Sports reporting tends to concentrate on the scores and the players. That’s understandable. When it comes down to it, we all want to know who won the game and which players stood out as the stars.
If you are looking to place the best bets on the NFL you will also take a lot of factors into consideration. You will look at recent results and the current standings – but you may well think about how the fans could influence the outcome of the game. It is not just football – as you will see from our list – but fans can make a lot of difference.
So, while other sites may praise the quarterback or the pitcher, we thought we would take a little time to salute those not on the field of play. These are the ones that turn up to every single game and get behind their team. These are some of the wildest and most passionate fans in all of US sports….
Philadelphia Eagles
To be perfectly honest, we could have picked out any one of the Philly teams. There must be something in the water there, as the fans are some of the most passionate, and downright crazy, in the country. Phillies and Flyers fans are just as bad (or good, depending on your viewpoint), but we are going to go with the Eagles fans here.
It seems as though the “City of Brotherly Love” nickname is somewhat ironic when it comes to sports fans from the city. Opposing players have been pelted with snowballs – and batteries on occasion – and the Eagles fans do not discriminate. They hate everyone equally.
Montreal Canadiens
When it comes to US sports, there is a fan base that is well-known for their passion – and they don’t even live in the US. Due to the close proximity, there are Canadian teams in a lot of US leagues and the hockey fans are the most vociferous. Probably because it is their national sport and they play against American teams all the time.
Strangely, Canadians are well known for their politeness. But someone must have forgotten to tell the Habs fans. They have a long history of rioting when things don’t go their way – and even when it does. Some of the most notorious events have been after big wins, including the $25 million worth of damage bill for the riot after the 1993 Stanley Cup win.
Pittsburgh Steelers
When it comes to sports, football tends to produce the noisiest and rowdiest fans – and Pittsburgh’s Steeler Nation has to be one of the wildest. Even though the Steelers have won more Super Bowls than any other team, they haven’t always been successful. But you wouldn’t know it if you saw the fans on game day.
The Terrible Towel is known throughout football and the noise these fans make has to be heard to be believed. Maybe it’s because the decline of the steel industry saw Pittsburgh fans move out across the country for work, but this is one fan base that is just as influential on the road too.
Chicago Cubs
The Windy City is another place that seems to breed passionate sports fans. The Bears have theirs at Soldier Field, and the Blackhawks fans are not the type to sit quietly either. But we’ve gone for the Cubs fans, who never gave up getting behind their team, even when it seemed like it had been cursed.
The Cubs won the World Series in 1907 and 1908 – and then everything went a little quiet. Quiet on the honors front that is, as the fans still turned up and gave it their all even when the team stank out the place year after year. Their loyalty and passion were finally rewarded in 2016 when the Cubs won a third World Series, ending the Curse of the Billy Goat once and for all.
Duke Blue Devils
We have been concentrating on the pro game for our list of the wildest fans in US sports. But it would be remiss of us to completely ignore college sports. There are hundreds of fan bases across the country that could be included here – especially ones for football programs – but the Duke Blue Devils basketball fans deserve a special mention.
If there are two things that will always help produce a passionate fan base, it is a successful team and an ability to instill hatred in opponents. And Duke checks those two boxes pretty well! The Crazies are well known for attacking individual players and coaches with their chanting and taking the wildness to another level as they get behind their team.
Green Bay Packers
It is not a stretch to say that the Green Bay Packers are unlike any other team in the NFL. This is not because of the number of Super Bowls won, or the fact that it is a one sports team city. What makes this team stand out is that it is the only one that is owned by the fans. And that might be a reason why they are some of the most passionate in football.
Cheeseheads are a common sight in Green Bay on game day and every one of those games has been a sellout since 1960. The season-ticket waiting list has around 140,000 names on it and Lambeau Field is a cauldron of noise for every single game – no matter how cold it is.
Seattle Seahawks
We have already suggested that some cities just seem to breed a different kind of fan. Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Philadelphia all have wild fans for all of their sports teams. Well, get ready to add Seattle to that list. The baseball and soccer fan bases can get pretty rowdy – but it is the Seahawks fans that really hit the spot.
They are so well known for their influence on games that they are credited with being the “12th man”. A flag saying as much is routinely flown at the top of the Space Needle on home game days. Success has not always been as regular as the fans would have liked, but that doesn’t seem to bother them. As has been shown with all the teams mentioned here, the wildest and most loyal fans will turn up no matter how the team are actually doing.