Sports study on fans done by Washington Post

[elocomotive]

Very interesting read this morning. The Post did 3 full pages on sports fans, mostly in DC but some interesting data overall.

Here's the lead...

Ask what sort of sports town Washington is, and you***8217;re likely to hear what sort of sports town it***8217;s not.

It***8217;s not Philadelphia or Boston, cities that are gripped by year-round soap operas starring multiple professional teams. It***8217;s not New York, known for a relentless pressure to win championships, or Chicago, considered one of America***8217;s great sports towns.

It***8217;s not Pittsburgh, Cleveland or Buffalo, whose civic identities are often wrapped around pro teams with longstanding working-class roots. Neither is it Atlanta, Tampa or Miami, cities known for indifference toward pro sports teams....

A few interesting facts...
-72% of area fans call the Capitals their favorite team while less than 50% identify the Redskins or Nationals as their favorite team (meaning many out-of-towners still root for their hometown football or baseball club, but have adopted the Caps as their hockey team)
-The study identifies sport fan types - "Megafans" (most avid fans) prefer the NHL to the NBA and soccer, but drive-by and social fans (the two lowest tiers) rank the NHL as last in their preferences even below soccer
-Megafans ranked the following as the best sports city - 1. Boston 2. NY 3. Pittsburgh 4. Philly 5. Los Angeles
-The most ardent fans and the least engaged fans prefer pro sports overwhelmingly, while the tiers in the middle prefer both about or close to equally

Some really interesting stuff and reveals a few things I've always known - it's a pretty engaged sports city, but there are so many transplants here that the identity of a "home" team is just not what it is in other places. It makes it a bit challenging to be a fan here at times, but I love my Caps and Skins.

 

[TiLoBrown]

Well this study is all wrong, besides...everyone knows the only thing that matters are TV ratings

 

[pixburgher66]

Not sure I'd rank NY as a top sports city...just my opinion though. Boston's shown they can go through thick and thin with the Sox, so I'd put them up there.