It ain’t over till it’s over.

The line is widely attributed to Hall of Fame catcher and famed aphorist Yogi Berra and is associated with his years around the New York Yankees and later the New York Mets. It is commonly linked to the 1973 Mets season, when Berra was managing a team that surged late to win the National League East after trailing for much of the year; the phrase captured the idea that a game—or a season—can turn suddenly. Berra’s remark became emblematic of his plainspoken, paradox-tinged “Yogi-isms,” and it quickly escaped baseball to become a general proverb about withholding judgment until the outcome is settled.

On its face, the quote insists on the finality of results: you cannot declare victory, defeat, or meaning while events are still unfolding. In sport, it warns against complacency and premature celebration; in life, it counsels patience and resilience, reminding listeners that momentum can shift and that late reversals are always possible. The tautological humor (“over” defined by “over”) is part of its force: it turns a simple truth into a memorable maxim. Its enduring popularity comes from how neatly it captures uncertainty, perseverance, and the danger of assuming that the present state of play is the final one.

1) “It ain’t over ’til it’s over.”
2) “It’s not over till it’s over.”
3) “It ain’t over until it’s over.”