This is a list of metropolitan areas in the United States and Canada categorized by the number of professional sports franchises in their metropolitan areas.
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The definition of a "major" professional league is a subject of intense debate. The most commonly accepted definition, often termed the "Big Four",[1] includes Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League. This list includes teams from those four leagues. Twelve cities have teams from all four. On a rung below these stands Major League Soccer,[1] occasionally considered part of the United States' major sports leagues.
Some strictly-American definitions of a major league exclude the NHL, which, although it holds a dominant role in Canadian society, has struggled to gain wide support in American markets outside hockey's regional strongholds of the Northeast and Midwest; this list, though, includes NHL teams, as the league's revenues, player salaries and media coverage are still significantly closer to those of the NBA than those of any of the other U.S. and Canadian team sports' top-level professional leagues.
Also of note, the NBA historically has struggled to gain a sizable fanbase in the Upper Midwest where ice hockey and football are the most popular sports in the region, and the Deep South, where few other sports are followed besides for football.
Some strictly-Canadian definitions include the Canadian Football League. The CFL's support and media coverage compare to that of the Big Four within Canada, and since 1997, the CFL and NFL have shared a cooperative agreement that recognizes the CFL's role within its home country. Of CFL cities, only Toronto hosts more than one other major league club; five others host NHL teams.
The CFL and MLS are other popular leagues on both countries. Therefore, this list includes a ranking by teams in the Big Four (B4), and a separate ranking also including teams in the CFL and MLS, called the Big Six (B6).
Though teams are listed here by metropolitan area, the distribution and support of teams within an area can reveal regional fractures below that level, whether by neighborhood, rival cities within a media market or separate markets entirely. Baseball teams provide illustrations for several of these models. In New York City, the Yankees are popularly dubbed the "Bronx Bombers" for their home borough and generally command the loyalties of fans from the Bronx, parts of Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan, Long Island, parts of North Jersey and Westchester County, while the Mets play in Queens and draw support from Queens, Brooklyn and parts of Long Island, revealing a split by neighborhood. The San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics represent rival cities within the Bay Area, a single media market. Though the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles share a metro area, their cities anchor separate media markets and hold distinctly separate cultural identities. In Los Angeles, the Lakers and Clippers share an arena (Staples Center), and media coverage is split amongst different broadcasters in the metro area.
The largest metropolitan area without one of the Big Four teams is Las Vegas, which is the 34th largest market in Northern America. This is largely due to concerns of how a team in Las Vegas would affect the sports gaming industry. At the same time, football, basketball and baseball have all considered putting a team in the area, and for a brief time in 1994, the CFL (during its period of American expansion) had a team in the city; however, the Las Vegas Posse was a complete failure in the area and folded after one season. The smallest to have one of the Big Four is Green Bay as the 146th largest metropolitan area, though much of its fan base is drawn from nearby Milwaukee, the 35th largest; the smallest stand-alone metropolitan area to have one of the Big Four is 78th-largest Winnipeg (Jets, NHL), while 54th-largest Buffalo is the smallest to have more than one (Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bills).
The following list contains all metropolitan areas in the United States and Canada containing at least one team in any of the six major leagues. The table contains the population rank based on the table of primary census statistical areas in the 2010 Census and the list of census metropolitan areas in the Canada 2006 Census,[2] the number of teams in the four leagues (B4) and the six leagues (B6), and the city's teams in the National Football League (NFL),[3] Major League Baseball (MLB),[4] the National Basketball Association (NBA),[5] the National Hockey League (NHL),[6] Major League Soccer (MLS)[7] and the Canadian Football League (CFL).[8]
| Metropolitan area | Country | Pop. rank |
Population | B4 | B6 | NFL | MLB | NBA | NHL | MLS | CFL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | United States | 1 | 22,085,649 | 9 | 10 | Giants Jets |
Yankees Mets |
Knicks Nets |
Rangers Islanders Devils |
Red Bulls | — |
| Los Angeles | United States | 2 | 17,877,006 | 6 | 8 | — | Dodgers Angels |
Lakers Clippers |
Kings Ducks |
Galaxy Chivas USA |
— |
| Baltimore–Washington | United States | 4 | 8,572,971 | 6 | 7 | Redskins Ravens |
Nationals Orioles |
Wizards | Capitals | D.C. United | — |
| San Jose-San Francisco | United States | 6 | 7,468,390 | 6 | 7 | 49ers Raiders |
Giants Athletics |
Warriors | Sharks | Earthquakes | — |
| Chicago | United States | 3 | 9,686,021 | 5 | 6 | Bears | Cubs White Sox |
Bulls | Blackhawks | Fire | — |
| Toronto | Canada | 13 | 5,113,149 | 3 | 5 | [note 1] | Blue Jays | Raptors | Maple Leafs | Toronto FC | Argonauts |
| Boston | United States | 5 | 7,559,060 | 4 | 5 | Patriots | Red Sox | Celtics | Bruins | Revolution | — |
| Dallas - Ft. Worth | United States | 7 | 6,731,317 | 4 | 5 | Cowboys | Rangers | Mavericks | Stars | FC Dallas | — |
| Philadelphia | United States | 8 | 6,533,683 | 4 | 5 | Eagles | Phillies | 76ers | Flyers | Union | — |
| Denver | United States | 19 | 3,090,874 | 4 | 5 | Broncos | Rockies | Nuggets | Avalanche | Rapids | — |
| Houston | United States | 9 | 6,051,363 | 3 | 4 | Texans | Astros | Rockets | — | Dynamo | — |
| Miami | United States | 11 | 5,564,635 | 4 | 4 | Dolphins | Marlins | Heat | Panthers | — | — |
| Detroit | United States | 12 | 5,218,852 | 4 | 4 | Lions | Tigers | Pistons | Red Wings | — | — |
| Phoenix | United States | 15 | 4,192,887 | 4 | 4 | Cardinals | Diamondbacks | Suns | Coyotes | — | — |
| Minneapolis – Saint Paul | United States | 17 | 3,615,902 | 4 | 4 | Vikings | Twins | Timberwolves | Wild | — | — |
| Atlanta | United States | 10 | 5,618,431 | 3 | 3 | Falcons | Braves | Hawks | — | — | — |
| Cleveland | United States | 20 | 2,881,937 | 3 | 3 | Browns | Indians | Cavaliers | — | — | — |
| St. Louis | United States | 21 | 2,878,255 | 3 | 3 | Rams | Cardinals | — | Blues | — | — |
| Tampa Bay | United States | 23 | 2,783,243 | 3 | 3 | Buccaneers | Rays | — | Lightning | — | — |
| Pittsburgh | United States | 25 | 2,447,393 | 3 | 3 | Steelers | Pirates | — | Penguins | — | — |
| Vancouver | Canada | 30 | 2,116,581 | 1 | 3 | — | — | — | Canucks | Whitecaps | Lions |
| Seattle | United States | 14 | 4,199,312 | 2 | 3 | Seahawks | Mariners | — | — | Sounders | — |
| Kansas City | United States | 31 | 2,104,853 | 2 | 3 | Chiefs | Royals | — | — | Sporting | — |
| San Diego | United States | 18 | 3,095,313 | 2 | 2 | Chargers | Padres | — | — | — | — |
| Montreal | Canada | 16 | 3,635,571 | 1 | 3 | — | — | — | Canadiens | [note 2] | Alouettes |
| Charlotte | United States | 26 | 2,402,623 | 2 | 2 | Panthers | — | Bobcats | — | — | — |
| Cincinnati | United States | 28 | 2,172,191 | 2 | 2 | Bengals | Reds | — | — | — | — |
| Portland | United States | 27 | 2,226,009 | 1 | 2 | — | — | Blazers | — | Timbers | — |
| Indianapolis | United States | 32 | 2,080,782 | 2 | 2 | Colts | — | Pacers | — | — | — |
| Milwaukee | United States | 36 | 1,751,316 | 2 | 2 | — | Brewers | Bucks | — | — | — |
| Nashville | United States | 40 | 1,670,890 | 2 | 2 | Titans | — | — | Predators | — | — |
| Buffalo | United States | 50 | 1,215,826 | 2 | 2 | Bills | — | — | Sabres | — | — |
| Calgary | Canada | 56 | 1,079,310 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | Flames | — | Stampeders |
| New Orleans | United States | 51 | 1,214,932 | 2 | 2 | Saints | — | Hornets | — | — | — |
| Edmonton | Canada | 60 | 1,034,945 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | Oilers | — | Eskimos |
| Columbus | United States | 33 | 2,071,052 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | Blue Jackets | Crew | — |
| Salt Lake City | United States | 38 | 1,744,886 | 1 | 2 | — | — | Jazz | — | Real | — |
| Winnipeg | Canada | 78 | 694,668 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | Jets | — | Blue Bombers |
| Orlando | United States | 22 | 2,818,120 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Magic | — | — | — |
| Sacramento | United States | 24 | 2,461,780 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Kings | — | — | — |
| San Antonio | United States | 29 | 2,142,508 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Spurs | — | — | — |
| Raleigh | United States | 37 | 1,749,525 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | Hurricanes | — | — |
| Jacksonville | United States | 43 | 1,345,596 | 1 | 1 | Jaguars | — | — | — | — | — |
| Oklahoma City | United States | 44 | 1,322,429 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Thunder | — | — | — |
| Memphis | United States | 47 | 1,316,100 | 1 | 1 | — | — | Grizzlies | — | — | — |
| Ottawa | Canada | 54 | 1,130,761 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | Senators | — | [note 3] |
| Hamilton | Canada | 79 | 692,911 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | Tiger-Cats |
| Green Bay | United States | 154 | 306,241 | 1 | 1 | Packers | — | — | — | — | — |
| Regina | Canada | 208 | 194,971 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | — | — | Roughriders |
| Totals | — | — | — | 122 | 148 | 32 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 18 | 8 |
The number of Big Four teams based on their home state is shown in the map below:
The number of Big Six teams based on their home state/province/territory is shown in the map below:
a Washington DC would have the 50th largest population if it were a state
b Toronto-based Rogers Communications currently has a sharing agreement with the Buffalo Bills to lease the team for one regular season game each year. It is not counted in this tally as a Toronto team per se.
c The New York Giants and Jets both play their home games at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey
d The New York Red Bulls play their home games in Red Bull Arena in New Jersey
e The Washington Redskins play their home games at FedEx Field in Maryland
f Sporting KC play their home games at Livestrong Sporting Park in Kansas