent 16 years in the NBA as a role player who averaged 9.6 points per game during the course of his career, and he won three titles with the Lakers during his eight seasons in Los Angeles.

He may not have put together a Hall of Fame résumé, but he managed to secure a spot in the record books by appearing in 1,192 games in a row. It started when he came off the bench for the Lakers as a rookie on November 19, 1986, and ended when he retired at the conclusion of his final season in 2001.

Mikal Bridges holds the active record with 638, which means he’s a little more than halfway to surpassing Green and could do so in five and a half seasons.