Top 10 Cities that Should Get an NFL Team
Imagine waking up on a crisp fall Sunday, the smell of tailgate grills in the air, fans draped in your city's colors, and the buzz of anticipation rumbling louder than the marching band. Now imagine flipping through channels and realizing... your city isn't part of the action. No hometown team to scream for. No local rivalries. Just envy and reruns.
This list is your chance to fix that. Vote for the places you think have the fans, the fire, and the infrastructure to deserve an NFL team of their own. Maybe it's a city with rabid college football support but no pro presence. Maybe it's growing so fast that it feels like a franchise is inevitable. Or maybe it's just your town and you're tired of pretending to care about someone else's squad.
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Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city in the state of Utah. It was founded in 1847 by Brigham Young and other Mormon pioneers. The city is known for its proximity to the Great Salt Lake and for hosting the 2002 Winter Olympics.
Salt Lake City is the largest city in Utah by population and by area. It also has the state capitol building and is the oldest settlement. This city should have had an NFL team a long time ago but was refused. It should have professional football and soccer.
It has an NBA team when they shouldn't, so they need to relocate. The NFL franchise in that city should have been publicly owned back then, just like the Packers. The only other city in America besides Salt Lake City that I wish had been publicly owned as well is Providence.
Well, I wish that a lot of NFL teams were and would always be located in small cities, just like back in the early NFL era.
I thought of capital cities like Little Rock, Hartford, Boise, Springfield, Des Moines, Topeka, Frankfort, Augusta, Lansing, Jackson, Jefferson City, Carson City, Concord, Trenton, Santa Fe, Albany, Salem, Harrisburg, Providence, Columbia, Salt Lake City, Olympia, and Charleston that should be desperate for an NFL stadium.
That's separate from big cities with other pro sports teams, and I believe smaller cities are much better for the NFL. The largest city in each state that's also the capital and has a population under 300,000 should definitely have a team instead of cities with populations over 400,000.
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Portland, Oregon
Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and serves as the seat of Multnomah County. It is a major port in the Willamette Valley region of the Pacific Northwest. The city is located at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia Rivers.
Portland and the whole state of Oregon need an NFL team. For football, they only have Oregon and Oregon State.
The NFL stadium should be located down in Salem, which is a much smaller local market than Portland.
Need diversity in the football world. Let's go!
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San Antonio, Texas
It's a good fan base, a big place spread out with no college or NFL teams.
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Des Moines, Iowa
Huge, populated cities don't need to have an NFL team. They are too greedy. Small markets, like the Packers, are successful and liked because they are small market. Big markets are worse than small markets because some huge cities already have the other big four major pro sports.
NFL teams should definitely relocate in the near future. Little Rock, Boise, Des Moines, Jackson, Providence, and Salt Lake City are perfect cities for NFL teams.
The state of Iowa doesn't have a major pro sports team. Des Moines is the state's capital and largest city, and the city population is perfect - not too big for an NFL team and its stadium.
Besides Des Moines, think of other cities like Little Rock, Boise, Jackson, Providence, Salt Lake City, and Charleston, WV. These are perfect cities to have.
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Toronto, Ontario
Toronto is the most populous city in Canada, the provincial capital of Ontario, and the core of the Greater Toronto Area, the country's most populous metropolitan region. It is an international hub for business, finance, arts, and culture. Toronto is also recognized as one of the most multicultural and... read more
Toronto definitely needs an NFL team. Anyone who says Toronto wouldn't be a big NFL market needs to get out of their house more. Every Sunday I go out to watch football, and every bar in my city is always packed with NFL fans.
Canada needs a team! Sure, we have the CFL, but it isn't the same. Toronto is perfect: enough people, fans, and a big enough city. I think Saskatchewan should get a team later once Canada is invited to the NFL.
I could really buy into this idea.
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Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is growing! We're crazy about our sports! People would love to come on away games to see everything Columbus has to offer! The highways are easy for commuting.
I don't see how Cleveland and Cincinnati have an NFL team over Columbus. I've been to all three cities and am amazed we do not have the pleasure.
The Browns and Bengals are always terrible. Let's get a decent team in Ohio!
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Albuquerque, New Mexico
Situated in the high desert of New Mexico, Albuquerque is known for its rich Southwestern culture and stunning natural landscapes. The city hosts the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta, one of the world's largest hot-air balloon events. Its Old Town preserves Spanish colonial and Native American... read more
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Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
The opportunities this could bring would be worth the cost and battle between Kansas and Dallas.
Oklahoma has been overlooked for years by the NFL because of Dallas and Kansas City.
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Omaha, Nebraska
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Milwaukee, Wisconsin
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San Diego, California
San Diego is a city in the U.S. state of California. It is known for its mild year-round climate, beautiful beaches, and major tourist attractions such as the San Diego Zoo and Balboa Park. San Diego is also home to a large U.S. Navy presence and several universities.
It's a beautiful city with awesome beaches and really deserves an NFL team.
Beautiful city, 9th largest population in the USA, great weather especially for future Super Bowls.
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Louisville, Kentucky
They should bring back the Colonels and have KFC as their sponsor. They could even have someone dress as Colonel Sanders for the mascot and serve KFC buckets in the stands at halftime.
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Boise, Idaho
States of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. That's 23 out of 50 US states that still don't have a single major pro sports team. That should change soon in almost all the states I listed here.
At least have an NFL team, and some even soccer. Boise is the state capital and largest city, and one of the oldest settlements in the US state of Idaho. The city should have a retractable roof stadium that can and should be shared with a university program. Other cities should also be Little Rock, Hartford, Des Moines, Jackson, Manchester, Providence, Columbia, Salt Lake City, and Charleston, WV, as well as Boise. That should and will be a blast and a perfect fit with the league.
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St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city and inland port in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is situated along the western bank of the Mississippi River, which forms Missouri's border with Illinois. The city is known for the Gateway Arch, a symbol of westward expansion, and has a strong cultural legacy in music... read more
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Hartford, Connecticut
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Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaiʻi. It is an unincorporated part of, and the county seat of, the City and County of Honolulu, located along the southeastern coast of the island of Oʻahu. The city is a key hub for international business, military defense, and tourism... read more
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St. Paul, Minnesota
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Montreal, Quebec
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Orlando, Florida
Just relocate the Jaguars there and you've got a brand-new franchise.
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St. Petersburg, Florida
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Providence, Rhode Island
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Jackson, Mississippi
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Little Rock, Arkansas
Little Rock, the capital of Arkansas, is located along the Arkansas River. The city played a significant role in the American Civil Rights Movement, with the Central High School National Historic Site commemorating this history. The William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum is a prominent landmark.... read more
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Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. It is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in the country. Vancouver is a popular filming location and was the host city of the 2010 Winter Olympics.
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Montgomery, Alabama
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Memphis, Tennessee
I think that Memphis and other major cities in the Southern United States are underrated. The South is the #1 region for NCAA football and football in general. There are at least six Southern U.S. cities that I believe need NFL teams.
If Memphis were to actually get an NFL team, they would have to be placed in the NFC Southern Division since the Tennessee Titans already play in the AFC Southern Division. It would look like this with Memphis added in a five-team NFC Southern Division:
(NFC Southern Division):
1. Atlanta Falcons
2. Carolina Panthers
3. Memphis, TN (NFL Expansion Team)
4. New Orleans Saints
5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Richmond, Virginia