What are your "rules" & reasons for your sports team fan-ships?

[smzimbabwe]

When a friend of mine would ask someone what they're favorite NHL team was, after he was told, he'd ask them to name 3 players on the current roster. If they couldn't do it, he'd dismiss their fanship as wagon-jumping or something else...

It was funny one time when he asked a 9 year old kid what his favorite team was, the kid said the Toronto Maple Leafs. He didn't follow up with his question, so I asked him "aren't you gonna ask him to name three players"? He said kids don't count, then the kid started naming off the whole roster, with positions and numbers...

[maz]

After your team wins a championship, they immediately get a five-year grace period: You can't complain about anything that happens with your team (trades, draft picks, salary-cap cuts, coaching moves) for five years. There are no exceptions.

So let's see: using this rule, both the Anaheim Ducks and the San Antonio Spurs' grace periods will expire (although the Spurs can renew theirs this season). In MLB, it's the Red Sox whose period ends if they don't win the 2012 World Series, while in the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts enter the Andrew Luck era with their SB title period now gone.

Makes logical sense.

It's the Sour Grapes rule. Article IV, Subsection 6, Amendment 78 of CCSLC Rules, Regulations, and History Vol. III. Not as exciting as Volume II, but still makes for good bathroom reading.

[crashcarson15]

Well, here we go...

Cavs, Indians, Browns, Crew, Blue Jackets - Absolutely no choice here for me, I've been a fan of these guys since the day I was born. (Okay, well, at least the Cleveland teams - they were around then). As good of a reason as any.

Nationals - I pull for the Nats thanks to my 5 year-old self having an obsession with baseball in Montréal (I mean, who couldn't love Vlad Guerrero as a kid growing up? ) and it carrying over when the club moved to Washington. Plus now, I train/play baseball at the same place Drew Storen did (and still does), so there's that.

Pacers - I live out here now, so I've kind of taken to the Pacers as well. Hate the Colts though - too many idiotic, annoying fans.

(WPG) Jets, Blue Bombers - As a kid growing up, I was always intrigued by the story of the Jets - the fact that there was this prairie town in the middle of nowhere Canada that once had an NHL team. So it only made sense that when I started to follow the CFL that I went with Winnipeg's team, and when the Jets came back, I've adopted them as my full-time "second" NHL team.

Aston Villa - A few years back, I got a copy of FIFA 09 on sale for the Wii, and needed an EPL team to pull for. I promised myself I wasn't going to go glory hunting with Arsenal, Chelsea, United, or Liverpool, but also wanted a PL mainstay that every once in blue moon would have a chance to accomplish something. Looking for a club with history took me to the Villa, and plus, the beautiful claret and blue kits are a huge plus.

Paris Saint-Germain - I visited Paris as a kid back in 2008 and in general loved the city. It just made sense to support PSG when I started following the sport and it was in the midst of that terrible 13th-place finish PSG suffered two years ago.

The fact of the matter is, though, you really don't choose teams. Sure, you can go out there and say "yeah, I'll watch this team play!" but the fact of the matter is that the team's gonna choose you. Something's gonna draw you to support that team - be it the colors, location, history, style of play, or something else. They're all legitimate reasons, too. Just once you pick one, don't go arbitrarily hopping around. Trust me, it's not easy rooting for a bunch of teams that have had little success. Ever.

[waltere]

Mets & Islanders: I was born, in my family it's that simple, everyone supports them.

Carolina Panthers: There isn't really a family NFL team in the same way, so I wasn't born into anything. Electric blue is one of my absolute favorite colors, so five year old me saw the new Carolina Panthers and loved it, plus for some reason at the time I liked the idea of supporting an NFL team younger than me. I've stuck with them ever since.

In as much as I care about anyone in the NBA, it's the Timberwolves, because I loved Kevin Garnett & thought the unis were cool.

Liverpool: My mom was born there & I still have quite a lot of family in the area.

[bosrs1]

It occurs to me that while I listed my rules I didn't list my reasons. My rule again only being loyalty, unless given a very good reason not to remain loyal. The team moving away from the area is a good reason, having a bad season or trading a player you liked however are not.

Reasons however for me are a mess of geography, personal biases, and my own moves over the years. But most of them in some way can be traced back to my first favorite team, and still favorite American League team, the Oakland A's.

Oakland A's - My dad had been a lifelong Red Sox fan having grown up (along with the rest of my extended family) in the Boston area. He remained loyal even after moving to Virginia where I was born. However he broke my one and only rule in 1986 after the Buckner Boot. After 30 years he'd had enough of the Sox choking and decided the fact we'd moved to the SF Bay Area from the east coast 2 years earlier was the perfect excuse to switch allegiance to his now local AL team the A's. I was introduced to baseball in 1987 by him as he got to know his new team and by extension the A's became my first team. We lived in the south bay however which was and remains largely Giants territory. During the 89 series I was the only kid in a class of 32 who was an A's fan. The other 31 kids were rooting for the Giants in the Bay Bridge Series and were, as only little kids can be, brutal to me. Winning the series just made them worse. So started my irrational but lifelong hatred of the Giants and all things San Francisco sports and my general dislike of the place in general. Still root for them and love them today but it's been hard with the constant moving cloud hanging over the franchise, the 17 year stadium hunt that's left them marooned in the last NFL stadium in MLB, the 1175 day wait for the "blue ribbon panel" to decide if they can move to their new ballpark in San Jose, etc...

New England Patriots - Football didn't interest me much until I started playing it in middle school, however once it did I was faced with a dilemma. The only local team at the time were the Niners, who play in San Francisco and were not only in my "off limits" city, they were also the team of most of the kids who'd tormented me a few years earlier. While they were no longer dicks to me about the A's I still couldn't bring myself to root for their beloved SF team. The Raiders not yet being an option I went with what seemed a logical choice, my extended family back in Boston's team, the Patriots. Been rooting for them ever since despite the Raiders return. The Raiders also weren't an option even after they came back, because of what coming them back did to the A's once beautiful stadium.

San Jose Sharks - Probably the simplest of my rooting interests, they were very local being in the south bay. Plus I got caught up in the inaugural year hoopla and have been ever since.

San Jose Earthquakes - A little more complicated despite them also being local. Started going to games in 1996 (again the inaugural year as the Clash), with my little brother and his youth soccer team. But wasn't that interested. It was "soccer" and soccer was his thing not mine. But I did at least pay attention to them for their first half dozen years through them winning the MLS cups in 2001 and 2003. Ironically it wasn't until later 2004/early 2005 when they started threatening to leave town that I really became a big fan of the Quakes going to games and wondering if this was the last one. After they left I became an even bigger fan as part of the effort to try and get the team back. I went to city council meetings, votes, even met the team president for a meeting at his offices and met Lew Wolff (the A's and Quakes owner), etc... helping to try and convince the city to bring them back which of course worked. And I've been a big fan ever since.

Sacramento Kings - This is where it gets a little odd. You'd think the Warriors would be my team seeing as they play 50 feet from the A's, but alas they aren't. Even through the Hardaway/Mullin years the Warriors and the NBA in general didn't interest me. It wasn't until college when I met a friend who was a die hard Kings fan from Sacramento that was so into it that it piqued my interest. She introduced me to the team during the 2001-2 playoffs and we rooted for them together. Been rooting for them ever since. It did help that the Kings are all but local to the Bay Area too (I could drive to games, hear them on the radio, etc...). However if they moved as planned after next season (which is the Maloofs current intent), I'll be in the market for a new team.

San Diego Padres - Last but not least are the Padres. I moved to San Diego 3 1/2 years ago and started rooting for them almost immediately. I'd never paid much attention to NL ball being that my team was AL and the two closest NL teams growing up were the vile Giants and the Dodgers (Kirk Gibson's HR still hurts 24 years later). But I took in a few games at my now local PETCO Park after moving here and I was hooked. The park itself was an absolute paradise, night and day to the :censored:hole I was used to watching games at in Oakland, the novelty of watching the pitcher bat still hasn't worn off, my wife's extended family live here and are all Pads fans and we go to games together (I'm not just going alone as in Oakland), and they're fun. Can't put my finger on why, but the Padres are fun and they stoked the fires of my interest in baseball. Also helps they so rarely play the A's I don't really have any cross fan issues.

[Arts11]

Does anyone follow minor league (or really any level of competition under the "major" leagues) sports? Given their often very specific location names [as opposed to many pro league teams using either general location names (ie, using just the state name, like the "Minnesota Twins" ), "big market" names (Angels) despite technically being located elsewhere, etc.], their penchant for folding/relocating, their colorful uniform/logo/names, and their changing affiliation status with "parent" clubs, do you find your rooting interests more flexible when it comes to minor league teams (of any sport)?

[bosrs1]

Does anyone follow minor league (or really any level of competition under the "major" leagues) sports? Given their often very specific location names [as opposed to many pro league teams using either general location names (ie, using just the state name, like the "Minnesota Twins" ), "big market" names (Angels) despite technically being located elsewhere, etc.], their penchant for folding/relocating, their colorful uniform/logo/names, and their changing affiliation status with "parent" clubs, do you find your rooting interests more flexible when it comes to minor league teams (of any sport)?

I follow minor league baseball in addition to the majors. But I'm no more flexible with the minors than majors. Pick a team and stick with them unless they give you a good reason.

I grew up rooting ironically enough for the San Jose Giants in the California league because they were local, and beyond the name and the PDC they had little connection to the big league team. The SF Giants all but ignored them. However that changed about 3 1/2 years ago when the A's (yes again the A's impact another of my rooting interests) started showing interest in moving to San Jose. The SF Giants owners as an attempted block bought a stake in and shortly thereafter the entire SJ Giants organization. My interest in them ended the day the SF team bought in because frankly being bought by my hated enemy was a good reason to dump em. Not only do I loathe the big Giants, I loathe that they're using the SJ Giants as a weapon against the A's. Luckily for me shortly after that happened I moved to San Diego. Still liking the minor league game I adopted the closest minor league squad, the Lake Elisnore Storm, who just happen to be the Padres Single A affiliate too.

[omnivore]

Toronto Blue Jays, New Jersey Devils, New York Jets

I became a Jays fan first. I grew up in NJ, but never connected with the Mets or Yankees. The Jays had my favourite player at the time who I followed from the Twins to the Jays in 1992 (Jack Morris) and I've been with them ever since. The Devils & Jets qualify under the home town/home state clause. Basketball, I never cared too much. The Nets never did much to resonate, though the Jason Kidd era was fun to see them relevant and people wearing my home state team's jersey in random cities far from there. But even if I were claiming them, the move to Brooklyn would negate that on the whole for me personally.

So yeah. Besides that, a bunch of not-especially strong ties. Those teams are the ones I root for heavily and care about absolute most. The only team I've even come close to adding to that list as an adult are the Colorado Rockies as my NL squad with the demise of the Expos in Montreal...since I lived in Denver. But it still feels weird having a 2nd team even if they're in a different league in the same sport...they're just nice to have because they're close and I can see them more than I can see the Jays.

[dbadefense1990]

It's happening with the Kings; all the diehards are being pushed aside

How, exactly?

In two realms:

1. Diehards are being priced out of tickets to the Cup Final by B-list actors and fratboys, who are only there to show off on social media sites that they're there, then proceed to leave games early to head to the club and fist-pump to techno pop.

2. There's such a swelling of bandwagoners, it's an embarrassment. When the media reports and comments to fans, the chances of picking a bandwagon fan are extremely high. And they'll usually say "I was a fan since Wayne Gretzky" (he's the only player those kinds of people can remember, whereas Luc Robitaille, Kelly Hrudey, Rogie Vachon, Dave Taylor and Adam Deadmarsh are names loyalists can remember).

[Gothamite]

I understand the first complaint, but the second one is nonsense. Fanbases aren't some zero-sum game, in which bandwagoners push out established fans.

[lancealot]

I do really have rules as to who I rot for but it's mainly a player rather then a team for example I have liked mike vick since he was on the madden cover and my brothers talked him up, at the time he was with the falcons but after doing time I followed him to the eagles this was also around the time I was getting into watching my brothers team play and a few years before I started and our team was the eagles so it just made sence to root for philli. One of my brothers goes for the pats simply because he thinks the have the coolest helmet, thats another thing for me the design of there logos and uniforms especially the past logos ect. I froth of throw/faux backs. I have jumped on the band wagon a few times in the past (pats super bowl wins) I did stick with a team once after jumping on the bwagon the essendon bomber when they won the afl grand final in the early 2000's but I stuck with them till I stopped following the afl. In games that interest me that I have no team in (super bowls etc.) I usually cheer for the under dogs for example the giants in the last one. And with the mention of sticking with a team that doesn't win much it's so much sweeter I agree I have been following my olde brothers team for so long and every year the would get beat on the playoffs by the same team until last year when they beat the team in the semis and went to win the final (undefeated) and it was the most amazing feeling in the world then the next year I was actually on the sideline of the grand final and we got beaten by six point when my brother threw an intercept on the one yard line with ten seconds to go (I cried haha) but I am still deathly loyal to the team and always will be (eagle pride baby)

[BigBubba]

I cheer for all my hometown teams plus the Jets in the NFL because of Tebow and Rex Ryan.

[Arts11]

Does anyone follow minor league (or really any level of competition under the "major" leagues) sports? Given their often very specific location names [as opposed to many pro league teams using either general location names (ie, using just the state name, like the "Minnesota Twins" ), "big market" names (Angels) despite technically being located elsewhere, etc.], their penchant for folding/relocating, their colorful uniform/logo/names, and their changing affiliation status with "parent" clubs, do you find your rooting interests more flexible when it comes to minor league teams (of any sport)?

I follow minor league baseball in addition to the majors. But I'm no more flexible with the minors than majors. Pick a team and stick with them unless they give you a good reason.

I grew up rooting ironically enough for the San Jose Giants in the California league because they were local, and beyond the name and the PDC they had little connection to the big league team. The SF Giants all but ignored them. However that changed about 3 1/2 years ago when the A's (yes again the A's impact another of my rooting interests) started showing interest in moving to San Jose. The SF Giants owners as an attempted block bought a stake in and shortly thereafter the entire SJ Giants organization. My interest in them ended the day the SF team bought in because frankly being bought by my hated enemy was a good reason to dump em. Not only do I loathe the big Giants, I loathe that they're using the SJ Giants as a weapon against the A's. Luckily for me shortly after that happened I moved to San Diego. Still liking the minor league game I adopted the closest minor league squad, the Lake Elisnore Storm, who just happen to be the Padres Single A affiliate too.

The fun thing about the minor leagues is the fact that you can potentially be a fan of a bunch of wildly different teams with little to no conflict arising (like if they were rivals or something). Given all the different leagues and different skill levels, there are just a lot of choices. I'm going to move soon and I just discovered my new city has an independent league minor league team. Although I don't think I'll ever be super-invested in the team like I am with my "major" league teams, I think it'll be fun to go support the local guys.

[YessSir32]

1. Don't be a fan just because of a big signing. (Prince Fielder and Peyton Manning)

2. Don't be a closet fan until a team is good. Too many Lions fans have done this.

Tigers too in this area.

Just wait until the Pistons get good again in a few years. I can honestly say I've watched most of their games the last couple years.

[See Red]

I have a friend who, for as long as I've known him has been a fan of the New York Yankees, Boston Celtics, Green Bay Packers, Duke Blue Devils for college basketball, and the Nebraska Cornhuskers for college football. When the Rockies made their World Series run in 2007, every other status update of his on Facebook was making fun of Rockies "fans" for being front-runners. He also was a Boston Bruins fan, but I'm not sure he cares much about hockey any more.

Since I mentioned the Rockies in 2007, that whole thing kind of bothered me too. I'm a Red Sox fan, but being a baseball junkie and living in Colorado, I would watch all or chunks of about 85% of Rockies games every year (until I moved to Florida for that 2007 season). I liked them, because if you're going to watch that much of a team, you're going to have feelings for them either way. There were very few people I found that I could talk Rockies baseball with -- they make that run in 2007 and suddenly everybody's a life-long Rockies fan. Was very annoying.

[Raysfan12]

My teams that I root for are the Tampa Bay Rays, Louisville (NCAAF and NCAAB),and Oklahoma St (CFB). While some of them I picked are based of locality, others were based on values and sucess for a long period of time. Here are some of my rules and reasons for my teams.

Tampa Bay Rays: Orignally I cheered for the Reds until I got bored of them, so I picked the "Devil" Rays in early 2002 because I always go near Tampa for vacations. Even though I was passionate about supporting them, I stayed quiet because my friends would pick on them for their losing. I was silent and supportive until 2008 when something unusual happened; The Rays were winning. I got extremely supportive and for the first time, smack on my friends (who were bandwagon Boston fans). When this team won the AL pennant, I've following them loyaly ever since. My rules for the Rays is not to be a bandwagoner and try to follow them whenever you can. Also, you must hate the Yanks and the Red Sox.

Louisville (NCAAF and NCAAB): I was bleeding red since I was born and became a huge fan of their teams. While they have a rising football program coached by Charlie Strong, I watch their basketball team almost religously as Louisville has no professional team. Ever since 2003, I supported them even if they lose, win, or even have controversy like with Pitino's affair with Karen Sypher. My favorite moment was meeting UK in the 2012 Final Four, which is a special moment in the rivalry. My rules about UofL is don't be a bandwagoner especially in basketball because they can be unpredictable. Also, you must hate UK and Cincy and not to be pressured by UK fans to become part of their "Big Blue Nation". Also, smack to UNC and Duke fans about how much superior the UL-UK rivalry is to Duke-UNC.

Oklahoma St (CFB): Outside the Big East, the Big XII is my favorite CFB conference. So when I picked a team to cheer, I picked Ok. St over Oklahoma and Texas because they're less known than both of these schools plus they have great uniforms. I watch a few of their games last year and found out I was sold on them for a long time. My favorite moment so far as a fan is Smacking Oklahoma in last year's Bedlam Series in Stillwater. My rule is simple, hate OU and Texas.

[DaytonBlue]

The fun thing about the minor leagues is the fact that you can potentially be a fan of a bunch of wildly different teams with little to no conflict arising (like if they were rivals or something). Given all the different leagues and different skill levels, there are just a lot of choices. I'm going to move soon and I just discovered my new city has an independent league minor league team. Although I don't think I'll ever be super-invested in the team like I am with my "major" league teams, I think it'll be fun to go support the local guys.

I've followed several minor league teams as well over the years, but never with the emotional investment of a major league team. The best part of watching the Memphis Redbirds is seeing some of them in a Cardinal uniform a year or two later. When the Redbirds were in the PCL finals, you could buy tickets for 5 bucks, cheaper than even a lawn seat on a normal game. There were only a couple thousand people there, which is typical of minor league playoff games.

[Gothamite]

My rules for the Rays is not to be a bandwagoner and try to follow them whenever you can. Also, you must hate the Yanks and the Red Sox.

you realize this excludes most of the Tampa/St. Pete market, right?

[tBBP]

I'm a Red Sox fan, but being a baseball junkie and living in Colorado, I would watch all or chunks of about 85% of Rockies games every year (until I moved to Florida for that 2007 season). I liked them, because if you're going to watch that much of a team, you're going to have feelings for them either way. There were very few people I found that I could talk Rockies baseball with -- they make that run in 2007 and suddenly everybody's a life-long Rockies fan. Was very annoying.

I can almost identify with this...almost. All that time I spent living in Pittsburgh, being immersed in, bombarded with and force-fed Steelers, Steelers and more Steelers at every turn never turned me into a Steelerhead. (I can't lie, though?I did have me a Polamalu jersey and quite a collection if Terrible Towels.) The fact that I got to know that team better than half the locals just allowed me to s#!t-talk that much better. Far as vanilla-ass Indianapolis goes, I've been here for two years, got to know the Colts a little better, even got me a Peyton Manning jersey?only because I personally believe he's the greatest QB this generation has seen?and a Colts cap...but I don't see myself being a passing fan of the Colts anytime soon. (But then it's only been two years...they MIGHT manage to break through, but I doubt it. Of course they also don't have near as annoying a fanbase as that aforementioned black-and-yellow team, so that may help.) The Pacers on the other hand, now that's a different story. Don't have any Pacers merch yet, but I've been following them mighty close since I've been out here. Who knows...I may even add their logo to my sig one of these days.

[Funky Bunky]

I have a friend who, for as long as I've known him has been a fan of the New York Yankees, Boston Celtics, Green Bay Packers, Duke Blue Devils for college basketball, and the Nebraska Cornhuskers for college football.

Let me guess, his favorite soccer team is Manchester United? Rooting for the teams with the most championships is worse than badwagoning in my mind. Only douchebags root for teams just because theyre the most successful in their sport.