Washington capitals popularity vs other Teams sports in DC

PB12

Registered User
Jul 7, 2015
2,298
1,036
Yes the Capitals are #1, but with some help from there NFL team.

1.Capitals
2.Nationals
3.Wizards
4.Mystics
5.DC United
6.Orioles
7.Football Team
 

Rayquaza64

McMichael>McDavid
May 30, 2019
1,374
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Virginia
hockey and baseball are definitely taking over football with how shitty the football team is being run, Hockey is def taking over DC
 

Midnight Judges

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Hockey has grown tremendously in the DC area, largely due to Ovechkin. Youth hockey, game attendance, and TV ratings have grown a lot.

I think if you listen to sports talk radio it's pretty easy to see that DC is still a football town. It will be a while before hockey can compete with that, if ever. The NHL needs more diverse players and fans, and they need the sport to become more accessible. That's always going to be hard because skates/sticks/gloves/helmets are always going to be more difficult to obtain than, say, a basketball.
 

max21

NBA Yungboy
Apr 17, 2019
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Redskins are still undoubtably number 1, not even a question. The Redskins actually have a huge fan base, when the team does well the fans come out. I went to a few games in 2012 (last time we were good) and the NFC East clinching game against Dallas and it was ROCKING. It would be like that again if the team finds success
 

max21

NBA Yungboy
Apr 17, 2019
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But if I have the option to spend my money on a hockey or football game, it’s 100% hockey. FedEx field is a turd with nothing to do around it, though the club level is nice.
 
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Fallschirmyager

Registered User
Jun 25, 2009
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Redskins are still undoubtably number 1, not even a question. The Redskins actually have a huge fan base, when the team does well the fans come out. I went to a few games in 2012 (last time we were good) and the NFC East clinching game against Dallas and it was ROCKING. It would be like that again if the team finds success

That team lost me as a fan for however long, "The Danny" owns the team. He knows the fan base is going to show up regardless of how terrible the team is so he doesn't have to work to make money off of them. He's proven to be a meddlesome owner so who really wants to put up with that except for people who have to?

Hockey and baseball are the only 2 teams that have won anything in 25+ years.
 
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BondraEra

Registered User
Jun 6, 2010
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I feel like DC is kind of an underrated basketball town. If the the Wiz put together any real sustained success they'd see some real deal fanaticism.
 
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Hivemind

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Oct 8, 2010
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Two different ways to look at popularity.

The Capitals and Nationals have the highest "approval ratings" among fans
Washington Football Team is still the one that has the most general interest, even if huge swathes of that fanbase are now jaded
 

txpd

Registered User
Jan 25, 2003
69,649
14,131
New Bern, NC
I am probaby not typical but my viewing may be worth considering. I dont think its unusual. I used to watch all 4 pro teams. The Orioles were my baseball team at the time. Also Maryland and Navy football and basketball.

As time went by Angelos ruined the Orioles and Snider the Redskins. Maryland quit the ACC and I quit them. I never felt a connection with the soft blue Wizards. I did pick up the Nationals a few years ago and have kept the Caps and Navy football. Life gets busy and I cull my interests as time becomes harder to come by.

I live in NC now but other than auto racing I dont watch any sports on tv not local to Washington
 
Sep 19, 2008
372,091
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Popularity Rankings

WFT
Nationals
Capitals
DC United
Washington Spirit

Huge gap

Washington Wizards
 
Sep 19, 2008
372,091
23,946
Yes the Capitals are #1, but with some help from there NFL team.

1.Capitals
2.Nationals
3.Wizards
4.Mystics
5.DC United
6.Orioles
7.Football Team
You overestimate the popularity of the Wizards.

I feel like DC is kind of an underrated basketball town. If the the Wiz put together any real sustained success they'd see some real deal fanaticism.
It's a college basketball town.

The Wizards are an afterthought. They are improving but if you want to talk real FO people who drove the team into the ground Ernie Grunsfeld was kept around for nearly 2 decades with very poor results. I was reading an article a few years ago about John Wall. He is the most heralded Wizard (#1 draft pick, superstar) and most kids in the area had barely heard of him. That is the state the Wizards are trying to recover out of. It is going to be a LONG way back.

Meanwhile ask anyone here if they have heard of another #1 pick named Alex Ovechkin.

Wizards biggest problem is losing the name Bullets, plus being bad for 40 years.
 

AlexBrovechkin8

At least there was 2018.
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You overestimate the popularity of the Wizards.


It's a college basketball town.

The Wizards are an afterthought. They are improving but if you want to talk real FO people who drove the team into the ground Ernie Grunsfeld was kept around for nearly 2 decades with very poor results. I was reading an article a few years ago about John Wall. He is the most heralded Wizard (#1 draft pick, superstar) and most kids in the area had barely heard of him. That is the state the Wizards are trying to recover out of. It is going to be a LONG way back.

Meanwhile ask anyone here if they have heard of another #1 pick named Alex Ovechkin.
I don't really agree but to me the popularity of the teams goes hand in hand with the changing demographics. No one cares about Georgetown hoops any more and when the Wiz were good with a young Beal and Wall and almost made to the Conf Championship a few times in the mid 2010s there was a ton of interest in the team. This year they stunk AND booted Phil Chenier and Steve Buckhantz from the broadcast booth and sunk to levels of apathy I haven't seen in a while.

DC was for a while known as Chocolate City so the Wizards and the Redskins, whose stadium was in Ward 7, were very popular. DC is different now so sports like hockey and baseball are increasing in popularity.

To answer the original question, I think the WFT will always be king if they ever figure their shit out and the Caps / Nats / Wiz will slot in after them depending on how good they are.
 
Sep 19, 2008
372,091
23,946
I don't really agree but to me the popularity of the teams goes hand in hand with the changing demographics. No one cares about Georgetown hoops any more and when the Wiz were good with a young Beal and Wall and almost made to the Conf Championship a few times in the mid 2010s there was a ton of interest in the team. This year they stunk AND booted Phil Chenier and Steve Buckhantz from the broadcast booth and sunk to levels of apathy I haven't seen in a while.

DC was for a while known as Chocolate City so the Wizards and the Redskins, whose stadium was in Ward 7, were very popular. DC is different now so sports like hockey and baseball are increasing in popularity.

To answer the original question, I think the WFT will always be king if they ever figure their shit out and the Caps / Nats / Wiz will slot in after them depending on how good they are.
Wizards games were routinely overrun during Thunder games when Durant was there with "Durant fans" who booed against the Wizards and cheered for the visiting team. It got so bad that Durant told them to stop.

This has been going on far before recent years. The Wizards invented the "opposing team takeovers" before they happened in FedEx. :laugh:

They almost made the ECF once (first time since 1979). The statistics on how bad the Wizards have been since that year are mind boggling and show how tilted the NBA is towards super-teams. Their win season (49 wins) was the highest win total they ever had achieved since 1979. :laugh: To add insult to injury, the team talked a relentless amount of crap following that Game 7 loss and finished 8th, only to get swept gracelessly out of the playoffs :laugh:
 

AlexBrovechkin8

At least there was 2018.
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Wizards games were routinely overrun during Thunder games when Durant was there with "Durant fans" who booed against the Wizards and cheered for the visiting team. It got so bad that Durant told them to stop.

This has been going on far before recent years. The Wizards invented the "opposing team takeovers" before they happened in FedEx. :laugh:

They almost made the ECF once (first time since 1979). The statistics on how bad the Wizards have been since that year are mind boggling and show how tilted the NBA is towards super-teams. Their win season (49 wins) was the highest win total they ever had achieved since 1979. :laugh: To add insult to injury, the team talked a relentless amount of crap following that Game 7 loss and finished 8th, only to get swept gracelessly out of the playoffs :laugh:

They deserve a bit more credit than that... they lost in the conference semis three times in four years between 2013-2017. In 2014-15 they would have cruised to a matchup vs LeBron in the ECF if not for Wall breaking his wrist when they swept the Raptors and then Kelly Olynyk had the game of his life against them in 2016-17 when they lost in Game 7 to the Celtics. They were legit good for a decent chunk of that decade but injuries were their undoing a few times.

But yeah, they did start the opposing team takeover. :laugh: Not sure I blame them though, DC is pretty transient and it's more of a superstar/bandwagon league than any other league. The crowds when Kobe and Bron came to town were hilariously one-sided against them.
 
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max21

NBA Yungboy
Apr 17, 2019
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You overestimate the popularity of the Wizards.


It's a college basketball town.

The Wizards are an afterthought. They are improving but if you want to talk real FO people who drove the team into the ground Ernie Grunsfeld was kept around for nearly 2 decades with very poor results. I was reading an article a few years ago about John Wall. He is the most heralded Wizard (#1 draft pick, superstar) and most kids in the area had barely heard of him. That is the state the Wizards are trying to recover out of. It is going to be a LONG way back.

Meanwhile ask anyone here if they have heard of another #1 pick named Alex Ovechkin.

Wizards biggest problem is losing the name Bullets, plus being bad for 40 years.
Why did they get rid of the name Bullets?
 

Corby78

65 - 10 - 20
Jan 14, 2014
11,705
7,875
Ramstein Germany
The NHL will always be a fourth tier sport in most US cities. It’s just much harder to get into as a kid and harder to play as a start up. Hence it’s much harder to appreciate what your watching. A backhand saucer across the crease onto tape looks easy unless you have ever tried it.

It’s also a much better game live, so you need to get people in the seats to fully grasp the game. The NHL is my favorite, but I know I’m the minority. Many hockey fans are fair weather and only follow when their team is good.
 

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