Is the Hudson Valley a Good Area For Football Fans?

Americans love football, as the ratings indicate that every one of the 50 most-watched sporting events from 2023 was an NFL game.

Numbers from Nielsen Media Research, posted at The Athletic, says that last year's Super Bowl drew an average audience of 115.1 million viewers, and Super Bowl LVIII is expected to draw even more.

But sometimes fandom can vary from one city or state to another. Are places like Poughkeepsie, New York City, or Rochester considered good places for football? It often depends if you're near a professional franchise or popular college program.

Is the Hudson Valley a Good Place For Football Fans? 

WalletHub compared more than 240 U.S. cities with at least one college or professional football team across 21 key metrics. Their data set ranges from the number of NFL and college football teams to stadium capacity to fan engagement.

According to WalletHub's findings, New York City ranked 6th overall for football fans. Having two NFL franchises in the Giants and Jets, plus college programs. such as; Fordham, Columbia, Stony Brook, and Long Island University helped with their high score. Buffalo ranked 14th, as the dedicated fanbase of the Bills Mafia is well known across the country.

The Hudson Valley's first town making the list is West Point, as Army football draws thousands every year to Michie Stadium. Poughkeepsie was 120th, as many in the area support the Giants and Jets, who are only an hour and a half drive away from MetLife Stadium, as well as Marist College on the college level.

Overall, Pittsburgh ranked 1st and Easton, Massachusetts ranked dead last, from WalletHub's findings. [