Sports in Buffalo

Buffalo, New York and its greater metropolitan area is currently home to two major league sports teams. The Buffalo Sabres (National Hockey League) play in the City of Buffalo, and the Buffalo Bills (National Football League) play in the suburb of Orchard Park. Buffalo is also home to several minor league sports teams, including the Buffalo Bisons (International League), Buffalo Bandits (National Lacrosse League) and FC Buffalo (National Premier Soccer League). Several local colleges and universities are active in college athletics, including Canisius College, Niagara University and The State University of New York at Buffalo at the NCAA Division I level.

KeyBank Center, home of the Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Bandits
Alumni Arena, home of the Buffalo Bulls
Sahlen Field, home of the Buffalo Bisons and Toronto Blue Jays

Sports are a major part of the city's culture. In recent decades, Buffalo based teams have become known for crushing and sometimes controversial defeats. Wide Right, No Goal and the Music City Miracle have come to define the suffering of Buffalo sports fans. In February 2012, Forbes listed Buffalo #4 on its list of "Most Miserable Sports Cities."[1] The city's only major championships were American Football League titles won by the Buffalo Bills in 1964 and 1965.

Buffalo had three franchises in major league sports beginning in 1970, when the Buffalo Bills (established 1960) were joined by the Buffalo Braves of the National Basketball Association and the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League. However, the Braves struggled financially and were relocated to California in 1978. This led to the perception that Buffalo's market could not support a third franchise. Sahlen Field was built in 1988 for the minor league Buffalo Bisons with hopes that it could attract a Major League Baseball franchise to the city. The major league franchise never came, although the Toronto Blue Jays would eventually play their home games at Sahlen Field in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[2]

Joe Mesi was a professional boxer from Buffalo who earned the nickname "Third Franchise" during his undefeated career between 1997 and 2007 after selling out KeyBank Center and other local venues multiple times.[3]

Current teams
Sport League Club Founded Venue Titles Championship years
Baseball IL Buffalo Bisons 1979† Sahlen Field 3 1997, 1998, 2004
Basketball PBL Buffalo Blaze 2020 TBD
College Basketball NCAA Buffalo Bulls 1915 Alumni Arena 4 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019
College Basketball NCAA Canisius Golden Griffins 1903 Koessler Athletic Center 1 1996
College Basketball NCAA Niagara Purple Eagles 1905 Gallagher Center 2 2005, 2007
College Football NCAA Buffalo Bulls 1894 University at Buffalo Stadium 1 2008
College Hockey NCAA Canisius Golden Griffins 1980 LECOM Harborcenter 1 2013
College Hockey NCAA Niagara Purple Eagles 1996 Dwyer Arena 3 2000**, 2004**, 2008**
Football NFL Buffalo Bills 1960 Bills Stadium[4] 2 1964*, 1965*
Hockey NHL Buffalo Sabres 1970 KeyBank Center
Lacrosse NLL Buffalo Bandits 1992 KeyBank Center 4 1992, 1993, 1996, 2008
Soccer NPSL FC Buffalo 2009 All-High Stadium
Women's Hockey NWHL Buffalo Beauts 2015 Northtown Center 1 2017

* American Football League (AFL) championships were earned prior to the AFL–NFL merger of 1970.

** College Hockey America (CHA) men's hockey championships were earned prior to the league's discontinuation of its men's program in 2010.
† Date refers to current incarnation; Buffalo Bisons previously operated from 1886 to 1970, and the current Bisons count this team as part of their history.

Bills Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills

Former teams

Notes and references
  1. Van Riper, Tom. "America's Most Miserable Sports Cities". Forbes.com. Forbes. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
  2. "Toronto Blue Jays to play in Buffalo for 2020 season". WHEC. July 24, 2020. Retrieved July 24, 2020.
  3. https://www.buffalosportshallfame.com/member/baby-joe-mesi/
  4. Besecker, Aaron (August 18, 2016). "It's official: The Ralph will be called New Era Field". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on August 23, 2016. Retrieved August 24, 2016.
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