Pittsburgh: A Sports Destination

Fans dress head-to-toe in black and gold. Chants echo off the skyscrapers. Victory fireworks light up the city skyline. Passionate fanbases, winning teams and beautiful stadiums are all huge reasons Wallet Hub has recognized Pittsburgh as one of the top sports cities year over year.

Aptly named the City of Champions, Pittsburgh is home to three widely-known professional sports teams – the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates – each with its own dynamic history of world championships, incredible moments and hall of fame players.

The Pittsburgh Steelers, named after the city’s blue-collar heritage, are among the most decorated teams in the National Football League and the first to have won six Super Bowls. Fans can be seen descending to the North Shore to attend games at Acrisure Stadium (capacity 68,400) and waving the Terrible Towel to cheer their team to another winning season.

With back-to-back Stanley Cup-winning seasons in 2016 and 2017, the Pittsburgh Penguins are one of the hottest tickets on ice. The Penguins, who play at PPG Paints Arena, are coming off a record-setting run in the NHL with a league-best 16 consecutive trips to the postseason, winning three championships within that span. The Penguins own five total Stanley Cups.

Spring means the return of the Pittsburgh Pirates, more commonly referred to as the “Bucs” or “Buccos,” and baseball to the city. Fans enjoy the old ballgame at PNC Park, a fantastic mix of classic ballpark aesthetics and modern comforts with an unmatched skyline view, consistently named one of the best ballparks in America. The Pirates own a stacked trophy case of their own, with five World Series championships won from 1909-1979.

Even the city’s college teams are championship-caliber. The University of Pittsburgh Panthers can be seen playing at Acrisure Stadium for football and the Petersen Events Center for basketball. Together, these Pitt teams have won 11 National Championships.

Robert Morris University (home to the only Division I ice hockey teams in the city) and Duquesne University round out the region’s NCAA Division I schools. Also located in the city are the college athletics teams of Carlow, Carnegie Mellon, Chatham and Point Park universities, as well as La Roche College and the Community College of Allegheny County.

At Highmark Stadium, which includes a spectacular view of the city, the Pittsburgh Riverhounds take the pitch for the United Soccer League. Diehard supporters make up the “Steel Army” to lead chants throughout the game. The Hounds share the stadium with the Pittsburgh Passion, the national championship-winning women’s full-contact football team, and the Pittsburgh Thunderbirds, a professional Ultimate Frisbee (Disc) organization in the American Ultimate Disc League.

The Pittsburgh Knights game-on in the digital world as Pittsburgh’s global esports franchise. The team has partnered with the Steelers, Penguins’ great Evgeni Malkin and Pittsburgh-native, multi-platinum recording artist Wiz Khalifa to become a premiere team to watch in the scene.

The history of Pittsburgh sports teams’ winning ways is showcased at must-see museums and monuments. The Clemente Museum is dedicated to the life and career of the former Pittsburgh Pirates baseball player, Roberto Clemente, while the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum (a museum within a museum located inside the Heinz History Center) brings the city’s top sports moments to life with a stunning collection of artifacts and interactive displays. Steelers Nation can take a trip through the franchise’s history at the recently opened Hall of Honor Museum inside Acrisure Stadium. And, before leaving the North Shore, they can take the pilgrimage to The Immaculate Reception Monument, the site of one of the greatest plays in football history, which set the tone for the Steelers’ dominant 70s run of championships.