America as a whole is pretty obsessed with sports. No matter which state you're in you'll find dedicated fans of a variety of sports and sports teams. According to Wallet Hub, the American sports industry is expected to make $83.1 billion dollars by 2023, whether that be from ticket and merchandise sales, media rights, or sponsorship fees, Americans don't mind paying a premium to enjoy their favorite teams.

In the northeastern part of the country, you'll find a huge slew of baseball fans, which is no surprise as the Yankees and Redsox are both from that region. In the southern parts of America, you'll see college football stadiums packed by the thousands, and out west, you can bet to find a Los Angeles Lakers fan on every city block.

Iowa doesn't have a professional team to call its own but that doesn't mean our state doesn't have a massive group of people dedicated to their favorite sports teams. Whether Iowans are cheering for a professional team that's from a neighboring state, or they're rooting on the Hawkeyes, Cyclones, or Panthers, you and I both know Iowa is full of passionate sports fans. Which city in Iowa do you think is the best sports city?

Wallet Hub has compiled a list of the best sports cities in America and it might not be a huge surprise which city in Iowa has been deemed the best. When I first found this study, I thought the title might automatically go to Des Moines.

Now that legalized gambling is becoming more and more popular, I figured Des Moines would win, simply because of its size and population. It turns out that I was wrong. Wallet Hub used 50 different metrics in their findings as they related all of these to the 5 more popular sports in the U.S. Football, Basketball, Baseball, Hockey, and Soccer.

Source: WalletHub

According to Wallet Hub, the best sports city in Iowa is... Iowa City. Iowa City also finished as the 92nd-best sports city in America overall. It looks like Iowa is called the Hawkeye state for good reason! We could've probably guessed this, without needing the research as the University of Iowa is the oldest and largest university in the state, according to the Gazette. Hawkeye fans show up in Iowa city, from all over the state, to see their favorite Hawkeye team play.

It's no shocker what the top 3 best sports cities are either. You could've probably guessed the top 3 on your own. The 3rd best city is New York, the second best city is Boston, and the best city is Los Angeles.

 

Iowa Born Sports Stars

What do each of these stellar athletes have in common? They all hail from the Hawkeye State.

E.J. Warner's First Time Starting as QB For Temple

E.J. Warner started his collegiate career on September 17th, 2022 as starting Quarterback for Temple against Rutgers.

More From ESPN 104.1 FM and 1170AM