I hate these lists, so why do I let them constantly bother me. Someone calm me down because this list is ridiculous.
Here are the top 30 sports cities according to Sporting News, with my notes next to them in italics.
1. Pittsburgh – Steelers, Penguins, but no real baseball team. All their teams have the same colors though. Honestly though, Pittsburgh probably is the current number win with the Steelers’ and Penguins success.
2. Philadelphia – Probably a fair ranking with the passionate Eagles and Phillies fans.
3. Boston – If they aren’t winning, their fans are non-existent, but they win a lot so this is fair. Also Boston has a HUGE band-wagon appeal.
4. Chicago + Evanston – Okay.
5. Los Angeles – The Dodgers and Lakers are more of a spectacle for Hollywood.
6. New York – Okay.
7. Phoenix + Tempe – A little high for Phoenix.
8. Miami – They can’t sell out the Marlins or the ‘Phins, how is Miami 8? People in Miami do not care about sports.
9. Dallas-Fort Worth – Eh, I’m indifferent to this one.
10. Detroit + Ann Arbor + Ypsilanti – Agreed.
11. Houston – Really, 11? I don’t think Houston is any better than 12-19.
12. Nashville – Kinda high.
13. Atlanta – Alright.
14. Washington – As in DC? You kidding me? I asked 7 people wearing Nationals’ gear who they were playing one day in DC and no one had any idea.
15. Tampa-St. Petersburg – High.
16. Minneapolis-St. Paul – K
17. Raleigh + Durham + Chapel Hill, N.C. – Obviously, for College only.
18. Denver + Boulder – Too high.
19. Salt Lake City + Provo – Perhaps.
20. Indianapolis – Not a chance, Indy fans are terrible. No winning, no fans.
21. Anaheim – Surprised this wasn’t included in LA.
22. Cleveland – Sounds good.
23. Charlotte – Charlotte’s higher than Baltimore? Panthers fans are better than Ravens? Nope.
24. San Jose + Palo Alto + Santa Clara – Alright
25. New Orleans – Not higher than Baltimore.
26. Milwaukee – Sure.
27. Orlando – Nope. Besides Disney World (which is awesome) people in Orlando aren’t into sports.
28. Baltimore – Insulting, look at the list of cities above Charm City. I would probably rank us Top 15, this is embarrassing.
29. Cincinnati – Fine.
30. St. Louis – Whatever.
So as you can see, I have quite a beef with this list. It’s insulting for Baltimore fans. We’re better than half of these sports cities, some of which shouldn’t be top 50. Miami is a HORRIBLE sports city, and Orlando c’mon.