Revving Up the Crowd: Exploring Detroit’s Professional Sports Teams

It’s Detroit vs. Everybody, especially for sports teams in Motown. Whether defending three concurrent titles in the NFL, NHL and MLB in the 1930s City of Champions era, dominating the NBA during the Pistons’ Bad Boys title runs or competing as perennial playoff contenders, à la 11-time NHL champions Red Wings, sports events in Detroit have left no shortage of fuel for fans in The Motor City.

Hop in for a history on Detroit professional sports teams ahead.

Major League / Professional Sports in Detroit

Football

Detroit Lions

• League: NFL
• Division: NFC North
• Founded: 1934
• Home Stadium: Ford Field

The Detroit Lions are the “Gridiron Heroes” of Ford Field, but the history of the football franchise stretches back before the NFL’s Super Bowl era. In the NFL’s early years, the Lions were head of the pride, swiping up four NFL championships between 1935 and 1957 and establishing one of the league’s most cherished traditions in the annual Thanksgiving game. However, the Lions have since faced two separate, lengthy playoff droughts, with their postseason victories limited to the 1991 and 2023 seasons.

In the meantime, the Lions roster has invited Hall of Fame talent including three-time champion Bobby Layne, player and coach Joe Schmidt, cornerback Dick LeBeau and career-long Lions players Barry Sanders and Calvin “Megatron” Johnson. The Lions have played at Ford Field in Downtown Detroit since 2002, and expect a particularly loud roar from fans when facing rivals like the Chicago Bears, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings. Get Ford Field tickets and Detroit Lions tickets at Ticketmaster.

Basketball

Detroit Pistons

• League: NBA
• Division: Central
• Founded: 1941
• Home Arena: Little Caesars Arena

The Detroit Pistons may be best defined by the infamously scrappy Bad Boys teams of the late ’80s and early ’90s or the defense-heavy, early-aughts championship squad, but through it all, the team’s legacy reflects the hardscrabble, high-effort identity of the city it represents. After arriving to Motor City in 1957, the Pistons won their first NBA title in 1989, then repeated in 1990 behind Hall of Famer players like Isiah Thomas, Dennis Rodman and Joe Dumars.

Through an eventual rebuilding process, the Pistons assembled a crew led by fellow Hall of Famers Chauncey Billups and Ben Wallace, who claimed the team’s third championship in 2004. After spending nearly three decades at The Palace of Auburn Hills, the franchise moved to downtown Detroit in 2017 with home court at Little Caesars Arena.

The Pistons face heated competition every year from rivals like the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks. Get Little Caesars Arena tickets and Detroit Pistons tickets at Ticketmaster.

Baseball

Detroit Tigers

• League: MLB
• Division: AL Central
• Founded: 1894
• Home Arena: Comerica Park

Not much has changed since the Tigers first fielded games in Detroit during the late 19th century. Bearing the same name and holding games near modern Downtown Detroit, the Detroit Tigers are a founding member of the American League, which formed in 1901. The club has won four World Series, in 1935, 1945, 1968 and 1984, and despite the lengthy title gap, Detroit fans season-after-season know there’s only one right answer to the question “Who’s Your Tiger?”

In 2000, the Tigers relocated from their original Corktown neighborhood-based Tiger Stadium to Comerica Park in Downtown Detroit. Over the years, the Tigers have engaged in American League rivalries against the Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Guardians, Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins. Get Comerica Park tickets and Detroit Tigers tickets at Ticketmaster.

Ice Hockey

Detroit Red Wings

• League: NHL
• Division: Atlantic
• Founded: 1926
• Home Arena: Little Caesars Arena

As a member of the NHL’s Original Six, the Detroit Red Wings are one of the distinguished and decorated franchises still on the ice. The Red Wings’ 11 Stanley Cup victories rank the team third in total NHL championships, behind the Montréal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs, while notching the second-most Final appearances at 24. Home games at Little Caesars Arena are a feast, with Red Wings faithful counted among the NHL’s most passionate fan bases.

Before attending, brush up on the Legend of the Octopus and make sure you know the words to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'” in case the team is circling a win. Fans should especially make their voices heard in regional rivalry matchups against the Minnesota Wild, Chicago Blackhawks and more. Get Little Caesars Arena tickets and Detroit Red Wings tickets at Ticketmaster.

Collegiate Sports & Other Professional Teams in Detroit

The Detroit metro area hosts several of Michigan’s top Division I college programs. The University of Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor and the Michigan State University Spartans in East Lansing are both members of the Big Ten Conference, while the Eastern Michigan University Eagles compete in the Mid-American Conference and both the University of Detroit Mercy Titans and Oakland University Golden Grizzlies play in the Horizon League.