In Markets With Few or No Sports Teams...

[tBBP]

I know no one cares about lil' ol' Pensacola, but I guess I'll add my little two pieces to this conversation.

MLB: Except for the squid population (read: Navy) and snowbirds that inhabit my hometown, the only baseball team anyone knows exists is the Braves. Geoff might can speak on whether this is still the case, but I remember growing up, the Braves were the ONLY team Channel 3 News ever even talked about. Seriously, like, the entire sports segment was about the Braves...and then there were scoreboards from several other games. So yeah...definitely Braves.

MLS: No one in Pensacola has a clue what MLS is, so let's not worry about that. At one point, the city did have two different half-minor league soccer teams. (Speaking of, Geoff, if you're reading this, is that soccer complex still there on 29 at W Street?)

NBA: Pick a team. That's what team P'cola pulls for. Lots of people around the city love the game, but fan interest is all over the place.

NFL: This the one that piss me off. Prior to 2009, if you would've asked most people in Pensacola who their favorite NFL team was, much like the NBA, you'd have gotten all kinds of different answers. Prior to that point, a relatively decent percentage probably would have went with either the Buccaneers or Dolphins, with a small smattering of Saints fans mixed in. But now, you ask folks around there who their team is and they swear up and down they're diehard Saints fans. True, there were a few, and I do mean VERY few, Saints fans around prior to Drew Brees becoming one, but most of these now so-called Saints fans know good and damn well they wasn't no kind of Saints fan until they started getting good and winning...then after the Super Bowl win EVERYBODY wanna be a Saints fan. Lyin' ass frontrunners...missed me with that mess.

So that's Pensacola. (Oh, and if it matters...far as college goes, it's either Florida or Florida State--that's about it.)

[TampaBayEverybodyLovesRays]

I live at the Jersey Shore, a few miles closer to Philadelphia than New York. There are a bunch of sports teams in the markets but it's still interesting to see how it shakes out.

MLB:

The Yankees dominate the fan base. The Phillies fanbase has increased dramatically since 2007 and now dwarfs the Mets'.

NFL:

Giants, followed by the Eagles, Steelers, and Jets.

NHL:

Devils are easily the most popular, followed by the Flyers and Rangers. I don't think I've ever met an Islanders fan in the area (who wasn't a tourist)

NBA:

The NBA isn't all that big. I would say the Nets are the most popular, followed by the Knicks and Sixers.

NCAA:

Rutgers. During football season, Penn State also has a big following, and Monmouth has a decent following as well. During basketball season, it's Villanova, and a small group keeping up with St. John's, Rutgers, Temple, and Penn State.

Overall, it seems that NY teams are the most popular, by Philly has a big influence on the area.

[WJMorris3]

I live at the Jersey Shore, a few miles closer to Philadelphia than New York. There are a bunch of sports teams in the markets but it's still interesting to see how it shakes out.

MLB:

The Yankees dominate the fan base. The Phillies fanbase has increased dramatically since 2007 and now dwarfs the Mets'.

NFL:

Giants, followed by the Eagles, Steelers, and Jets.

NHL:

Devils are easily the most popular, followed by the Flyers and Rangers. I don't think I've ever met an Islanders fan in the area (who wasn't a tourist)

NBA:

The NBA isn't all that big. I would say the Nets are the most popular, followed by the Knicks and Sixers.

NCAA:

Rutgers. During football season, Penn State also has a big following, and Monmouth has a decent following as well. During basketball season, it's Villanova, and a small group keeping up with St. John's, Rutgers, Temple, and Penn State.

Overall, it seems that NY teams are the most popular, by Philly has a big influence on the area.

I'd say for New Jersey, it's a split roughly along I-195, north of which it's heavy NY teams and south of which it's heavy Philly teams.

[IceCap]

Southern Ontario That's Not The Greater Toronto Area

NHL: The Leafs do dominate, but their level of dominance changes depending on how well they're doing. When they were a regular playoff team and Cup contender seven to ten years ago it seemed like everyone was a Leafs fan. Now they still have a substantial following, but you see larger pockets of support for other teams. The Senators have always had a relatively small but loyal following (mostly the anti-Leafs crowd that wants to keep their allegiance in Canada). The Red Wings and Sabres have their fans here, but I've seen an increase in Penguins support since they signed Crosby/started to get good, mostly at the expense of the Sabres' fanbase.

MLB: It's a split between the Blue Jays and Tigers. Almost everyone was sporting a Tigers cap back when they had their World Series run a few years ago.

NFL: This is a tough one. Despite what the Bills want to believe the area's not really their market (neither is the GTA for that matter, really). They have their fans, definitely, but they're not the default choice. The Lions have their small but loyal following. Other then that, it's really a tossup. I'm a Chargers fan, and I've met fans of pretty much every other NFL team here. It's kind of a "take your pick" market. Though I have seen an increase in Steelers fandom since their latest resurgence, but that hardly seems unique to my neck of the woods.

NBA: The Raptors. That's pretty much it. The area's not really much of a basketball hotspot. Detroit teams usually have some sort of following here, but the Pistons are the exception. People generally don't give the NBA much of a second thought. When they do express an interest it's (half-heatedly) in support of the Raptors. And the Suns, but only because of Steve Nash.

[Magnus]

I'll take on Northeasterrn Ontario now, Sudbury to be specific.

Most NHL fans in the city are split between the Leafs or Habs. 30% of the city is Franco-Ontarian, so that explains the Habs, and the large English-speaking contingent explains the Leafs crowd. I've also seen many other teams represented in far fewer numbers here. As for which team I cheer for, see my sig.

From what I can tell from the availability of NBA merchandise in the city, hardly anyone is an NBA fan. I might be fooling myself, but it's hardest to find NBA merchandise of the Big Four leagues in the city's sports paraphernalia shops.

Hockey definitely dominates the scene around here, but it seems like a variety of NFL and CFL merchandise is also purchased, with a smattering of baseball as well (mostly Jays).

[Funky Bunky]

In LA, I would say most NFL fans are fans of the Chargers, Rams, Raiders, or 49ers. There are some Cardinals and Cowboys fans too.

[MadmanLA]

I was born in Rockford, Illinois, but our family left for the Los Angeles area in the late 80s. Rockford is equidistant from both Chicago and Milwaukee, but it's always been more Chicago-centric; by extension, it's almost another suburb of Chicago, but it is its own media market.

As far as sports, the Chicago teams pretty much get all of the love, although if you get around the outskirts of the city and more toward the Illinois-Wisconsin border, it's more of an evenly split between the Chicago and Milwaukee-Green Bay-Madison teams. Certainly when I lived there in the 80s, the local TV coverage as far as number of televised games, was evenly split...the Bulls, Bucks, Brewers, Cubs, and White Sox all had some of their games locally-televised, and of course WGN was (and still is) available via cable and over-the-air. The Cubs overwhelmingly had more of their games on over-the-air TV, as WGN televised virtually every one of their games not designated for a national game-of-the-week telecast, and our NBC affiliate (now affiliated with ABC) showed at least 40-50 Cubs games each year.

With the NFL, Rockford is definitely Bears country, with the Packers right behind (in that order, usually the priority as far as what games get aired locally on Fox). Indianapolis is the closest AFC team, so I imagine they may get some love in the area, but the local CBS station usually goes with the primary national game.

When I lived there, the Blackhawks had next to no coverage locally until the local cable system added Sportsvision Chicago (which also had Bulls and White Sox games) in the late 80s, and with the Hawks' affiliate (the Icehogs) being in town, and their own recent success, I can imagine the coverage is much, much greater than before.

College sports...there's Northern Illinois University down the road in DeKalb (the nearest Division 1 program, about 25 miles south), but both of their football and men's basketball have been historically mediocre. Beyond that, it's Big Ten country, with the University of Illinois getting the majority of the attention, and like with the other Wisconsin teams, the closer you get to the IL-WI border, the Badgers get their share of coverage too.

[BrianVlietDesign]

In Virginia, I think it goes as follows:

MLB: Nationals, Yankees, Red Sox, Braves, Cubs, Phillies, Rays

Why?: Well, before the Nationals were the big thing here, I believe the Braves had a good seeding here because we used to have Atlanta's AAA team of the same name for like 40 years. But, when Montreal moved to D.C., the Nationals started to gain momentum. Not to mention they are D.C.'s club and 9/10 times alot of Virginians will support the D.C. team due to location, but if we had our own team I think it would be slightly different. Yankees/Red Sox are standard for most everywhere, especially since alot of Northerners are moving down here. Also, alot of people from the Chicago and Philadelphia areas are moving here, too. As far as the Rays go I think their popularity just built up after they went to the World Series a few years back and it has just kind of stuck.

NFL: Redskins, Cowboys, Steelers, Ravens, Eagles, Panthers

Why?: Redskins are obvious due to location. Cowboys I'm not quite sure, I guess they just have that big of a fan base. The Steelers have a lot of fans due to people from that area moving here and bandwagon fans going to them all the time. The Ravens are gaining momentum in Virginia with alot of season ticket holders coming from around here. The Eagles are big, too, due to folks from the Philly area coming here. And the Panthers are obvious due to their location.

NHL: Penguins, Capitals, Flyers, Hurricanes

Why?: Believe it or not, I see more Penguins fans than Capitals fans around here; at least in Richmond. Maybe up in Northern VA there are more Caps fans, but around Richmond I see more Pens fans. Flyers have always been big in these parts and much like MLB and NFL, a lot of Philly folks have moved here and support their hometown club. Also, the Hurricanes have a moderate following, but not as substantial as you'd imagine.

NBA: Any and all!

Why?: To be honest, I don't think there is a clear fan favorite in Virginia for an NBA team. I just think that the Wizards have sucked for so long that no one really cares about them anymore. This goes for the Bobcats, as well. But, I do see alot of people supporting Lakers, Heat, Magic, and Hornets gear. The Hornets gear is usually Charlotte Hornets gear might I add. So, whether or not they're supporting the N.O. franchise I really don't know.

MLS: D.C. United, Union

Why?: United obviously for locational reasons. But, I've seen Philly gaining a lot of support here. The Red Bulls are meh here, but there are still some people who'll support them.

College: Virginia Tech, UVA, VCU, JMU

Why?: I'm not quite sure how to compare the support for VT and UVA. For the most part it is split right down the center if I had to be brutally honest. VCU on the otherhand have gotten even bigger than before due to the Final Four. I mean, in Richmond, VCU was big to begin with. But, now they're gaining a lot of outsiders. JMU has a decent following, but it's not on the same level.

[DeFrank]

I live in Washington D.C., which is obviously right next to Virginia. The Cowboy thing is true for Washington as well. A really large number of people in the city (especially African-Americans) are Cowboy fans. I've heard somewhere that because George Preston Marshall, the Redskins owner in the 1960's, was such a racist, many in the city turned away from the Skins.

[FrankCostanza]

My take on the Maritimes:

NHL: split between Toronto, Montreal, and Boston. Due to the exposure of the two Canadian teams and proximity of Boston and the shared history between Boston and Halifax (Boston came to our aid after the Halifax Explosion), these three teams have traditionally been the most supported. After that it's Pittsburgh (Crosby), then probably Detroit.

MLB: split between Toronto and Boston.

NFL: New England, then it's anybody's guess (based on gear I see people wearing it's between Green Bay, Dallas, NY Giants, Buffalo, maybe Pittsburgh).

NBA: Toronto, then Boston & bandwagon teams.

CFL: With no teams in the Maritimes, there is no team that you can call the Maritime's team (until a team sets up shop in Moncton or Halifax).

[DG_ThenNowForever]

I went to a Mariners/Blue Jays game last week, and was surprised at how many Jays fans were at the game; it was almost Red Sox/Yankees-level road support.

Clearly, Seattle is far away from Toronto, so it can't all be transplants. And while I know that the Red Sox at least have strong road support, I didn't think the Jays fit that category. It let me to ascertain that there were a lot of BC natives coming down for the game, and if that's the case, I'm surprised. Is all of Canada really obliged to root for the Blue Jays?

[Lee.]

Not really. Vancouver is about 25% Jays, 15% Mariners, and 60% Red Sox/Yankees/Angels/Frontrunners.

There were a ton of Jays fans that series because a local kid, Brett Laurie (and correct my spelling as you will, internet) was just called up by Toronto, so a great deal of family, friends, and interested Canadians went down for the series. From what I can gather, there aren't nearly that many Jays fans at the other series in Seattle.

[DG_ThenNowForever]

Thanks for that. I've seen the Jays at Safeco before and couldn't remember that much support. It was weird.

[Bravo96]

Here in mid-western North Carolina, it goes a lot like this:

MLB: Atlanta Braves, with a fairly mix of Yankees and Red Sox fans in there.

Why?: Because even though Charlotte should have an MLB team, it doesn't. The Braves are close and a fun team to follow. As for the northern love, I have no clue. Because they're both good, I guess.

NFL: Pre-expansion fans: Redskins or Cowboys, almost exclusively; Post-expansion fans: Panthers. And if you're 12 or under you just pick somebody good since none of your parents' or friends' teams are.

Why?: Because the first two are the classic rivalry teams down here. The Panthers, because they're hometown.

NBA: The majority tend to go with the Bobcats, but there's also a lot of Celtics-love down here.

Why?: Because the Celtics are close but they're not the Knicks. Make sense?

NCAA: UNC or Duke. (Go Heels!) There's a good 25% of State fans, maybe even 30-35%, and the rest all like Clemson or ECU or something.

Why?: Because they're all from around here. There's a small percentage of South Carolina fans, maybe even some Virginia and Va. Tech.

[infrared41]

Who's in Toledo? I've always wondered how that works out.

Not there anymore but I grew up in Toledo. It works about like you'd expect. In pro sports, people generally choose between the Cleveland and Detroit teams.

NFL: it's probably 65-35 Browns over Lions.

MLB: it's probably 80-20 Tigers over Indians.

NHL: everyone is a Red Wings fan. (I'd seriously doubt that the Blue Jackets have cut into the Red Wings fan base in Toledo.)

NBA: Back when I lived there it was 99% Pistons fans (and one Lakers fan; me. ) The LeBron era with the Cavs may have changed that but my guess is it didn't change it much.

Toledo is interesting. The Browns are really the only Ohio pro sports team that has the clear majority there. With the rest, Detroit wins in a walk. Where it gets really good is the Ohio State - Michigan rivalry. It's pretty much split right down the middle in Toledo. If anything, (and as on Ohio State alum it pains me to say this) Michigan probably has a slight edge. As a Toledoan, it's embarrassing to admit this but, I've seen more than my fair share of literal fistfights break in bars and at parties out over the Ohio State - Michigan rivalry. (No, I was never involved.) There are far too many clowns in that town who take the rivalry way, way too seriously.

Hope that helps answer the question.

[YessSir32]

Who's in Toledo? I've always wondered how that works out.

Not there anymore but I grew up in Toledo. It works about like you'd expect. In pro sports, people generally choose between the Cleveland and Detroit teams.

NFL: it's probably 65-35 Browns over Lions.

MLB: it's probably 80-20 Tigers over Indians.

NHL: everyone is a Red Wings fan. (I'd seriously doubt that the Blue Jackets have cut into the Red Wings fan base in Toledo.)

NBA: Back when I lived there it was 99% Pistons fans (and one Lakers fan; me. ) The LeBron era with the Cavs may have changed that but my guess is it didn't change it much.

Toledo is interesting. The Browns are really the only Ohio pro sports team that has the clear majority there. With the rest, Detroit wins in a walk. Where it gets really good is the Ohio State - Michigan rivalry. It's pretty much split right down the middle in Toledo. If anything, (and as on Ohio State alum it pains me to say this) Michigan probably has a slight edge. As a Toledoan, it's embarrassing to admit this but, I've seen more than my fair share of literal fistfights break in bars and at parties out over the Ohio State - Michigan rivalry. (No, I was never involved.) There are far too many clowns in that town who take the rivalry way, way too seriously.

Hope that helps answer the question.

Yes, thanks. I've always wanted to watch "The Game" in Toledo. Sure would be interesting.

[mjrbaseball]

MLB: it's probably 80-20 Tigers over Indians.

I suspect the Mud Hens being affiliated with the Tigers might have something to do with this.

[infrared41]

MLB: it's probably 80-20 Tigers over Indians.

I suspect the Mud Hens being affiliated with the Tigers might have something to do with this.

It really has very little to do with it. Before 5/3 Field was built, the Mud Hens drew very poorly. They were an afterthought. They've also been affiliated with a few other teams over the years. When I was young they were a Twins affiliate.

The main reason for it is proximity. Toledo is a helluva lot closer to Detroit than it is to Cleveland. The Tigers TV and radio broadcasts are carried by Toledo stations etc. Don't quote me on this, but I think Toledo is considered part of the Tigers market by MLB, but it's not considered part of Cleveland's. Detroit's influence on Toledo's "market" is such that if the Browns and Lions are both being carried by FOX, the Lions game gets priority. Same deal with CBS. I missed my share of Browns telecasts because of it. Despite the fact that it's not in Michigan, Toledo is, for the most part, a Detroit sports town. Honestly, I've never quite understood why the Browns have more fans in Toledo than the Lions do.

[Windstorm]

Not really. Vancouver is about 25% Jays, 15% Mariners, and 60% Red Sox/Yankees/Angels/Frontrunners.

There were a ton of Jays fans that series because a local kid, Brett Laurie (and correct my spelling as you will, internet) was just called up by Toronto, so a great deal of family, friends, and interested Canadians went down for the series. From what I can gather, there aren't nearly that many Jays fans at the other series in Seattle.

I don't think that's true at all. The majority of people who like baseball in BC are Toronto fans (with a decent amount of Seattle support mixed in). You see a lot of Boston and NY hats, but most people who buy them have no idea what the logo stands for.

The reason for increased support is because it looks like the Jays finally have a future. Between young players like Lawrie making an impact and the Vancouver Canadians affiliating with the Jays, there's a reason to finally be excited. There hasn't been this much buzz about the Jays since the early 90s.

[bosrs1]

Not really. Vancouver is about 25% Jays, 15% Mariners, and 60% Red Sox/Yankees/Angels/Frontrunners.

There were a ton of Jays fans that series because a local kid, Brett Laurie (and correct my spelling as you will, internet) was just called up by Toronto, so a great deal of family, friends, and interested Canadians went down for the series. From what I can gather, there aren't nearly that many Jays fans at the other series in Seattle.

I don't think that's true at all. The majority of people who like baseball in BC are Toronto fans (with a decent amount of Seattle support mixed in). You see a lot of Boston and NY hats, but most people who buy them have no idea what the logo stands for.

The reason for increased support is because it looks like the Jays finally have a future. Between young players like Lawrie making an impact and the Vancouver Canadians affiliating with the Jays, there's a reason to finally be excited. There hasn't been this much buzz about the Jays since the early 90s.

Probably true. If you go by caps people wear alone the Oakland A's would be one of the more popular teams in baseball which anyone who knows anything about the league knows is not true.