Your Favorite Teams?

[LMU]

Merged with the the last thread on this subject. Didn't make it a whole year this time. So close.

[Crabcake]

It was pretty darn easy for me to get into the Ravens and Orioles, seeing as I live about 30-40 minutes from M&T Bank Stadium and Oriole Park.

As for hockey, I didn't really start getting into it until the 2010-11 season, and the Capitals were the closest team to Maryland. It just kind of took off from there.

The fact that I even got into the BPL is pretty amazing when I think about it. I went to New York with my folks one time and we ate at an English pub where they had a Chelsea-Spurs match on. The next Sunday I flipped to NBCSN and saw Liverpool destroy Man Utd 3-0 at Old Trafford, and something about them just was appealing to me. I have followed them ever since.

[ICTknight]

Football- Patriots because Tom Brady was/is my favorite player. I also loved history and the Patriots in the revolutionary war helped. Chiefs because they are the local team that most of my family likes. Bears because that's my dad's team. In the CFL it's Calgary and Hamilton. Calgary because I like the city, and Jon Cornish, and Hamilton because I like the identity and Brandon Banks is another favorite player. In arena it's the Rattlers because I like the identity and have a little soft spot for Phoenix teams.

Baseball- Royals because they are the local team and the Cubs because they are my dad's team. In the minors it's Quad Cities, my dad's hometown, and Hillsboro because I love the name. My favorite team ever was the Wichita Wranglers but they moved back in 07.

Basketball-I can't stand NBA basketball at all so I watch euroleague. My team is CSKA Moscow because Sasha Kansas went there from KU.

Hockey- Blackhawks cause they are my dad's team. Avalanche because I thought they were closest to me and Peter Forsberg. Flames because I loved to play with them in NHL 2K5 and Coyotes because the soft spot for Phoenix teams and something makes me want to see them succeed. Plus their first identity. And if the Whalers and Scouts came back you could add them to my list.

Soccer- ASRoma. When I picked a big club team I didn't want to go with one of the supergiants most people here in the US pick. When I was in Europe I loved Italy and specifically Rome. Also Sporting Kansas City because they are local. FC Wichita is my hometown club for the lower levels.

Rugby Union- Leicester Tigers and Cardiff Blues. I can't really explain these I just read the history and really liked them. Also Wichita Barbarians for being local.

College- KU because both my parents graduated from there. K-State because my mom's side of the family supports them and Iowa because my dad's side of the family supports them. Wichita State for being the hometown team. Boise State because of the awesome blue turf. North Dakota because when I started following college hockey they just appealed to me being a Midwestern school. Notre Dame because I'm Catholic and they are one of the biggest Catholic schools. And finally Fort Hays State because that's where I'm currently attending school.

National teams I support the USA but other than that I go for European teams. Specifically the ones where my family ia from. France, Belgium, Poland, Germany, and England.

[infrared41]

Could have sworn I'd already dome this but I went through this thread and the previous version of this thread and I'm not in either one. (I didn't feel like looking through the 22 other versions of this thread) No one reads these. So here goes...

Ohio State: I'm an Ohio State alum. I'm from Ohio. Became a Buckeyes football fan when I was a kid.

Toledo: I'm a Toledo alum. Toledo is also my hometown but I didn't become a Rockets fan until I went to school at UT.

The Original Cleveland Browns: Local team. Lived and died with them until 1995.

Side note: On the New/current Browns: Gave them numerous chances but it never took. It was like dating a clone of your girlfriend - looked the same but wasn't the real thing. But that didn't stop me from trying to set up a three way with my GF and her clone. I walked away from the new Browns for good last spring. The new uniforms removed the one and only thing that ever reminded me of "my Browns."

Green Bay Packers: Loved their uniforms since I was a kid. My Grandfather watched the Pack every Sunday back in the 60's. I always liked them. They were "my NFC team." Bought Packers stock in 2011(?). Owning Packers stock had a strange effect on me - I grew an extra set of eyes in the back of my head and I can now read the thoughts of calico cats. Suddenly, I was fully invested in the team. Now I'm a full fledged die hard Packers fan. And I own the team.

 

Columbus Blue Jackets: I've been going to hockey games since I was in my early 20's but I became a serious NHL fan in 1992. Thanks to a job I had in TV while living in Syracuse, NY, I had to run commercials during Rangers, Islanders, and Devils games. The uniform geek in me won out and I became a Rangers fan. Moved back to Ohio in 1998. Started going to Blue Jackets games in their inaugural season. (I went to my first Jackets game to see the Rangers - also went to Pittsburgh that season to see the Rangers. I ended up leaving my buddy alongside the road in New Castle PA. He was drunk and annoying me. He still hasn't been found) Long story short, the more Jackets games I went to, the more I liked the team. By 2012, I realized I liked the Jackets more than I liked the Rangers and here we are.

 

As my friend on BASS like to say, I have 28 favorite baseball teams. That's sort of true. It's more like 13 favorite teams. But I actually do have a few teams that I like more than the others.

 

Pittsburgh Pirates: Much like my friend the Admiral and his Oakland Raiders, I became a Pirates fan as a goof and it led to me becoming an actual fan. God's honest truth, I started watching the Pirates in 2009 on MLB Extra Innings because I felt sorry for them. During Opening Week in 2009 I was flipping through games and landed on a Pirates broadcast. Every commercial break between innings had one paid commercial. The rest of the break was filled with PBS pledge drive type commercials in which a couple of Pirates office employees would offer tote bags, t-shirts, umbrellas, etc. to anyone who would call in and buy tickets to an upcoming Pirates game. It all seemed so sad and a little pathetic. I literally felt sorry for the team so I decided I was going to watch their games. That way, I knew at least one person was watching their telecasts. Needless to say, it's paid off pretty well for me. The Pirates are my clear cut favorite NL baseball team.

 

Cleveland Indians: Been with the Tribe since I was a kid. Despite numerous efforts to move on, I can't quit the Indians. My Indians "fandom" certainly ebbs and flows, but it never goes away. Maybe the Tribe needs to move and be replaced by a team that looks just like them. 

 

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: I used to work nights so the only games I got to watch on MLB Extra Innings were the west coast games. The Angels ended up being the team I gravitated to. 

 

Los Angeles Dodgers: See above. 

[sc49erfan15]

San Francisco 49ers - It was 1992/93 (Kindergarten/1st grade), I had just discovered what football was via kids at school (the only sport my parents liked was NASCAR), the 49ers were good, I picked them. By 3rd grade I was a full-fledged 49ers fan, and it just stuck. Steve Young is my all-time favorite player and always will be. The late high school/college years ('03-'09) weren't so good, so I was ecstatic for the 49ers' to greatness the past few years. Of course, now, they're terrible again - but that's fandom for you.

Winthrop Eagles basketball - I'm an alum. I was their mascot. I've seen them play in something like 33 different arenas from Miami to Spokane and in every continental time zone. They went to 3 NCAA tournaments in my 4 years as a student, and I was there to see their only win. I hold onto the glory years.

Atlanta Braves - If you grow up in the South and have any interest in baseball, you're a Braves fan 99% of the time. Again, my parents didn't care for any other sport than NASCAR, but there always seemed to be Braves games on TV. I'd love coming home from school in late April/May and find the Braves game on.

Charlotte Hornets - Like any kid in the '90s, I loved the Hornets. Growing up 15 minutes from Charlotte, I had no idea that kids across the whole damn country also loved the Hornets. I have a soft spot in my heart for the Bobcats, but it can't touch the '90s nostalgia that the Hornets had.

[TzPreds]

NFL: Panthers, Colts

NHL: Preds, Wild, Coyotes, Blues (I FRICKING HATE the Blackhawks)

NBA: Pacers

NCAAF: Auburn, Tennessee (HATE ALABAMA)

MLB: Red Sox, Reds (CAN'T STAND THE YANKEES)

[CodeG]

How come my tread got merged with this one???? I'm so confused???!

[sportstar1212]

Boston Red Sox: First went to Boston in 2009, and fell in love with them. Since then, I've been back to Fenway twice. They're my favorite team in all of sports.

New York Mets: My favorite NL team. 1) I believe in the "your enemy's enemy is your friend", 2) I have family in New York, and 3) their identity is awesome.

Boston Bruins: Always had an interest in them, and became a serious fan during the 2011 Cup run.

Buffalo Sabres: I know it's strange to cheer for two teams in the same division, but they're semi-local team, and I go down to games at least once or twice per year. They're starting to look really exciting now, and if they switch to the retros full-time, I think I'll convert.

New England Patriots: Started watching them in the 04 Super Bowl, and never looked back. Nowadays, with my football interest waning, and them winning enough to have satisfied me as a fan, my fandom is becoming more and more casual.

Boston Celtics: I don't really care about basketball that much, but if I had to pick a team, it would be them.

Mississauga Steelheads: The only local team I support, but they're the most local team. I have season tickets, and I'll watch the OHL over the NHL any day of the week.

New York City FC: TFC has always kinda bugged me, so I could never get behind them. I decided to cheer for NYCFC since I though it would be cool to get in on the ground floor with a team, and again, I have family in New York. I've had a lot of fun watching them this year, though I wish I could've gone down for a game.

Arsenal FC: I used to be a Chelsea fan, but as I started to follow the EPL more closely, I started to take interest in the Gunners. Last year, I only missed three matches between the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League, and I haven't missed any so far this year.

AC Milan: My best friend got me into them, and I became a serious fan when they won the Champions League in 2007. I got to see them in 2009 at Gillette Stadium against Inter, and my friend and I planned a trip to New York last summer to see them play, only for that match to get moved back here to Toronto. I'm still pissed off about that.

National Teams: Canada, since I live here, and Italy and Germany due to family heritage.

[rams80]

I decided to become a Raiders fan as a joke but then it became real. help

I thought Sunday's game was going to be the battle for your sports fan soul.

[infrared41]

How come my tread got merged with this one???? I'm so confused???!

Because, believe it or not, you weren't the first person to come up with the idea. You're about the 437th.

[LMU]

How come my tread got merged with this one???? I'm so confused???!

Because, believe it or not, you weren't the first person to come up with the idea. You're about the 437th.

And, if you're keeping score at home, this is the result of four of the exact same thread being merged.

[IceCap]

I think it may be worth pinning. So new members won't start the same thread over and over. They can just see this one, read through it, and post their own answers.

[waltere]

Owning Packers stock had a strange effect on me - I grew an extra set of eyes in the back of my head and I can now read the thoughts of calico cats

Really? Huh, I guess I should look into some Packers stock next time it comes available; is it only calico cats this works with or would I be able to sneak into the head of, say, a Siamese?

My best guess is it happened in high school shortly after I sacrificed a blue ribbon winning goat I found at the county fair to Blitzen, the most evil of Santa's reindeer

Forget Blitzen, it's Comet you gotta watch out for. That one's real sneaky!

I ended up leaving my buddy alongside the road in New Castle PA. He was drunk and annoying me. He still hasn't been found

That's the kind of thing you're probably best off not talking about.

See, at least someone reads all this

[Geoff]

How come my tread got merged with this one???? I'm so confused???!

Because you're a terrible person who for some ungodly reason uses "how come" instead of "why."

[Sport]

I need to update my list anyways so I'll go through this exercise again.

Columbus Blue Jackets - I was a 12 year old hockey playing, hockey fanatic living in Columbus, Ohio without a true favorite team when the Blue Jackets came along in 2000. It felt like a gift intended just for me specifically. I was in attendance for their first home game and even though they lost I've been hooked since October 7, 2000.

Cincinnati Reds - local team. Can't remember a time when I wasn't a Reds fan. Watched all 162 games in 2010. 1996-2009 sucked.

Cincinnati Bengals - local team and my father's employer when I was a small child. I grew up in the 90s and thought more than 3 wins was a good season. There is no reason I should've stuck with this team. I've never seen them win a playoff game. They are the dumbest team I like. I hate them. I can't wait until they win the Super Bowl so I can stop watching the NFL.

Ohio Bobcats - alma mater. 2015 Partying National Champs! Bled green since 06.

Ohio State football/hockey - parents alma mater, grew up in Columbus so there was no escaping Buckeye football. My dad used to take me to OSU hockey games all the time when I was a kid. I cried when they lost to Boston College in the 1998 Frozen Four.

Seattle Mariners - new as of moving here last year. I gravitated towards the M's because teal and navy kick ass, Safeco field kicks ass, Ken Griffey Jr, and because being in the AL I don't feel like I'm cheating on the Reds. But biggest of all perhaps was because they're the step child of Seattle sports right now and I'm attracted to losers! Summer 2014 everyone was so up their butts about the Seahawks that I instantly took up Mariners fanhood. Also at the time I was new to the city and didn't have many friends here so going to Mariners games while they were in the wildcard hunt was my get out of the house activity. It sucks that they suck because I feel like people here have forgotten how fun it is when the local ball club is good. More fun than when the football team is good IMO.

Seattle Sounders - I won a poster designing contest in July and got free tickets and field passes and my poster printed in a pretty sweet frame. They won the game, I bought a jersey, and have been casually following ever since.

[SFGiants58]

Well, here I go.

San Francisco Giants - The local team and the favorite team of the person who got me hooked on baseball, my mom (a fan since the '60's). Through the ups and downs, I've always stuck with the Giants.

Seattle Mariners - My AL team. I gained an interest in them when I was touring colleges during my senior year of high school, and my affinity for them grew once I met a bunch of Mariners fans at college. It also helps that I love the navy/teal color scheme (the teal-billed hat is one of my favorite hats in baseball).

Golden State Warriors - The local team. I got into basketball during middle school, and I decided to side with the Warriors (unlike some people I knew, who joined the Lakers bandwagon). I always knew that they were terrible and believed that they would never get to the Finals, but I loved them all the same. Honestly, these lowered expectations made their recent championship run both surprising and exhilarating.

Portland Trail Blazers - I go to college in Portland, I like the team's visual identity, and Damian Lillard is one of my favorite players in the NBA right now.

San Jose Sharks - The local team, and the one fandom I occasionally regret. I've stuck by them, even as they raise expectations, choke in easy/must-win scenarios, and commit acts of hilarious stupidity (the likes of which are absurd, even in the NHL). In recent years, it has been getting harder to keep my allegiance, especially considering my negative relationship with The Best Fans in Hockey^TM segment of the fandom.

Green Bay Packers - My dad's favorite team. It helps that I like the uniforms as well.

Celtic FC - A friend of mine from high school suggested that I like the team on Facebook. Once I researched them, I figured they would be the perfect team for me, given my partially Irish and Scottish ancestry and how much I loved the look of their kits. Since then, I've been following them.

[JayMac]

I'll bite...

Seahawks: my dad bought me a Steve Largent jersey back in 1988 and I have loved them ever since

Penn State: I am an alumnus and the closest big time local college program (Temple still doesn't count)

Florida State: I jumped on the bandwagon in the early 90s and never hopped off...I was accepted to go there but wanted to stay more local. (Interesting note: when I was young, I liked both the Seminoles and Gators. My dad told me I can't root for both and I had to pick one. So FSU, it was!)

Flyers: Local team...first team I ever started to root for...I remember watching games when I was 6. Back when they lost to Edmonton in the cup.

Orioles: My favorite player was Cal Ripken Jr.

Phillies: Local team

Chelsea FC: I may seem like a bandwagoner here but I saw a game back in 1998 or 1999 on TV when our cable company would give us free previews of certain channels. They were playing Manchester United. I always knew to go against them so I went with the Blues.

Dundee United: I have Scottish ancestors that lived in Dundee. It didn't hurt that DUFC wears orange and black either!

[FGM13]

I've done this before, but eh why not again:

Edmonton Oilers: my dad grew up with the team, and having lived in northern Alberta most of my life they're the closest team. I remember crying when they lost game 7 of the cup final in 2006, and they'll always be my team.

Toronto Blue Jays: I didn't care until 2012, when they pulled off the blockbuster deal with Miami then traded for R.A. Dickey. I've been a fan since, and this year I've become heavily invested in them, making them my #1 team for the time being. They're the Canadian team, I can't see ever changing my allegiance.

Indianapolis Colts: My NFL team. I started getting into the NFL a few years back and decided I needed a team. I like their uniforms, history and Andrew Luck. I follow the scores, and watch when I can.

Edmonton Eskimos: This is the first team I cheered for. When I was 4 I'd run around my grandparents' apartment yelling "Ricky Ray!". My interest in the CFL has waned over the years.

I have a few secondary teams but I don't feel like explaining them.

NHL: Columbus Blue Jackets

MLB: Chicago Cubs

NFL: Green Bay Packers

CFL: Ottawa Redblacks

[burgundy]

Notre Dame (all sports): My dad is a huge ND fan, as was his dad before him. My parents were raised Catholic, and I'm of Irish heritage. Plus I like wearing Kelly green.

Detroit Tigers: Living in the Toledo area, they're the "local" team, and my family are Tigers fans.

Washington Redskins: My older brother started following them when they played the Bills in the Super Bowl, and like many things I just copied him, and we've been suffering ever since. I've come very close to giving up on them recently, but then my name would make no sense. If I ever were to abandon Washington, my team would be the...

Green Bay Packers: My dad's team. Plus their uniforms are beautiful, and I love the whole small-market-fan-owned thing they have going on. I almost bought my dad stock for Christmas when it was available, but I was poor and had just started a new job at the time.

Detroit Red Wings: See Detroit Tigers.

Toledo Mud Hens: Toledo.

Toledo Rockets: Toledo.

Toledo Walleye: You get the idea.

Ohio schools NOT named Ohio State: I live in Ohio, so I root for in-state schools. Living in Ohio as someone who's not an OSU fan, I've grown to hate OSU and their fans, and their pompous "We own this state" attitude.

Los Angeles Clippers: I don't really care about the NBA, but if I did, the Clippers would be my team because my dad's cousin played for them (and was probably the best player on the team) back in the days when they sucked.

Everton: Just because. I don't really follow the EPL, but I figured I should have a team.

[2001mark]

Notre Dame (all sports): My dad is a huge ND fan, as was his dad before him. My parents were raised Catholic, and I'm of Irish heritage. Plus I like wearing Kelly green.

See, I can respect that.

It's ND fans who became fans because the tv told them to which make my eyes roll.