May 19, 2013

Ranking Sports Towns: Columbus and Cleveland Come in at 36 and 45

October 6, 2011 by 12 Comments

Sporting News has compiled an updated list which ranks the nation’s sports towns (professional and Division I) via applicable criteria like wins, attendance and postseason appearances – items not exactly prevalent in the state of Ohio.  Given that, the two major sports towns in lakeside state still rated fairly on the list of 271 cities with Columbus and Cleveland ranking 36 and 45, respectively.

Dallas, Boston and Philadelphia top the list which takes into account the last 12 months, rolling from the summer of 2010 to that of 2011.  Sadly, Pittsburgh comes in sixth-overall, right behind New York and ahead of notables like Atlanta and Los Angeles. 

Other Ohio towns to crack the list are Cincinnati (21), Oxford (103), Kent (109),  Athens (115), Dayton (125), Akron (126), Bowling Green (187), Toledo (188) and Youngstown (209).

O-H…

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  • Tron

    Somehow you missed Cinci @ 21

  • http://www.morningjournal.com/content/articles/2011/01/31/sports/doc4d463b0cd062d819200129.jpg Return of the (Alex) Mack

    @ Tron: Cinci is technically in Kentucky

    also any sports town list that has Miami is the top ten isn’t worth the paper it is printed on. Seriously Miami, the city where 400 people show up to watch the Marlins, Miami the city where they forgot the have a football team, Miami a city that chants MVP when James Jones shoots free throws mistaking him for LeBron James.

  • http://www.waitingfornextyear.com Scott

    Ah. Completely my fault.

  • Tron

    HAHA good point Mack

  • B-bo

    @2 Miami isn’t even the most egregious joke in the top 10. Tampa-St. Pete? Are you kidding me?! As someone who’s lived here now for nearly eight miserable years, I can tell you that this area–heck, this entire state–is a miserable sports town. The Rays have been a top team in baseball for a few years now, and yet they can’t get their stadium even half full for the majority of games–unless the Yanks and Sawx are in town, in which case it’s packed with opposing fans. Even Tribe fans outnumber Rays fans at the Trop. The year the Rays played a game 7 at home against Boston in the ALCS, a group of us were able to get tickets in the lower level, first-base side for $35 each. Two hours before the start of the game. Bucs fans, meanwhile, can’t be bothered to show up for what some consider an up-and-coming team (they went 10-6 last year). The Monday nighter was their first locally-televised home game in the last 11, and they look to be back to blackout status for the next one at home against the Saints. I’d call these people front-runners, but they don’t even show when they are winning! Add in the constantly-evolving college sports loyalties here (who’s good this year? USF? The ‘Noles? Gators? That’s my team! Until they lose…), and it’s insane that this area even makes the top 150.

  • Lloyd Braun

    I-O!

  • Garry Owen

    Umm, basing any rankings of “best sports towns” based – even in part – on the most recent 12-months of on-field (court, ice, etc.) performance is … I’m looking for the word … nonsensical.

    Objection! Entirely irrelevant.

    Of course, I haven’t read the artcle. And won’t. (Thanks for taking that bullet for me, Scott.)

  • acrossthefield11

    Sorry but I take this as an insult. Cincinnati a better sports town than Cleveland?!? I may be be a homer but I’ve always thought of Cleveland as a top 10 sports town. (NY, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philly, etc.) when it comes to diehard fans and general community interest and involvement in the local sports. People from Cleveland identify themselves with sports, especially the browns.

    Columbus deserves their spot simply because OSU fans are lunatics and are probably unparalleled in any other sport.

    Cincinnati is a chump sports town with chump fans who hop on and off their teams’ respective bandwagons faster than you can say “Carson Palmer Sucks”.

  • Chucky Brown

    Well, based on overall performance, we really cant complain about our position

    but as fans there is no way anyone in tampa, miami or cincy can hold a candle to cleveland (and the attendance shows it)

  • BB

    Oxford is the highest ranked city in Ohio without a professional team? Good job guys, I remember when I lived there and the attendance there was so low at football games that someone told me we were in danger of getting moved out of Division I.

  • Craig

    As a Miami grad, they had to have been rated that high solely based on college hockey. Those games are always packed. Always. Other than that… nothing really.

    And I agree with everyone else, this list is a hack. Miami and Tampa? Not at all credible.

  • Craig

    That’s Miami University in Oxford of course.