In sports (especially in North America), a three-peat is winning three consecutive championships or tournaments. The term, a portmanteau of the words three and repeat, originated with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association, during their unsuccessful campaign for a third consecutive championship during the 1988–89 season, having won the previous two NBA finals.
Origin The Oxford English Dictionary cites the Newsday newspaper for first publishing the word as a noun, as the Lakers began using the term in 1988. The OED also credits an Illinois high school senior, Sharif Ford, with the earliest published use of the word as a verb in the 8 March 1989, edition of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ford's quote uses the term in a sporting context and serves to provide a clear etymology as well:
The Lincoln High Tigers say they want to "three-peat". "You know, kind of like repeat, except doing it for the third time", senior Sharif Ford said.
In a comedic context, the same play on words, additionally incorporating the name "Pete", is known to have been used as early as 1930 on the radio program Empire Builders. The episode of that program broadcast on 29 December 1930, featured a trio of singers dubbed "The Three Visiting Firemen: Pete, Re-Pete, and Three-Pete".radiomemories 23248 Wizzard Media
Trademark The term is a registered trademark owned by Pat Riley, the Lakers' head coach from 1981 to 1990. The original owner and assignor of the underlying THREE-PEAT "mark" was Bijan Khezri, former president of P.d.P. Paperon De Paperoni, a Delaware corporation. Khezri submitted in November 1988 a trademark application for the use of three-peat on shirts, jackets and hats. Around that time, the phrase was being used by members and fans of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team, of whom Pat Riley was the head coach, regarding the Lakers' quest that season to obtain what would have been a third successive NBA championship. According to Riley, it was Laker player Byron Scott who cited the term in reference to the team's goal for that season.
After Khezri assigned the trademark to Riley, it remained an entity of Riley's company Riles & Co.. In 1989, Riles & Co. successfully registered the trademark under U.S. Registration Number 1552980. The Lakers did not win a third consecutive NBA championship in 1989, but the Chicago Bulls did in 1993, and Riles & Co. collected royalties from sports apparel makers who licensed the phrase for use on merchandise commemorating that accomplishment.
Riles & Co. subsequently obtained additional registrations expanding the trademark to cover many other kinds of merchandise in addition to apparel. The company then went on to reap additional profits by again licensing the phrase to merchandisers when the Bulls again won three consecutive NBA championships from 1996 through 1998, as well as when the New York Yankees won three straight World Series championships from 1998 through 2000 and when the Lakers won three straight NBA championships from 2000 through 2002. It was the Lakers' second three-peat in franchise history and only their first since moving from Minneapolis. As of 2025, the Lakers are the last team of the four major American professional sports (NHL, MLB, NFL, NBA) to achieve a three-peat. Incidentally, Pat Riley was the head coach of the losing teams (New York Knicks in 1992 and 1993, Miami Heat in 1996 and 1997) that were eliminated by the Bulls during their 1991–93 and 1996–98 three-peats of NBA Championships. Phil Jackson was the head coach of the Bulls for both of these three-peats, and serving in that same capacity for the Lakers when they achieved their second three-peat.
While originating in the United States, the three-peat has been replicated all over the world across different sports. In recent times, Spanish association football club Real Madrid notably became the first club of the modern era to win three consecutive UEFA Champions League titles (2015–16, 2016–17 and 2017–18). The American Rugby club the New England Free Jacks became the first team to win three consecutive MLR titles (2023, 2024, 2025) and the first North American team to complete a three-peat since 2002.
The trademark registration for three-peat has been challenged over the years by those who argue that the term has become too generic in its usage for the trademark to continue to be applicable. However, such arguments have yet to succeed, with the registration continuing to be upheld by the United States Patent and Trademark Office as recently as 2001, in the case of Christopher Wade v. Riles & Co. This challenge documented the transfer of assignment from Khezri to Riles & Co., and upheld the validity of the trademark as originally conceived.
In 2005, a group of individuals attempted to trademark the phrase Three-Pete in anticipation of the (ultimately unsuccessful) attempt that year by the 2005 USC Trojans football team to win a third consecutive national championship. The change in spelling was a reference to the team's head coach Pete Carroll. However, the Patent Office ruled that the change in spelling was not dissimilar enough from Riles & Co.'s three-peat, and denied the registration. Later that year, USC fan Kyle Bunch began selling his own "Three-Pete" T-shirts. He discontinued sales once he was notified that he was infringing upon the Riles & Co. trademark.
Three-peats in North American leagues/championships There have been numerous instances of teams winning three or more consecutive championships in the National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Major League Baseball, National Football League, and Australian Football League, most of which occurred prior to the advent of the term three-peat.
North America: professional sports
All-America Football Conference 1946–1949 Cleveland Browns (4-peat) (also won 1950 NFL title)
Arena Football League 1988–1990 Detroit Drive 2012–2014 Arizona Rattlers
American Hockey League 1960–1962 Springfield Indians
Champ Car World Series 2004–2007 Sébastien Bourdais (4-peat)
Continental Basketball Association 1985–1987 Tampa Bay/Rapid City Thrillers
ECHL 2022–2024 Florida Everblades
Formula Drift
2017–2019 James Deane
IndyCar Series 2009–2011 Dario Franchitti 2023–2025 Álex Palou
Major Indoor Soccer League 1979–1982 New York Arrows (4-peat) 1988–1992 San Diego Sockers (5-peat)
Major League Baseball (World Series) 1936–1939 New York Yankees (4-peat) 1949–1953 New York Yankees (5-peat) 1972–1974 Oakland Athletics 1998–2000 New York Yankees
Major League Rugby (MLR Championship)
2023–2025 New England Free Jacks
NASCAR Cup Series 1976–1978 Cale Yarborough 2006–2010 Jimmie Johnson (5-peat)
National Basketball Association (NBA Finals) 1952–1954 Minneapolis Lakers 1959–1966 Boston Celtics (8-peat) 1991–1993 Chicago Bulls 1996–1998 Chicago Bulls 2000–2002 Los Angeles Lakers
National Football League (NFL champions) 1929–1931 Green Bay Packers (no post-season; title game began in 1933) 1965–1967 Green Bay Packers (won 1965, 1966, and 1967 title games, plus Super Bowl I and Super Bowl II)
National Hockey League (Stanley Cup Final) 1947–1949 Toronto Maple Leafs 1956–1960 Montreal Canadiens (5-peat) 1962–1964 Toronto Maple Leafs 1976–1979 Montreal Canadiens (4-peat) 1980–1983 New York Islanders (4-peat)
Premier Hockey Federation (Isobel Cup) 2020–2022 Boston Pride (2020 co-champions with Minnesota Whitecaps)
Federal Prospects Hockey League (Commissioner's Cup) 2024–2026 Binghamton Black Bears
U.S. Open Cup 1965–1967 Greek American Atlas 2009–2011 Seattle Sounders FC
United Football League 2022–2024 Birmingham Stallions
Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA Finals) 1997–2000 Houston Comets (4-peat)
United States: College Sports NACDA Director's Cup (overall collegiate athletics) 1995–2018 Stanford (NCAA Division I) (23-peat) 1997–2001 Simon Fraser (NAIA) (5-peat) 1999–2011 Williams (NCAA Division III) (12-peat) 2000–2003 UC Davis (NCAA Division II) (4-peat) 2004–2011 Grand Valley State (NCAA Division II) (8-peat) 2005–2011 Azusa Pacific (NAIA) (7-peat)
NAIA National Football Championship 2002–2005 Carroll College Fighting Saints (4-peat)
NAIA National Basketball Championship 1957–1959 Tennessee State Tigers basketball 1970–1972 Kentucky State Thorobreds
NCAA Division I Baseball 1970–1974 USC (5-peat)
NCAA Division I Softball 1988–1990 UCLA 2021–2024 Oklahoma (4-peat)
NCAA Division I Men's Volleyball 1970–1972 UCLA 1974–1976 UCLA 1981–1984 UCLA (4-peat)
NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball 2007–2010 Penn State (4-peat)
NCAA Division I Football
Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) 1934–1936 Minnesota (Toledo Cup) 1944–1946 Army West Point
Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) 2005–2007 Appalachian State University 2011–2015 North Dakota State University (5-peat) 2017–2019 North Dakota State University
NCAA Division I Men's Basketball 1967–1973 UCLA (7-peat)
NCAA Division I Men's Water Polo 2008–2013 USC (6-peat)
NCAA Division I Women's Basketball 1996–1998 Tennessee 2002–2004 Connecticut 2013–2016 Connecticut (4-peat)
NCAA Division I Men's Cross Country 1944–1946 Drake 1966–1968 Villanova 1978–1981 UTEP (4-peat) 1990–1993 Arkansas (4-peat) 1998–2000 Arkansas 2016–2018 Northern Arizona 2020–2022 Northern Arizona
NCAA Division II Women's Basketball 1993–1996 North Dakota State Bison (4-peat) 1997–1999 North Dakota Fighting Sioux
NCAA Division III Women's Basketball 1998–2001 Washington (4-peat)
NCAA Division I Women's Soccer 1982–1984 North Carolina 1986–1994 North Carolina (9-peat)
NCAA Division II Football Championship 1993–1995 North Alabama
NCAA Division III Football 1983–1986 Augustana College (Illinois) (4-peat) 1996–1998 Mount Union 2000–2002 Mount Union 2009–2011 Wisconsin–Whitewater Warhawks
U.S. National Collegiate Club Rugby championships 1980–1983 California (4-peat) 1991–2002 California (12-peat) 2004–2008 California (5-peat) 2012–2014 BYU
United States: tabletop games Warhammer 40k American Team Championships Team Happy 2015–2017
United States: marching arts
The Cadets Drum and Bugle Corps won the Drum Corps International World Championship in 1983–1985. The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps three-peated 2000–2002 (2000 was a tie with the Cadets). The Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps won the Drum Corps International World Championships in 2019–2023 (2020 and 2021 were not scored due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
Three-peats in domestic leagues/championships
Australian Football Australia West Australian Football League 1908–1911 East Fremantle 1919–1923 East Perth 1928–1931 East Fremantle 1938–1940 Claremont 1952–1954 South Fremantle 1961–1963 Swan Districts 1966–1968 Perth 1982–1984 Swan Districts 2000–2002 East Perth 2006–2008 Subiaco
AFL 1906–1908 Carlton Football Club 1927–1930 (4-peat) Collingwood Football Club 1939–1941 Melbourne Football Club 1955–1957 Melbourne Football Club 2001–2003 Brisbane Lions 2013–2015 Hawthorn 2024–2026 Brisbane Lions
Germany Australian Football League Germany 2007–2009 Rheinland Lions 2021–2023 Berlin Crocodiles
American Football Costa Rica Costa Rica, American Football 1st Division: 2010–2012 Santa Ana Bulldogs
Association Football Argentina First Division (association football) 1949–1951 Racing Club 1955–1957 River Plate Metro 1979–Metro 1980 River Plate Apertura 1996–Apertura 1997 River Plate
Belgium Belgian Pro League 1900–1903 Racing de Bruxelles 1904–1907 R Union Saint-Gilloise 1924–1926 Beerschot 1933–1935 R Union Saint-Gilloise SR 1949–1951 RSC Anderlechtois 1954–1956 RSC Anderlechtois 1964–1968 RSC Anderlechtois (5-peat) 1969–1971 R Standard Liège 1976–1978 Club Brugge 1985–1987 Anderlecht 1993–1995 Anderlecht 2012–2014 Anderlecht 2020–2022 Club Brugge
Brazil Brazilian Championship 2006–2008 São Paulo FC
Bulgaria Bulgarian A PFG 1993–1995 Levski Sofia 2000–2002 Levski Sofia