Sports Towns With Great Teams And Fanbases

August 23, 2021

Nothing brings Americans closer together than sports. Whether it’s about supporting your team through thick and thin, rooting against your rivals, or just simply enjoying the game, sports are at the very center of our culture.
With such a diverse range of cities playing in professional and amateur leagues, we got to wondering which ones are the proudest and loudest; What is the greatest sports town?

Keep reading to see what we discovered and which city you should keep at the top of your travel list if you love to tailgate, stay until the final play, and root for the home team.

A Disclaimer, For Safety

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We know sports can get a little contentious (understatement of the year), so we want to emphasize that this is not an exhaustive list. Every city and every team has its own unique flavors, culture, and traditions, all of which are worthy of celebrating. For the purposes of this post, we combed through the nation to find cities that best satisfied these three factors:

Multiple Popular Franchises: It’s one thing to have a well-supported football team but a whole other to have equally popular baseball, hockey, and basketball teams. We’re looking for cities that essentially have no off-season, with passion for each team carrying the city year round.

Passionate Fanbase: On that note, we’re looking for some real spirit in the fanbase — diehard fans that will stick it out with teams through the best moments and the worst. Today we’re highlighting fans who don’t just wait for one season to come around. They ride for every one of their city’s teams, regardless of the sport.

Longstanding Tradition: There are many new teams and up-and-coming sports towns that have made a splash recently, but we’re going to focus on cities with longstanding commitments to athletics. Fact is, they’re built on a foundation of passion for a reason.

We may not hit your city today, but we’re all ears if you think it’s an unfair omission. Keep that fire going, and who knows -- we may just make an edit on your behalf.

The Best Towns for Sports in the Nation

And so it begins. Ranked in no particular order, these are our picks for the best sports hubs in the USA.

Boston, Massachusetts: Still Revolutionary

Love them or hate them, you can’t deny that Boston sports dominate nearly every league they enter. We’re talking about the New England Patriots, the Boston Bruins, the Boston Celtics, the Boston Red Sox, and the New England Revolution.

Between them, the city has won 38 championship titles, hence the city’s well-deserved moniker of Titletown. That’s a whole lot of duck boat parades.

That said, it’s not always a parade-worthy season for these teams and that’s why we have to tip our hat to Boston. These passionate fans stand by their teams no matter what, supporting the Red Sox through the Curse of the Bambino and never losing hope. That’s what we call dedication.
Want to rep your love for Boston? Check out our Boston city collection.

Minneapolis, Minnesota: Cold-Blooded Passion

Known for its unique and quintessentially American food offerings, Minneapolis gives its fans the chance to eat Juicy Lucys and tater tot casseroles while they cheer for their teams -- the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Minnesota Twins, the Minnesota Vikings, the Minnesota United FC, and the Minnesota Wild.

Just look at those team names, and you’ll get a sense of the rugged and devoted fan base that supports them. While championship titles rarely roll through Minnesota, the passion from its locals knows no bounds.

If you get a chance to watch a Vikings game in person, you can watch their famous Skol chant, which features a massive drum and a Gjallarhorn. Just watch the video.

Check out our Minneapolis collection here to join these vikings in their love for this sports city.

Los Angeles, California: City of Angels

If you’re feeling a little chilly from your time in Minneapolis, this next entry should be just what you need. Between Los Angeles and Anaheim, the sheer amount of sports available to watch in Southern California means there’s a little something for everyone.

Consider how many teams call LA home: The Anaheim Ducks, the Los Angeles Angels, the Los Angeles Chargers, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Los Angeles Kings, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Rams, the LA Galaxy, and the Los Angeles FC.

If you can stand the traffic, LA is one of the best cities to enjoy year-round sports. For a city so focused on entertainment, these teams really know how to serve it up, inspiring some of the most devoted fan bases in the country. Consider just the Lakers; As of March 2021, they’re the most followed NBA team on Facebook with 21.75 million fans looking for regular updates. That, to us, is the mark of an impressive sports town — when the whole world has eyes on your team, you can’t help but feel proud and passionate.

Speaking of pride, our Los Angeles collection is up to its ears in it.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Brotherly Love

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Let’s go back to the East Coast for our next entry with the birthplace of the

cheesesteak: Philadelphia. Like Boston, the Philly fan base is built on devotion for long-standing legacy teams--The Philadelphia 76ers, the Philadelphia Eagles, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Philadelphia Union.

These teams have seen highs and lows, but we’d like to commend the city for giving us some of the best mascots this nation has ever seen. From the Philly Phanatic to Franklin the Dog, to Swoop the Eagle, and of course, to Gritty himself, Philadelphia is chock full of furry friends that amp up its audiences and keep them coming back for more.
Browse through our Philly collection to show your love for the city.

Bay Area, California: Gold Rush

Last but not least is the hub on the other end of California: the Bay Area. Encompassing three cities, Bay Area fans have a lot to watch between San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland teams. There’s the Golden State Warriors, the Oakland Athletics, the San Francisco 49ers, the San Francisco Giants, the San Jose Sharks, the San Francisco City FC, the San Jose Earthquakes, and the Oakland Roots SC. Phew, that’s a mouthful.

Bay Area fans have also been treated to some incredible runs recently, with the Golden State Warriors sitting pretty as one of the country’s most dominant and likable teams. Certain teams see more passion from fans than others, but every sport has a darling in the Bay Area, and you’ll never be lacking games to watch.
Take your pick from our San Francisco and Bay Area collection.

What Makes a Good Sports Town?

Putting this list together was a little harder than we expected, considering how many American cities are known for their passionate fans. We’re happy with this assortment, but the best part about being a sports fan is you never know what’s coming next.

Franchises aren’t built overnight, but every team starts each season with an equal shot at the big trophy. For devoted fans all across sports towns in this country, that’s enough to hold out hope. So hang in there, back your guys, and one day you may get to know the glory of being number one.