A City Divided: Why Fans Choose One Hometown Team over the Other

Many cities across America host multiple professional sports teams and inevitably, one team is far more popular than the other.  This goes for cities with teams from different sports – and even the same sport.  What makes one team more popular than the other?  Is it their ability to consistently win more games than the other team? First come first serve (i.e. the other team has been around longer)? Or is it purely based on the trendiness or appeal of one team over the other.  We will study three sports, four metropolitan areas, and eight teams to see what makes one team the toast of the town and the other feel like an unwanted stepchild.

MLB: New York Yankees & New York Mets

These two teams may share a city, but there is nary a fan in New York that shares a loyalty between the Yankees and Mets.  According to Forbes.com, the Yankees are valued at 1.6 Billion dollars, while the Mets come in at 858 Million.  Yankee Revenues in 2009 were estimated at 441 Million while the Mets brought in roughly 268.  These two teams bring in a lot of dough and have a large fan base, but it is pretty clear that the Yankees are kings of New York City.

Winning Record

One of the biggest reasons that the Yankees are New York’s favorite baseball team is the sheer number of World Championships they own.  With 27 World Championships and 40 AL Championships the Yankees have been one of the most successful franchises in sports history.  By comparison, the Mets have two World Championships and just four NL Championship.  Winning isn’t everything, or so the saying goes, but it sure means a lot in New York.

First Come First Serve

If you subscribe to the first come, first serve theory, then the Yankees again would be the most important team in New York.  Their Big Apple history dates back to 1903 while the Mets came on the scene in 1962.  61 years of family and fan loyalty is a lot to make up for.

Overall Appeal

The fan base of the Yankees extends far outside the city limits of New York. Celebrities and casual baseball fans all around the world can be seen sporting Yankees caps, notably Jay Z, LeBron James, and Regis Philbin. The Mets have their share of famous celebrity fans as well including Jerry Seinfeld, Hilary Swank and Ray Romano. But at the end of the day, the overall reach of the Yankees is far greater than the Mets will ever be.

MLB: Chicago Cubs & Chicago White Sox

Moving on to the Windy City, we next come across the Cubbies and Sox.  The Cubs are valued at 726 Million while the Sox come in at 466 Million (again according to Forbes.com). The Cubs raked in 246 Million in revenue last year and the Sox generated 194 Million.  The gap is a bit smaller between these two, but there is a very distinct advantage to Cubs fans in the City of Chicago.

Winning Record

The Cubs have totaled 2 World Series titles and 16 NL Championships since 1876 – not exactly the poster-child for success, yet fans in Chicago still love them.  The Sox haven’t done a whole lot better amassing 3 World Series titles and 7 AL Championships since 1901.  The Sox have seen more recent success as well, last winning a championship in 2005.  The Cubbies – well we would have to go all the way back to 1907 to find their last championship.  This battle of Northside vs. Southside extends beyond team records – it lies much deeper than that.

First Come First Serve

The Cubs and Sox have been based in Chicago since the early 1900’s but a slight advantage goes to the Sox.  Their team has existed in its current state since 1901 while the Cubs officially became the Chicago Cubs in 1903.  Again, the advantage would seem to go to the Sox, but we are finding that it isn’t really the case.  And again the rabbit hole takes another twist.

Overall Appeal

The Cubs have an unknown appeal.  Perhaps it is because they are allegedly cursed and have seen so much suffering throughout the years that it’s hard NOT to root for them to win.  Furthermore, the Sox had the cheating scandal in 1919 which could have tainted their public image.  Lastly, there is a clear and present socio-economic difference between the two areas of Chicago that the teams call home.  Wrigleyville is on the north side of the city and is generally populated with upper class residents.  The Sox make their home on the Southside which has a nasty reputation for crime and drugs.  I’m not saying that there are racial reasons for the Cubs popularity over the Sox when it is clear that the Sox win more and have been around longer, but what other explanation is there?

NBA: Los Angeles Lakers & Los Angeles Clippers

Not only do these two teams share a city, they even share an arena. But that’s about where the similarities end.  We don’t even have to look at any numbers to figure out which of these two teams is more popular in Los Angeles, but we will anyways.  According to Forbes.com (great info from these guys by the way), the Lakers are worth 584 Million and generated 191 Million in revenue.  By comparison, the Clippers are worth 297 Million and brought in 99 Million in revenue last year.  Now we find out why.

Winning Record

The Lakers have 17 championships split between the NBL, BAA & NBA.  The Clippers on the other hand have never even won a conference title to put them in a championship game.  The Lakers have had countless winning seasons, while the Clippers are almost always favored to win the NBA Draft Lottery.  Based on record and success alone, it is easy to see why the Lakers are vastly more popular than the Clips.

First Come First Serve

Neither team was founded in Los Angeles, but instead are both transplants from elsewhere in the country.  The Lakers came to LA in 1960 via Minnesota (hence the name Lakers).  The Clippers came up from San Diego in 1984 (and apparently San Diego is famous for more than just fish tacos).  In terms of longevity, the Lakers hold the advantage, but it’s not really like they need it.

Overall Appeal

Sure Blake Griffin is great for the Clippers, but when it comes to big name superstars and the ability to grab fans nationally and internationally, the Lakers have all the firepower.  Names like Kareem Abdul Jabaar, Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant have donned the Lakers jersey, making names for themselves in LA, California, the US and Worldwide.  The Clippers have had – well, nobody.

NFL: Oakland Raiders/San Francisco 49ers

While they might not be in the exact same city, they are just a stone’s throw away from each other across the San Francisco Bay.  However, there seems to be an ocean’s worth of discrepancy between the popularity of these two teams in the region.  While neither team is impressive from a net-worth standpoint, the Niners are still more valuable than the Raiders, beating them out 925-758 Million.  Their revenues are a lot closer than people might imagine, however, with the Niners edging out the Raiders 226-217 Million in 2010.  But ask anyone in the Bay area who is more popular and the 49ers win by a landslide.

Winning Record

Both teams have seen good success, although the Niners have seen more of it.  San Francisco holds 5 Super Bowl Titles and 5 NFC Championship titles (they have never lost a Super Bowl).  Oakland, on the other hand, has 3 Super Bowls and 4 Conference Championships – pretty good in their own right. The Niners have made the playoffs 23 times in their history, while the Raiders have seen the postseason 21 times.  These teams are pretty close in terms of historical success.

First Come First Serve

The Niners have been a part of San Francisco since 1946 which is quite a long time.  The Raiders began in Oakland back in 1960, but by stark contrast, have bounced around a few times before coming back home to the Bay area in 1995.  There is a definite consistency and longevity advantage for the Niners.

Overall Appeal

You might not know it based on recent performance, but both teams have a great history.  Steve Young, Joe Montana and Jerry Rice for the Niners. John Madden, Marcus Allen and Ronnie Lott are great representatives of the Black and Silver.  But others have donned the Raider’s logo and colors which have likely led to a reduction in their popularity over the years.  Gangs and rappers have sported silver and black for years, giving the team a reputation associated with crime and violence.  For someone completely new to football, this would likely sway their decision to support one team over the other, giving the Raiders a major disadvantage.

The list of teams that share a city extends beyond the ones mentioned above, (Giants/A’s, Dodgers/Angels, Giants/Jets) but the same qualifiers apply.  In most cases, fan loyalty is based on longevity and who wins more – but not always.  Sometimes teams get the short end of the stick for no other reason than their colors or logo.

 

3 comments

  1. One thing with the Yankees and the Mets is transportation. It is very easy to get to Yankee Stadium- there are train lines from the northern suburbs and three subway lines from NYC. There is also a major interstate (I-87). The Bronx is easier to get to then Flushing, Queens by car as well.

    The Mets, in contrast, have only the 7 train line near their stadium. So it is much harder to get to by train. In order to travel by car, you have to cross a major bridge if you are coming from the northern suburbs, Manhattan or Staten Island.

    I am wondering if geography plays a role in the fan base both in NY and in Chicago.

    1. Pete, I didn’t really take into account geography when doing this post, but now that you mention it, it is probably a huge factor. Thanks for the insight on the Yankees/Mets stuff. Is there a reason why you would choose the Yanks over the Mets aside from “thats how you grew up?”

  2. There are other reasons for being a Yankee fan….one issue I have with the Mets is their decisions over the years. While George Steinbrenner has been cut-throat, the Yankees are willing to spend the money to win the World Series. This creates excitement and puts the fans in the seats, giving the franchise more money, and allowing them to attract better players.

    The Yankees are innovators – for example, they were the first ones to have their own network (YES), and then SNY and others followed suit. But that is a big money maker for them as well as putting the Yankees in front of fans 24/7.

    The Mets are a fun team to watch sometimes….they have a great new stadium and I would love to see them in contention soon. But the owners really make poor decisions with management and players. They just don’t seem to make the decisions based on winning – they only seem to go halfway. How long do they expect fans to be patient with “rebuilding?” 2 years? 5 years? Get it together already!

    The Yankees are in it to win it. Not to rebuild or to do better. The Yankees put the BEST team on the field and that puts the fans in the seats. It creates excitement, chatter on the internet, and sells products. That is why they will always have the huge following they do. People like winners and they like to be on the winning team. It is a shame that the Mets owners don’t seem to really want it.

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