Most popular hockey teams in Russia

[IcePhoenix]

I am a fan of the Helsingin Jokerit and them playing in the KHL has really grown my knowledge of the Russian hockey and the league. But one thing that I still don't know is the popularity of the Russian teams. I know that SKA is pretty popular, but that's pretty much all. Could someone tell me what KHL-teams have the most passionate fan bases?

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[Caser]

I am a fan of the Helsingin Jokerit and them playing in the KHL has really grown my knowledge of the Russian hockey and the league. But one thing that I still don't know is the popularity of the Russian teams. I know that SKA is pretty popular, but that's pretty much all. Could someone tell me what KHL-teams have the most passionate fan bases?

Popularity is not exactly an easy thing to measure. If we look at the attendance, then we can say that yes, SKA is the top team there ainec, with CSKA likely second. But then it is unfair to the teams with smaller arenas like Traktor, who are filling it over 90% on regular basis even despite team's poor performance. Attendance also takes into account only local fan bases, while teams like CSKA, Dynamo and Spartak historically had fanbases all over Russia.

 

[Barclay Donaldson]

I am a fan of the Helsingin Jokerit and them playing in the KHL has really grown my knowledge of the Russian hockey and the league. But one thing that I still don't know is the popularity of the Russian teams. I know that SKA is pretty popular, but that's pretty much all. Could someone tell me what KHL-teams have the most passionate fan bases?

It depends on what you mean by passion? Passion is not something that can be measured and compared.

 

[Atas2000]

I am a fan of the Helsingin Jokerit and them playing in the KHL has really grown my knowledge of the Russian hockey and the league. But one thing that I still don't know is the popularity of the Russian teams. I know that SKA is pretty popular, but that's pretty much all. Could someone tell me what KHL-teams have the most passionate fan bases?

Chelyabinsk is hockey town. There is probably no person form Chelyabinsk which does not know a hockey player personally or went to school, sister married to and so on. The city is pretty serously defined by it. Novosibirsk is passionate about hockey as well. The traditional Moscow teams are still bradns cut in stone: CSKA, Dynamo and Spartak have some historcally enrooted following.

 

[DivochLubo]

How are Amur and Lokomotiv with fan bases in towns?

 

[afrobomber11]

Chelyabinsk is hockey town. There is probably no person form Chelyabinsk which does not know a hockey player personally or went to school, sister married to and so on. The city is pretty serously defined by it. Novosibirsk is passionate about hockey as well. The traditional Moscow teams are still bradns cut in stone: CSKA, Dynamo and Spartak have some historcally enrooted following.

how does vityaz fit into that moscow scheme popularity wise?

 

[Atas2000]

how does vityaz fit into that moscow scheme popularity wise?

Vitzyaz is most distictevely NOT a Moscow team. For many reasons. All Moscow teams are traditionally Moscow based for decades and have their loyal supporters. Moscow people would probably not support a team not from Moscow, even if it is out of some Moscow snobism. The area around Moscow called Moscow Oblast or Moscow Region as it is often regarded in English only has Moscow in the name because it is located around Moscow. It's an area bigger than Switzerland. They do have an own identity and it is vastly different from that of Moscow. It is all smaller distrcits mostly around small towns that are considered Moscow satellites and many people do have jobs in Moscow, but most of their lives especially outside the job revolve around their district and it's main town. Podolsk is one of those towns. And Vityaz was from the get go founded in that area. Also they are small towns by russian standards. Podolsk is home of 300K+ people. That is probably not considered small in most parts of Europe. Hockey wise Vityaz is a new born compared to traditional Moscow teams. It was founded in the 90s. The only team from that area around Moscow with strong tradition and success was Khimik Voskresensk, but it could not find a way through the 90s staying competitive. It is now in the VHL. In it's glory days it produced the likes of Ragulin, Larionov, Kamenskiy, Vyacheslav Kozlov, Lomakin, Zelepukin. They were on par with those Moscow powerhouses back then.

 

[Atas2000]

How are Amur and Lokomotiv with fan bases in towns?

Loko is huge. They have a great school and some great following traditionally. Amur has grown on the people in Khabarovsk. There is not much else sports wise and the Far East has not yet produced some championship teams, but hockey is actually very popular there throughout the greater area of Eastern Siberia, Altai, Zabaikalye and Primorskiy Krai. If done properly hockey can become huge there and they should have some top league teams. There are actually a lot of stars and top leagues hockey players from there. The lack of big hockey teams forces kids to leave early to be in a system that allows them to grow up to the big league.