List of major cities in the United States lacking an NFL franchise
From EverybodyWiki Bios & Wiki
Several major cities and regional business centers in the United States lack a franchise in the National Football League (NFL). The following list only includes cities with metro populations greater than 800,000; this arbitrary cut-off encompasses most American metropolitan areas (the exception being Green Bay, where the Green Bay Packers have operated since 1919 despite a population less than half that) that has hosted at least one NFL game since the 1960s. A partial list of such cities without an NFL team is as follows (in order by decreasing population of metropolitan area):
| City | Metropolitan area population (2012 est.) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| St. Louis, Missouri | 2,913,673 | The Cardinals moved to Arizona before the 1988 season. The Stallions was a proposed franchise rejected by the league in 1993. The Rams returned to Los Angeles for the 2016 season.[1][2] |
| Sacramento, California | 2,600,000 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Portland, Oregon | 2,314,554 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| San Antonio, Texas | 2,277,550 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. The Alamodome hosted three regular season New Orleans Saints games during the 2005 season due to the effects of Hurricane Katrina on the Louisiana Superdome.[3][4] |
| Orlando, Florida | 2,267,846 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Las Vegas, Nevada | 2,000,759 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. Since January 2016, Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis has expressed interest in relocating his franchise to Las Vegas.[5][6] |
| San Jose, California | 1,975,342 | The San Francisco 49ers' home stadium (Levi's Stadium) and team headquarters are located within the metropolitan area in Santa Clara. |
| Columbus, Ohio | 1,944,002 | Panhandles folded in 1926. |
| Providence, Rhode Island | 1,630,956 | Steam Roller folded in 1931. The New England Patriots' home stadium (Gillette Stadium) is located in Foxborough, Massachusetts, 18 miles northeast of downtown Providence. |
| Milwaukee, Wisconsin | 1,569,659 | Badgers folded in 1926. The Green Bay Packers played several home games a year at County Stadium in Milwaukee between 1953 and 1994.[7] |
| Memphis, Tennessee | 1,341,746 | The Grizzlies and the Hound Dogs were proposed franchises rejected by the league in 1975 and 1993, respectively. The Tennessee Titans (then known as the Oilers) played their entire home schedule for the 1997 season at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, while their stadium in Nashville was under construction. |
| Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | 1,319,677 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Louisville, Kentucky | 1,251,351 | Brecks (Breckenridges) and Colonels folded in 1924 and 1926, respectively.[8][9] |
| Raleigh, North Carolina | 1,214,516 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Hartford, Connecticut | 1,212,381 | Blues folded in 1926. |
| Salt Lake City, Utah | 1,140,483 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Birmingham, Alabama | 1,140,300 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. Vulcans unsuccessfully petitioned to join the league in 1975. |
| Fresno, California | 1,081,315 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Rochester, New York | 1,054,323 | Jeffersons folded after the 1925 season. Buffalo Bills host training camp in the metro area. |
| Norfolk, Virginia | 1,047,869 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Grand Rapids, Michigan | 1,018,000 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Tucson, Arizona | 996,544 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Honolulu, Hawaii | 953,207 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. Aloha Stadium has hosted the Pro Bowl since 1980 (except in 2010 and 2015). |
| Tulsa, Oklahoma | 951,880 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Bridgeport, Connecticut | 925,899 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Stamford, Connecticut | 916,829 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Albuquerque, New Mexico | 903,000 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Omaha, Nebraska | 895,151 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Albany, New York | 870,716 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. The New York Giants historically held training camp in Albany until 2012. |
| New Haven, Connecticut | 862,477 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Knoxville, Tennessee | 848,350 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| El Paso, Texas | 831,036 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Allentown/Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | 827,171 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Baton Rouge, Louisiana | 815,298 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. Louisiana State University (LSU)'s Tiger Stadium hosted four regular season New Orleans Saints games during the 2005 season due to the effects of Hurricane Katrina on the Louisiana Superdome.[3][4] |
| McAllen, Texas | 806,552 | Has never hosted an NFL franchise. |
| Dayton, Ohio | 800,792 | Triangles folded in 1929. |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Wetzel, Dan (January 12, 2016). "RIP, St. Louis Rams: A tough lesson in the business of pro sports". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- ↑ Hanzus, Dan (January 12, 2016). "Rams to relocate to L.A.; Chargers first option to join". NFL.com. National Football League. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "SAINTS HOME GAME SCHEDULE SET; FOUR IN BATON ROUGE, THREE IN SAN ANTONIO". New Orleans Saints. September 12, 2005. Archived from the original on September 13, 2005. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Saints' home games: 4 at LSU, 3 in Alamodome". ESPN. Associated Press. September 12, 2005. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Las Vegas Sands wants stadium for UNLV, possibly Raiders". Sports Illustrated. Associated Press. January 28, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- ↑ "Raiders owner willing to give $500M toward Las Vegas stadium". National Football League. Associated Press. April 28, 2016. Retrieved April 30, 2016.
- ↑ "Other Homes of the Packers, 1919-94". Green Bay Packers. August 4, 2015. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
- ↑ "Louisville's NFL connection". Pro Football Hall of Fame. June 10, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
- ↑ Rose, Dave (February 17, 2011). "Louisville had a professional football team? You're making that up [Sports]". Louisville.com. Louisville Magazine. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
This article "List of major cities in the United States lacking an NFL franchise" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
