Is it acceptable to root for 2 teams?

[We Are Legion]

I had this discussion in the chatbox earlier with KIF, and I wanted to see what the rest of the forum takes on this subject.

Everyone has their favorite team in every sport, that's easy. Most of the time it's your home town's city because normally you have many friends and family members that root for your home town team and it's easy to jump on board with that team when you're at an impressionable young age.

But then you get older. And you appreciate the game you love more. Then you realize the world is bigger than your home town. You start to realize that there are some pretty damned interesting teams out there that aren't the team you've been rooting for since you were 5 years old.

At this point, I ask you... is it okay to root for more than one team?



I'm a firm believer that this is possible as I regularly have 2 teams I root for in each sport that I like. And it really stems from various reasons, but I still maintain a code:

1.) The two teams must play in separate conferences and rarely play one another.

2.) When these two teams play each other, your loyalty towards of these teams is never in question. You ALWAYS root for the same team.

3.) Your loyalty towards both teams is never influenced based on where you currently live.


As far as NFL goes, I've been a Cowboys fan since I was a child. All my relatives and 99% of my friends are Cowboys fans. There's no way another team would surpass them in terms of my loyalty. But when I started appreciating the sport of football more and more when I was about 20 years old and I became drawn into the X's and O's aspect of the game, I started liking the Ravens because they were the most dominant defensive team of that era. I appreciated what they did on the field and their football strategy was one that I admired and really respected. It really had nothing to do with the Cowboys sucking as bad as they did in 03-04, but just that I was drawn to their scheme and really liked watching them play. So I also consider myself a Ravens fan, but in the event they play the Cowboys, I would never root for the Ravens no matter the stakes. Sorry, PHX.

And with NHL, I'm currently a Montreal Canadiens fan, though this was not always the case. I was a Dallas Stars fan in high school and have always rooted for them. But I wasn't always necessarily a hockey fan. I pretty much rooted for them out of respect to my home town. But a few years ago after I fell more in love with the game itself, I realized the Canadiens were the team I liked more. Tradition is a big deal to me when it comes to any sports team and I just feel the Canadiens are practically unrivaled in that regard. That, and I've never encountered a team that has more undying loyalty to their home town team than the Montreal Canadiens. They truly have some of the best sports fans in the world. Though I still like the Stars strictly because they're my home town team, but I won't be rooting for them when they play the Canadiens from now on.



Do you agree or disagree? Do you think your sports team loyalty should be reserved for strictly one team or do you have your own types of exceptions that would pool you into this category?

 

[Chris]

I don't see a problem with it, especially if their in separate conferences like you said. I usually root for more than one team, but I always have on that I cheer for if they play each other.

 

[zigglerHEEL]

While I only outwardly root for my hometown Philly teams, there are certainly other teams (and more specifically certain players on those teams) that I appreciate.... This is especially true in the NFL, mostly thanks to fantasy football and The Eagles being absurdly frustrating over the last decade.... Saw this bumper sticker not too long ago and I think it fits into this conversation perfectly. A friend of mine is from Boston and a diehard Red Sox fan and his bumper sticker reads "I cheer for two teams, the Red Sox and whoever is playing the Yankees"

 

[The Cork]

Absolutely not, but I come from a different culture (English).

I guess it's mildly acceptable to have a soft spot for another team in the lower leagues, but it's mostly a case of all teams are rivals, some more fierce than others.

 

[zigglerHEEL]

Absolutely not, but I come from a different culture (English).

I guess it's mildly acceptable to have a soft spot for another team in the lower leagues, but it's mostly a case of all teams are rivals, some more fierce than others.

Yes, certainly it differs from culture to culture.... There are times I wish more American fanbases were as devoted as yours are, in Philly we are crazy devoted with extreme emphasis on the word CRAZY

 

[PHX]

I have way more issue with bandwagon fans who front like they have been long time fans of that team they bandwagoned than this. I personally believe in only rooting for one team and sticking with them but if you're going to root for two teams I do think there should be some kind of morals to it. Would be Blue to me if a Ravens fan was also was a Steelers fan for example. Main thing for me though is to at least stay loyal to whatever teams you like if you're going to like two not change them because the teams aren't as good as they were when you started rooting for them.

 

[Deezy]

Why not?

What do those sports teams offer you besides entertainment value? If a sports team can alter your mood, then I think something is wrong woith you tbh.

 

[Franco]

Yeah, I see no issue there especially when the home team causes so much frustration over the years *cough* sixers *cough*. :

 

[Showtime]

I won't say it's unacceptable as really no one can tell you who you can and can't support, I just find it stupid. You grow more attached to one team if you have to suffer through it's bad years and rebuilding years, which then makes the good years more meaningful and entertaining. I feel as though if you support two teams you end up having a team that is usually good while the other one might struggle which doesn't give you the same type of attachment to those teams. You will usually have one team doing well and that eases you as a fan.

Why not?

What do those sports teams offer you besides entertainment value? If a sports team can alter your mood, then I think something is wrong woith you tbh.

are you serious? please tell me you're not as that's exactly what defines a loyal and true fan.

 

[Deezy]

are you serious? please tell me you're not as that's exactly what defines a loyal and true fan.

Why should I be loyal to a team that doesn't affect me if they win or lose? Sure if the Habs or Canucks win the Stanley Cup, I'll be like "awesome" but if they don't make it to the playoffs, I'll be "oh well". Amd not let it go past that, Am I poing to call in radio shows to tell people what the team should be doing? No, because I'm not qualified too, should I go to Carey Price and show him how to work butterfly? Am I going to go to the Sedins and tell them how to pass? Who the hell am I?

And I can support a team, simply by watching them. Seems a bit crazy to take it farther than that in my eyes.

 

[SAL]

I think it's fine. Most people aren't diehard nutso fans and you have to respect that. For me, when my team gets knocked out of championship contention, I find a next-best team to root for. My only demand is, if you're following a sport, you must have a #1 team. You can't be a Lakers and Thunder and Spurs fan and go into a season holding three raffle tickets when I only get one. Them's the rules. The only exception is if the team you're devoted to has been terrible and incompetent for a long time, you can bandwagon another team maybe but you have to feel bad about yourself for doing it.

 

[Tapout]

I think for once in my life, I agree with Deezy. The fact that you think you can't go for more than one team is absurd. The game is simply there for entertainment. I like the game. I'll watch the games and cheer for which ever team I want to win that particular game.

It's like wrestling, it would be stupid to only cheer for one guy, and not the rest because then you're not "loyal"

I enjoy the game.

 

[Showtime]

I never said you can't do anything. That's how I started my post, it's not up to me to tell you what is and isn't acceptable.

I just find it weird as most people I know are die hard fans that couldn't fathom supporting two teams as it just isn't right to them(or me tbh). A lot of people build bonds to not only the players on the team, but the teams themselves, and that's what I consider a true fan. If you watch the sport for entertainment that's fine, there are casual fans in every sport and even normal tv shows, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

 

[PHX]

I think for once in my life, I agree with Deezy. The fact that you think you can't go for more than one team is absurd. The game is simply there for entertainment. I like the game. I'll watch the games and cheer for which ever team I want to win that particular game.

It's like wrestling, it would be stupid to only cheer for one guy, and not the rest because then you're not "loyal"

I enjoy the game.

Supporting a sports team can go much deeper than that. See the New Orleans Saints after hurricane Katrina and how big a impact them winning a super bowl was to them. Or how being a Red Sox fan for example can go back far in a family tree like 80 years ago. Yeah sports is entertainment but it can be something that hold sentimental value and get yourself attached to. Don't think sports would be as special as it is without loyal and real fans.

 

[SAIYANS]

I think you can support a team (me ~ Lakers) but I also think you can follow players espically in basketball which is a star league where one player can have a bigger impact than multiple ones if they are that good. I know I followed Iverson, McGrady, JO, Kidd, Duncan, and the like in the early 00s faithfully because they were amazing to watch play, same with MJs Bulls ... I'd never cheer them over LA but sure I would watch them.

to me its okay to be a fan of a team and a fan of the game, some can't, but hey that's what LP is meant

Ive never cared about baseball, but I did follow Favre in football and Favre only, sort of like you follow a boxer