OT: NFL and NBA allegiances

[Mr Snrub]

Hi from the UK guys, my first thread here. I first visited Boston back in 2010 and saw a Celtics game and then also adopted the Patriots as my NFL team as I loved the passion for sport in the city (very similar to the North East of England where I'm from actually). Came back to Boston in 2014 and caught a game at Gilette (51-23 against the Bears).

My question is, are are we all Patriots and Celtics fans or do we have different allegiances for different sports? Where I'm from you usually just support your local team but I have mates over here with warped loyalties (I have one mate who's a Patriots and a Lakers fan ). Similarly I have mates over here who are football (soccer) fans who have never been London and support teams like Arsenal or Chelsea.

Just wondered what the attitude is in the US to supporting teams on opposite sides of the country. Also, sorry if this is the wrong place to post something like this.

 

[Guts]

Depends who you ask. Typically you root for your local team. It varies though you could grow up in California for example be a fan of the Raiders/49ers move to Boston and then be a Celtics fan? It really depends

 

[Mr Snrub]

Big difference over here because everything is closer proximity wise, you can be in a pub watching a footie match and it could be a 50/50 split of fans. Not always the best recipe especially given our reputation for hooliganism. I remember being on the train back from Gilette to Boston and one fan heard we were English and said "Do you want us to start a fight so you feel more at home?" Haha!!

 

[dustcover]

Big difference over here because everything is closer proximity wise, you can be in a pub watching a footie match and it could be a 50/50 split of fans. Not always the best recipe especially given our reputation for hooliganism. I remember being on the train back from Gilette to Boston and one fan heard we were English and said "Do you want us to start a fight so you feel more at home?" Haha!!

 

[jah]

I've always been of the belief that you can only really justify rooting for the teams closest to your hometown (if you moved around your whole life, it's probably different). So yeah, I root for the Celtics for the same reason I root for the Patriots: I was born and raised in Massachusetts.

That said, I live in the western part of the state people pretend doesn't exist, and its relative proximity to New York means I see a lot of Yankees bandwagoners, or at least saw a lot of them growing up.

 

[borg]

I've always been of the belief that you can only really justify rooting for the teams closest to your hometown (if you moved around your whole life, it's probably different).

For out-of-staters......all I can add is.......BRAINWASH YOUR KIDS EARLY AND OFTEN to love your teams and your teams only.

Think of the trauma I've saved my kids from the past two decades if I allowed them to support the local team.....known in our household as the Dirty Dolphins. The therapy bills would have been crushing

 

[borg]

Big difference over here because everything is closer proximity wise, you can be in a pub watching a footie match and it could be a 50/50 split of fans. Not always the best recipe especially given our reputation for hooliganism. I remember being on the train back from Gilette to Boston and one fan heard we were English and said "Do you want us to start a fight so you feel more at home?" Haha!!

What's your footie allegiance?

 

[jah]

For out-of-staters......all I can add is.......BRAINWASH YOUR KIDS EARLY AND OFTEN to love your teams and your teams only.

Think of the trauma I've saved my kids from the past two decades if I allowed them to support the local team.....known in our household as the Dirty Dolphins. The therapy bills would have been crushing

If your family has origins somewhere and your elders are fans of that team, that's valid too. I just think it's lame bandwagoning to pick and choose without any real connection.

 

[TheRainMaker]

I have different allegiances to different sports.

I’m a southern Ca guy so I grew up a Lakers, Dodgers and Angels fan. However, I started turning the Angels off after the ridiculous identity crisis over the years, their name changes that don’t make sense and poorly run organization. When I started watching football in the early 90’s, I initially lightly rooted for the Raiders and Rams when they were in LA, but the Rams were a laughing stock. I also liked the early 90’s Cowboys but too but didn’t follow football until I was older. When when the LA teams moved, I didn’t want to follow them and I could never get into the 9ers AARP teams. So I was an orphan. I became a Pats fan right before they went to the Super Bowl in 1996-1997.

 

[farn]

Patriots
Raptors
Expos
Only Canadian who hates hockey

 

[Mr Snrub]

What's your footie allegiance?

Newcastle mate, you got one?

 

[Blustutu]

Patriots, Celtics, Bruins and Ipswich Town FC.

 

[upstater1]

Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics, Sabres, I like Serie A soccer from spending a few years in Italy in my early 20s (back in the late 1980s early 1990s when Serie A was at the top). I've been watching the EPL now for 15 years and the whole time I've tried to pick a team and couldn't, closest I came was Leicester in there Championship year. But I jump year to year from team to team. I'm watching Norwich this year since they have several players I'm interested in (but they are worse than bad).

Grew up watching the Patriots, Sox and Celtics in those magical 1970s/1980s years. Since I was from Connecticut, I grew up a Whalers fan and hated the Bruins. The hate carried over to my move to upstate NY when I started following the Sabres.

 

[RedSleevesPinkStripes]

Pats, Sox, Celts, Bruins and to a much lesser degree, the Revs

I'm in the camp that thinks if you're lucky enough to have a local pro franchise, that should be your team.

If you're unlucky or a transplant, the random teams make sense

 

[PATSYLICIOUS]

My favorite teams are as follows
NBA- Milwaukee bucks
NHL - Tampa bay lightning
MLB - was the dodgers, but I’m leaning towards Atlanta or Houston atm, realized I’m not so much a west coast guy HA
FYI I also became a bucs fans last year, for Brady obviously but I still hold a special place in my heart for the pats- I should be able to confirm within a few weeks if I still associate with them

 

[FCB02062]

There are a lot of carpetbaggers on this forum that just magically "picked" the Pats as their team because they have been a winning team over the last 25+ and/or they liked the 2007 Pats in Madden, even though they have their "own" home team. this doesn't apply to international fans of course because they don't have their "own" team...
yeah, I get it some people move around, etc, but gimme a break. If you're in CO, Denver is your team. If you're in LA you've got plenty of teams with a history in the city NOT to be a bandwagon fan and have the Pats as "your" team.

 

[Pape]

It's the Patriots, then everything else.

Dropped following baseball a long time ago, but still have a soft spot for the sox.

Don't care about basket ball or hockey.

 

[borg]

Newcastle mate, you got one?

If the new Newcastle owner requests all supporters come to a meet and greet in a confined location......

Jumped on the Liverpool bandwagon the day Fenway Group (Boston Red Sox) acquired the team a decade ago.

 

[Mr Snrub]

If the new Newcastle owner requests all supporters come to a meet and greet in a confined location......

Jumped on the Liverpool bandwagon the day Fenway Group (Boston Red Sox) acquired the team a decade ago.

Exciting time to be a Newcastle fan though, for once.

 

[Mr Snrub]

There are a lot of carpetbaggers on this forum that just magically "picked" the Pats as their team because they have been a winning team over the last 25+ and/or they liked the 2007 Pats in Madden, even though they have their "own" home team. this doesn't apply to international fans of course because they don't have their "own" team...
yeah, I get it some people move around, etc, but gimme a break. If you're in CO, Denver is your team. If you're in LA you've got plenty of teams with a history in the city NOT to be a bandwagon fan and have the Pats as "your" team.

Yeah I genuinely picked the Pats because I visited the area and had an affinity for it, just so happened they were in great hands and they've had a lot of success since. I actually went to New York on the same trip, glad I didn't pick the f***ing Jets