Washington capitals popularity vs other Teams sports in DC

[Rayquaza64]

its very clear Ted never gave a f*** about basketball except for i guess recently when he decided "my hockey team won a championship and that gave me lots of money, maybe i should try something with that basketball team i own"

 

[sycamore]

Caps are just a unique story. They are essentially the Boston Red Sox of the NHL, a team that, despite being ridiculously talented for multiple seasons, would always find creative ways to lose. And then, coming off their most disastrous season ever, they found a way to win their first Cup, 44 years after their inception.

Fans like me who have been following the Caps and hockey for decades have a unique relationship with this team, a relationship that we simply don't share with the other Washington sports teams. The Nationals won? That's nice. The Wizards have a generational talent in John Wall? Good for them. The Redskins decided at long last to change their name? Isn't that grand. But those teams just cannot compete for the affection of the fans like the Caps can, simply because of the Caps unique and amazing story.

 

[John Price]

WFT always first for me. Caps and Nats probably 2nd and 3rd. The local women's soccer team is alright here as is United. Of course Wizards last.

To me I grew up in 2000 after 16 years of ignoring sports so WFT was basically the first thing I saw back when people were still excited about local football. Then I listened to hockey at night on the AM radio 570 or 980 with Steve Kolbe on the air. Then I got into baseball. But WFT was the first and to me I won't get as excited or hyped up about anything other than WFT. I have had the WFT games in my ear through headphones while watching Caps games in person

 

[StrikingDistance]

1) Deadskins will always be #1 in this town. Even when they suck, the local sports media has endless drama to talk about. Even though the NFL product has diminished over the years (I stopped watching because it's boring), there are many diehards clinging onto past superbowls (last one was almost 30 years ago).

2) Capitals - thanks to Ovi, the arena typically has high attendance. I see more people around here wearing Caps than Nats gear (top notch scientific study). Think the Caps have pulled fans away from the other local teams.

3) Nationals - With so many games and some of them going 4hrs. It's not easy to get people to go and stay at the games and watch people play chess.

4) Wizzers - Yikes. My friend has season tix near the bench and go a few times per year. I went to a game last year. Low attendance and I almost fell asleep. Unless Lebron etc is in town, there is no reason to attend unless you want some 'personal time' with your partner.

5) DC United - I think the games are fun: People are singing, banging on drums, and lighting smoke bombs and fireworks. However, local sports media rarely mentions them unless it's they're in the playoffs.

6) Mystics - Make it stop

 

[kicksavedave]

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. Freedom
8. Generals
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15. Ten pound bag of crap
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20.Football Team

1.Capitals
2.Nationals
3.Wizards
4.Mystics
5.DC United
6.Orioles
7. Freedom
8. Generals
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15. Ten pound bag of crap
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20.Football Team


Fixed that.

 

[Skrudland2Lomakin]

So there is an issue here in trying to compare these teams in terms of local interest and with national appeal and then some people further conflating interest with enthusiasm. Also a hockey forum is going to give you skewed results.


So the first thing we need to acknowledge is that national interest in the different leagues is as follows:

NFL
Huge drop
NBA
Huge drop
MLB
Small drop
NHL
Medium drop
Other leagues


Keep that in mind because while people maybe aren’t enthusiastic about WFT, they still watch the games/have an interest in the team.


I really don’t think it’s debatable WFT is easily the most valuable and watched team, even in the DC market. You can sit here all day and spin wheels about how bad they are, but football is king. After that you can probably flip a coin for the Caps vs Nats, depending on which team is hotter at that moment. Overall I’d give the Nationals the edge due to recent area polls and general transcendent nature of baseball as a national interest.


The Wizards aren’t nearly as bemoaned as people suspect. Again, the NBA is a large national brand and so general interest isn’t one to one with enthusiasm. If the Wizards get good, they’ll easily leap frog the Capitals in terms of local interest.


This is all pretty much to say that WFT is number one and everything after is determined by recent success. The Gilbert Arenas Wizards were a big source of interest while the 2004 Caps were yawn inducing. The Nationals aren’t too far from days of being bottom dwelling after thoughts. The media coverage of all three of those teams rises and falls with success. The one team guaranteed to generate radio conversations, front page sports stories, and ratings regardless of record? The NFL team, for better or worse.


So the ultimate list literally should just be:

WFT
Nats/Caps/Wiz depending on the year