Which Franchise Rules Your City?

[anders5189]

ESPN - ESPN The Magazine

There was an earlier thread on here about this, but Rick Reilly tries to guess for himself.

He's dead wrong about Charlotte though. The Panthers are #1 with UNC 2. NASCAR isn't even a sport.

And there will never come a day when the Eagles aren't #1 in Philly. Never.

 

[Mets82]

I'm surprised the Panthers are number 1. I figured UNC would be a clear number 1 because of there tradition, being established and being a winning school for many years.
The Panthers have been around but they don't have a dynasty yet. They haven't even won a championship.

 

[anders5189]

I'm surprised the Panthers are number 1. I figured UNC would be a clear number 1 because of there tradition, being established and being a winning school for many years.
The Panthers have been around but they don't have a dynasty yet. They haven't even won a championship.

You're right, but not everyone is a Carolina fan (I don't get it either). Carolina is by far the most popular college team in Charlotte, but there are haters. The Panthers haven't been around as long, but they unite everyone. The coverage they get in the Charlotte Observer is obnoxious. They get 6 pages devoted to them for pre-season games. You have to flip to page 8 just to get college football scores. Carolina only gets headlines if they win a big game. Otherwise they share the headlines with other college teams.

NASCAR is a joke. They have what 2-3 races in Charlotte every year? Big deal. Charlotte also hosts a PGA event but I wouldn't say that Charlotte is a golf town. Most NASCAR fans live out in the country.

 

[Mets82]

Not only that but when your talking about how the Panthers get all this coverage, they are not the Pats. I mean they went to the Super Bowl once and have been to two NFC Championships, so I understand where you are coming from.
I live in Connecticut, so at least you have an NFL team.

 

[rockymtnhigh]

Here, half-way between Chicago and St. Louis, there is a clear divide between the Cubbies and the Cards. But it seems as if the Bears are hands-down favorites for football over the Colts (which are about the same distance from us as Chicago). Not much enthusiasm for the Sox, from what I have been able to discern in the few months I have lived in Central Illinois.

 

[cjwct]

The article is completely wrong about Philadelphia and is buying into the recent rise of the Phillies. Philly management has been irate since that stadium opened because they cannot sell out and it appears when rivals Mets are in town, their fans are with them . . . I scored 1st row tickets behind home plate a month ago on StubHub for $90 per ticket to watch my Mets beat the Phils . . . it is an Eagles town and will remain such until Phils can generate more interest and by interest, I mean money!

 

[Jimbo]

ESPN - ESPN The Magazine

There was an earlier thread on here about this, but Rick Reilly tries to guess for himself.

He's dead wrong about Charlotte though. The Panthers are #1 with UNC 2. NASCAR isn't even a sport.

And there will never come a day when the Eagles aren't #1 in Philly. Never.

I would guess that in Charlotte, that it would definatly be NASCAR that has more fans.
There are plenty of fans in Mooresville, Statesville and Kannapolis, all of which are within shouting distance of Charlotte.

Jimbo

 

[BillD1984]

Boston is a Red Sox town, and has been for the last 35 years.

 

[Hart5150]

Boston is a Red Sox town, and has been for the last 35 years.

I am not going to argue this point again, but after the last 3 days I am more convinced that New England is a Patriots area.

 

[HD MM]

Got it right on Cleveland being Browns town. No questions there. :up

 

[mdonnelly]

Oklahoma City:
OU: #1 hands down.
OSU: distant second.
OKC Thunder (formerly Seattle Supersonics): #3 with a bullet. Season tickets went on sale two days ago, probably all gone by tonight.

 

[satjay]

You know here in Michigan that may be answered a few ways.

I would say Wings are 1

But even though they stink, the passion around here for the lions is amazing, during the season.

Tigers-Up and down

Pistons kind of Ho-hum, untill playoffs start

 

[Neutron]

Everyone knows who rules in the DFW area.... The Cowboys of course.

 

[salsadancer7]

Miami is a Dolphin town hands down! And a VERY distant 2nd is The U football. When I lived in Chicago, it has ALWAYS BEEN and ALWAYS WILL be a Bears town. A distant 2nd was the Cubs and right behind was the Bulls. Followed by the White Sox and Blackhawks.

 

[duckydan]

The article is completely wrong about Philadelphia and is buying into the recent rise of the Phillies. Philly management has been irate since that stadium opened because they cannot sell out and it appears when rivals Mets are in town, their fans are with them . . . I scored 1st row tickets behind home plate a month ago on StubHub for $90 per ticket to watch my Mets beat the Phils . . . it is an Eagles town and will remain such until Phils can generate more interest and by interest, I mean money!

Actually the Phillies have sold out about 75% of their games this year... impressive since they play 82 at home.

Try getting a ticket from the box office and not on stubhub.

Philly is a "what have you done for me now" city. The eagles are hot because they make the playoffs almost every year.

That said the Flyers have sold out almost every game since the 70s.

Last year when the Phillies made the playoffs you wouldn't know the eagles season had started yet. This year the phillies are hanging themselves and as a result the Eagles regained the spotlight.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

You know here in Michigan that may be answered a few ways.

I would say Wings are 1

But even though they stink, the passion around here for the lions is amazing, during the season.

Tigers-Up and down

Pistons kind of Ho-hum, untill playoffs start

Let me spill the awful truth: Please understand that these things flucuate with the season, and who is winning.

#1 Tigers - nothing creates a buzz in this city like a winning baseball team. NOTHING.

#1a. Lions - Satjay, you were right about the Lions, I understand why too, this area is absolutely passionate about football, and if the Lions EVER win a Super Bowl, this city will explode. Hell it's a different world here when they just win a game.

#2 (The ugly truth) Pistons. It's different among my circle of friends, and even in my own mind, BUT, the Pistons are the tops in attendance and TV rankings in the Detroit area.

#3 I love them, everybody I know loves them, everybody here from Detroit loves them, but we are the minority. Last season's championship was just a blip on the radar screen, and they didn't even sell out their playoff games. This order (Pistons/Wings) was different a decade ago when the Wings won the first championship in this era. But now I think everyone has become jaded, plus the feeling that hockey has become a second tier sport nationally. Again not the way I feel, but the correct observation of the way things really are here in the Detroit area.

 

[hallrk]

In DC it's clearly the Redskins. No one else is even close.

 

[hancox]

I don't think NY is as clearly Yankees over Mets as mentioned. Sure, the history is there (hence the useless movie count), but NY was CLEARLY a NL town for decades. The Yankees did not draw nearly as well before their $$$ onslaught.

To be honest, the factions tend to stick together, so I would put the Yankees/Giants group over really anything else.

 

[mdonnelly]

...
#1a. Lions - Satjay, you were right about the Lions, I understand why too, this area is absolutely passionate about football, and if the Lions EVER win a Super Bowl, this city will explode. Hell it's a different world here when they just win a game.
...

Explode? D*mn, they'll burn it to the ground.

 

[satjay]

Let me spill the awful truth: Please understand that these things flucuate with the season, and who is winning.

#1 Tigers - nothing creates a buzz in this city like a winning baseball team. NOTHING.

#1a. Lions - Satjay, you were right about the Lions, I understand why too, this area is absolutely passionate about football, and if the Lions EVER win a Super Bowl, this city will explode. Hell it's a different world here when they just win a game.

#2 (The ugly truth) Pistons. It's different among my circle of friends, and even in my own mind, BUT, the Pistons are the tops in attendance and TV rankings in the Detroit area.

#3 I love them, everybody I know loves them, everybody here from Detroit loves them, but we are the minority. Last season's championship was just a blip on the radar screen, and they didn't even sell out their playoff games. This order (Pistons/Wings) was different a decade ago when the Wings won the first championship in this era. But now I think everyone has become jaded, plus the feeling that hockey has become a second tier sport nationally. Again not the way I feel, but the correct observation of the way things really are here in the Detroit area.

I agree with your quote on the lions if that ever happened....though I dont know if people would know what to do, with the state of shock they would be in, and I would in hind sight agree with you on the tigers. I was at the Clinching game against the yankees in 06....I will never forget the atmopshere that night!