Sports teams in Florida
Sports teams in Florida include many professional, semi-professional, amateur and college teams. In professional sports, Florida has three National Football League teams, two Major League Baseball teams, two National Basketball Association teams, two National Hockey League teams, two Major League Soccer teams, one Women's Soccer team and many minor league teams in various sports. Additionally, since the late 19th century Florida has been a significant spring training destination for Major League Baseball teams and their affiliates.
In college sports, thirteen Florida schools compete in NCAA Division I.[1] Various others compete in other organizations including the NAIA, the NJCAA, the USCAA, The NCCAA and NCAA Division II.
Professional major league teams
Florida has teams in all of the major league sports — National Football League, Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, and Major League Soccer. In the early 1980s, Florida had major league teams in only the NFL. Florida has since added two NBA teams in the late 1980s. Florida added two NHL teams in the 1990s as part of the NHL's expansion into the south, and two MLB teams in the 1990s. Florida's most recent major-league team, Inter Miami CF, began play in MLS in 2020, after Florida's first MLS team, Orlando City, joined in 2015.[2]
| Club | Sport | League | Venue | Championships (Years) | Founded |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Marlins | Baseball | MLB | Marlins Park | 2 (1997, 2003) | 1993 |
| Tampa Bay Rays | Baseball | MLB | Tropicana Field | 0 | 1998 |
| Miami Heat | Basketball | NBA | American Airlines Arena | 3 (2006, 2012, 2013) | 1988 |
| Orlando Magic | Basketball | NBA | Amway Center | 0 | 1989 |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | Football | NFL | TIAA Bank Field | 0 | 1993 |
| Miami Dolphins | Football | NFL | Hard Rock Stadium | 2 (1972, 1973) | 1966 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Football | NFL | Raymond James Stadium | 2 (2002, 2021) | 1976 |
| Florida Panthers | Ice hockey | NHL | BB&T Center | 0 | 1993 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Ice hockey | NHL | Amalie Arena | 2 (2004, 2020) | 1992 |
| Inter Miami CF | Soccer | MLS | Inter Miami CF Stadium (temporary) Miami Freedom Park (future) |
2018 | |
| Orlando City SC | Soccer | MLS | Exploria Stadium | 2013 | |
| Miami Fusion | Soccer | MLS | Lockhart Stadium | 1997 | |
| Tampa Bay Mutiny | Soccer | MLS | Raymond James Stadium | 1996 |
Spring training
Florida is the traditional home for Major League Baseball spring training, with teams informally organized into the "Grapefruit League." As of 2017, Florida hosts the following major league teams for spring training:
| Club | Location |
|---|---|
| Atlanta Braves | North Port |
| Baltimore Orioles | Sarasota |
| Boston Red Sox | Ft Myers |
| Detroit Tigers | Lakeland |
| Houston Astros | West Palm Beach |
| Miami Marlins | Jupiter |
| Minnesota Twins | Fort Myers |
| New York Mets | Port St. Lucie |
| New York Yankees | Tampa |
| Philadelphia Phillies | Clearwater |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | Bradenton |
| St. Louis Cardinals | Jupiter |
| Tampa Bay Rays | Port Charlotte |
| Toronto Blue Jays | Dunedin |
| Washington Nationals | West Palm Beach |
Individual sports
Golf, tennis and auto racing are popular in Florida.
The Players Championship.
The Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA), the trade association for club professionals which organizes major championships for men and women and also co-organizes the biennial Ryder Cup, is headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens. The PGA Tour, which has been separate from the PGA of America since 1968, has its home base in Ponte Vedra Beach, while the LPGA is headquartered in Daytona Beach. The Players Championship, sometimes referred to as the fifth major, is held every year near Jacksonville. Additionally, the WGC Championship, Arnold Palmer Invitational, Honda Classic and Valspar Championship are PGA Tour events.
In tennis, the Miami Open is an ATP Tour Masters 1000 and WTA Premier Mandatory event. The Delray Beach International Tennis Championships is an ATP World Tour 250 event.
NASCAR (headquartered in Daytona Beach) begins all three of its major auto racing series in Florida at Daytona International Speedway in February, featuring the Daytona 500, and ends all three Series in November at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Daytona also has the Coke Zero 400 NASCAR race weekend around Independence Day in July. The 24 Hours of Daytona is one of the world's most prestigious endurance auto races. The Grand Prix of St. Petersburg and Grand Prix of Miami have held IndyCar races as well.
Auto racing tracks
- Daytona International Speedway
- Homestead-Miami Speedway
- Sebring Raceway
- Florida International Rally and Motorsports Park
- Streets of St. Petersburg
- Walt Disney World Speedway
- New Smyrna Speedway
- Five Flags Speedway
- Auto Plus Raceway, formerly Gainesville Racesay
Minor league and semi-pro teams
| Club | Sport | League | Venue | Championships (Years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tampa Bay Vipers | American football | XFL | Raymond James Stadium | |
| Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp | Baseball | MiLB, Southern League (AA) | Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville | 6 (1968, 1996, 2001, 2005, 2009, 2010) |
| Pensacola Blue Wahoos | Baseball | MiLB, Southern League (AA) | Pensacola Bayfront Stadium | 0 |
| Bradenton Marauders | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | McKechnie Field | 1 (2016) |
| Charlotte Stone Crabs | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Charlotte Sports Park | 2 (1983, 1990) |
| Clearwater Threshers | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Spectrum Field | 1 (2007) |
| Daytona Tortugas | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Jackie Robinson Ballpark | 3 (1995, 2004, 2008) |
| Dunedin Blue Jays | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Knology Park | 0 |
| Florida Fire Frogs | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Osceola County Stadium | 0 |
| Fort Myers Mighty Mussels | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Hammond Stadium | 7 (1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1978, 2018, 2018) |
| Jupiter Hammerheads | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Roger Dean Stadium | 0 |
| Lakeland Flying Tigers | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Joker Marchant Stadium | 3 (1976, 1977, 1992) |
| Palm Beach Cardinals | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Roger Dean Stadium | 1 (2005) |
| St. Lucie Mets | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Clover Park | 5 (1988, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2006) |
| Tampa Tarpons | Baseball | MiLB, Florida State League (A) | Legends Field | 5 (1994, 2001, 2004, 2009, 2010) |
| Lakeland Magic | Basketball | NBA G League | RP Funding Center | 0 |
| Daytona Beach Sharks | Basketball | American Basketball Association | 0 | |
| Jacksonville Giants | Basketball | American Basketball Association | VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena | 3 (2012, 2013, 2016) |
| Miami Midnites | Basketball | American Basketball Association Florida Basketball Association |
David Posnack Jewish Community Center | 3 (2014, 2015, 2016 in the FBA) |
| Native Pride | Basketball | American Basketball Association | Broward College | 0 |
| South Florida Gold | Basketball | American Basketball Association | Coral Springs Arena | 0 |
| Florida Everblades | Ice hockey | ECHL | Hertz Arena | 1 (2012) |
| Jacksonville Icemen | Ice hockey | ECHL | VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena | 0 |
| Orlando Solar Bears | Ice hockey | ECHL | Amway Center | 0 |
| Pensacola Ice Flyers | Ice hockey | Southern Professional Hockey League | Pensacola Civic Center | 3 (2013, 2014, 2016) |
| Jacksonville Sharks | Indoor football | National Arena League | VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena | 3 (2011, 2017, 2019) |
| Florida Tropics SC | Indoor soccer | Major Arena Soccer League | RP Funding Center | 0 |
| Jacksonville Axemen | Rugby League | USA Rugby League | Hodges Stadium | 2 (2010, 2012) |
| Lakeland Renegades | Rugby league | USA Rugby League | All Saints Academy | 0 |
| Southwest Florida Copperheads | Rugby league | USA Rugby League | Lehigh Senior High School | 0 |
| Tampa Mayhem | Rugby league | USA Rugby League | Tampa Catholic High School | 0 |
| Orlando Pride | Soccer | National Women's Soccer League | Orlando City Stadium | 0 |
| Miami FC | Soccer | USL Championship | Riccardo Silva Stadium | 3 (2018 & 2019 in NPSL), (2019 in NISA) |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies | Soccer | USL Championship | Progress Energy Park | 1 (2012 in NASL) |
| Orlando City B | Soccer | USL League One | Orlando City Stadium | 0 |
| Fort Lauderdale CF | Soccer | USL League One | Inter Miami CF Stadium | 0 |
| Beaches FC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | ||
| Central Florida Panthers SC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | Showalter Field | |
| Jacksonville Armada FC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | Hodges Stadium | 0 |
| Miami United FC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | 0 | |
| Naples United FC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | 0 | |
| Storm FC | Soccer | National Premier Soccer League | 0 | |
| IMG Academy Bradenton | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| Lakeland Tropics | Soccer | USL League Two | Bryant Stadium | 0 |
| FC Miami City | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| North County United | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| Next Academy Palm Beach | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| SIMA Águilas | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| The Villages SC | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| Weston FC | Soccer | USL League Two | 0 | |
| Boca Raton FC | Soccer | United Premier Soccer League | Lynn University | 1 (2015 in APSL) |
College sports
Popular teams
The following table shows the Florida college teams that have average attendance of over 25,000.[3] The college teams with the highest attendances are all FBS football teams.
| Team | Attendance | Conference |
|---|---|---|
| Florida Gators football | 85,834 | SEC |
| Florida State Seminoles football | 82,211 | ACC |
| Miami Hurricanes football | 52,518 | ACC |
| UCF Knights football | 37,812 | American |
| South Florida Bulls football | 30,694 | American |
| FIU Panthers football | 56,886 | CUSA |
Comprehensive list
See also
References
- College Sports Scholarships. Accessed November 30, 2015.
- "Major League Soccer names Orlando City SC as 21st franchise, set for 2015 debut", MLSsoccer.com, November 19, 2013.
- 2014 NATIONAL COLLEGE FOOTBALL ATTENDANCE, NCAA, Accessed December 2, 2015.
