Smallest US Cities With a Major Professional Sports Team

The United States has plenty of cities with large populations, but which are the smallest while still supporting at least one major sports team?

We've already covered the largest cities without an NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, or MLS team. Here, we'll take a look at the smallest cities that host at least one team in one of those leagues, based on 2024 population estimates by the US Census Bureau.

10. New Orleans, Louisiana

Population: 362,701

Quite a few major events are hosted in New Orleans, which makes it a bit of a surprise that the Louisiana city has a population pretty far below half a million people. The city is home to the NFL's New Orleans Saints and the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans.

The Saints' best years were from the mid-2000s to the mid-2010s, when quarterback Drew Brees and head coach Sean Payton led the team. They won the Super Bowl in 2009 off the back of a 13-3 regular season, but they've missed the playoffs every year since 2021.

The Pelicans were added to the NBA as an expansion team before the 2002/03 season, and they were known as the Hornets for their first 11 seasons. From 2005-2007, they split time between New Orleans and Oklahoma City. In 2015, the NBA gave the Hornets name back to the Charlotte franchise, which was called the Charlotte Hornets from 1988-2002 before changing its name to the Bobcats. After Charlotte got back the Hornets nickname, New Orleans chose to be known as the Pelicans. The New Orleans NBA franchise has never won a title, having made the playoffs nine times in franchise history.

9. Anaheim, California

Population: 344,561

Anaheim, located in greater Los Angeles, hosts the Anaheim Ducks of the NHL and the Los Angeles Angels of MLB.

The Angels have been known by a laundry list of names. They started as the Los Angeles Angels, changed to the California Angels, switched again to the Anaheim Angels, split the difference between their first and third names as the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and finally went back to the Los Angeles Angels. The franchise's only World Series was won in 2002, when Troy Glaus and Tim Salmon led the way at the plate.

The Ducks have been around since 1993/94, when they were known as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim after the 1992 Disney movie about a hockey team. They changed their name to the Anaheim Ducks ahead of the 2006/07 season and won the only Stanley Cup in franchise history that year in five games over the Ottawa Senators, who only scored more than two goals in a game just once in the series.

8. Orlando, Florida

Population: 334,854

Orlando is home to the NBA's Orlando Magic and MLS's Orlando City SC.

The Magic entered the NBA in 1989/90 and found some success soon after with the partnership of point guard Penny Hardaway and center Shaquille O'Neal. The team got to the 1995 NBA Finals, where it lost to the Hakeem Olajuwon-led Houston Rockets in a sweep. They were a fringe playoff team for a few seasons before drafting center Dwight Howard, who led them to the 2009 Finals, where the Magic lost to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Orlando City was founded in 2015, and the club's first marquee player was 2007 Ballon d'Or winner Kaka. They won the 2022 US Open Cup, which is one of the oldest soccer competitions in the world.

7. Newark, New Jersey

Population: 317,303

Newark is the largest city in the most densely populated state in the United States, and it's the home of the NHL's New Jersey Devils. Newark's Prudential Center has hosted the team since 2007, and it also hosted the New Jersey Nets from 2010-2012 before the franchise moved to Brooklyn, New York.

The Devils won three Stanley Cups between 1994 and 2003, before the franchise moved to Newark. They made the playoffs in four of their first five seasons at the Prudential Center, but have made it just three times since 2012/13. They have some exciting players in Nico Hischier and brothers Luke and Jack Hughes, and fans will hope that trio can lead the team to a successful future.

The New York Sirens of the Professional Women's Hockey League also play at the Prudential Center, and the WNBA's New York Liberty played there from 2011-2013.

6. Cincinnati, Ohio

Population: 314,915

Cincinnati is home to the Cincinnati Reds, Cincinnati Bengals, and FC Cincinnati.

The Reds have played baseball in Cincinnati since 1882, and the MLB franchise won its first World Series in 1919 and its second in 1940. The ballclub had two dominant seasons in 1975 and 1976 when it was known as the Big Red Machine. Hall of Famers Joe Morgan, Johnny Bench, and Tony Perez, as well as all-time hits leader Pete Rose, led the team to win the World Series in both seasons.

The Bengals are one of 12 NFL teams that have not won a Super Bowl, despite having appeared in the game three times. Their most recent appearance saw them lose 23-20 to the Los Angeles Rams at the end of the 2021 season, but there's a sense of cautious optimism with Joe Burrow as the franchise QB for the foreseeable future.

FC Cincy — nicknamed "the Knifey Lions" because of the team's logo and "the Garys" because of the name of the lion on the logo — joined MLS in 2019 and languished toward the bottom of the league for the first three seasons. The acquisition of Luciano Acosta lifted the club's fortunes to the point that it won the Supporters' Shield in 2023. In recent years, Cincinnati has been among the highest-spending teams in the league.

5. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Population: 307,668

Pittsburgh, located in Western Pennsylvania and the home of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Pittsburgh Pirates, has punched above its weight for a long time in the sporting world.

The Steelers have won six Super Bowls, making them one of the NFL's most successful teams. They've had just three different head coaches since 1969, proving the stability of the franchise even in modern times.

The Penguins followed a slightly similar path, with five Stanley Cup wins since 1990/91. The team was relatively quiet for its first 20 seasons after joining the NHL in 1967/68, but drafting Mario Lemieux in 1984 vaulted the team forward, and the selection of Sidney Crosby in 2005 only continued the franchise's success.

The Pirates are another story. They won three World Series between 1960 and 1979 with star players like Roberto Clemente, Dave Parker, Willie Stargell, and Bert Blyleven leading the team. Since 1979? Six playoff appearances.

4. St. Louis, Missouri

Population: 279,695

Missouri's second-largest city is the home of the St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, and St. Louis City SC.

The Cardinals are one of MLB's most successful franchises, with 11 World Series wins to their name. Legendary players including Stan Musial, Albert Pujols, Ozzie Smith, Rogers Hornsby, and Dizzy Dean played for the team, which was founded back in 1882.

The Blues have been around since 1967/68, and they made the Stanley Cup Final and lost in each of their first three seasons in existence. They made the playoffs in 34 of their first 37 seasons, and in 49 seasons overall. It took until 2018/19 for the team to win its first Stanley Cup, which it did in seven games against the Boston Bruins.

St. Louis City has less history to write about, as it was founded in 2023. Its inaugural year was its best so far as the club topped the Western Conference with 56 points.

3. Buffalo, New York

Population: 276,617

Right on the border with Canada sits one of the United States' snowiest cities, which is home to the Buffalo Bills of the NFL and the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL.

The Bills are arguably the best franchise to have never won the Super Bowl. They made four straight from 1990-1993 with Jim Kelly at QB, but the team lost each one. More recently, 2024 NFL MVP Josh Allen has led the team to relative success, but they've struggled to get past Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs.

Similar to the Bills, the Sabres have never won a Stanley Cup despite having made the playoffs in 29 of their 54 seasons. They've been to the Stanley Cup Final twice, in 1974/75 and 1998/99, but the team hasn't made the playoffs since 2011/12.

2. Salt Lake City, Utah

Population: 217,783

Considering that Salt Lake City is the home of the Utah Jazz, Utah Mammoth, and Real Salt Lake, it's a little surprising that its population comes in at less than a quarter of a million people.

The Jazz franchise was founded in New Orleans, which explains its name, but moved to Salt Lake City in 1979/80. The team made the playoffs in 20 straight seasons from 1983/84 to 2002/03. They were led by Adrian Dantley in the early stages of that streak before the duo of John Stockton and Karl Malone took over. The franchise has yet to win an NBA Championship despite having made the Finals twice.

The NHL's Mammoth moved from Arizona before the 2024/25 season because of a lack of progress on building a stadium in greater Phoenix. Known as the Utah Hockey Club in their first season in the state, the team missed the playoffs with a 38-31-13 record. After their inaugural season, fans chose Mammoth as the team's nickname.

Real Salt Lake joined MLS in 2005, and five seasons later, the club won MLS Cup. Goalkeeper Nick Rimando is the consensus best player in club history, and in recent years, RSL's academy has gained recognition thanks to the success of homegrown talents including Diego Luna, Justen Glad, Emeka Eneli, and others.

1. Green Bay, Wisconsin

Population: 106,311

Green Bay, Wisconsin, is known as Titletown, USA, because of the one professional sports team it hosts: The Green Bay Packers.

The Packers have four Super Bowls and 13 championships in their 100+ seasons of existence. They dominated the end of the NFL Championship era and the start of the Super Bowl era under legendary head coach Vince Lombardi, winning three of the last five Championships and the first two Super Bowls.

The franchise has seen a long list of legends suit up in the green and gold, including Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, Ray Nitschke, Reggie White, and many more. They play at Lambeau Field, named after Curly Lambeau, who coached the team for its first 29 seasons. The stadium seats 81,441 fans, which can fit well over half the population of Green Bay.