Gridiron Glory: Mapping America’s Most Popular NFL Teams by State

As the 2024 NFL season kicks off, one thing is clear: American football fans are fiercely faithful to their hometown teams. In other words, no chip-on-the-shoulder NFL fan is pulling a Saquon Barkley to receive more glory.

In this article, we’ll dive into which NFL team is the most popular in America and which teams have the most loyalty in each state. We’ll also cover the must-have channels to catch all the gridiron action this season.

Which NFL team rules your state?

There’s not one state that dominantly supports an NFL team other than its own—Americans are loyal fans. At the very least, states with more than one team (“Gee, what would that be like?” says a Utahn) tend to support the winningest. California stands behind the San Fransisco 49ers, Florida cheers on the Miami Dolphins, and New York roots for Josh Allen rather than Daniel Jones or the Jets, who haven’t been to the playoffs in 14 years.

Then there are people like me who live in one of 28 states without an NFL team. So, you base your support on proximity, family ties, or personal interests. In our findings, proximity influences fans the most.

Of all 73% of Americans who plan on watching the 2024 NFL season, it’s a surprise to no one that the Dallas Cowboys were voted the most and least interesting team to watch this season. And we all know the reason: it’s the Cowboys. Either you love them, or you hate them—especially Eagles fans.

According to our survey, the second and third teams people are most excited to watch are the previous Super Bowl contenders—the undeniably dominant Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers. Fortunately for those fans, both sides are still looking strong coming into this season. Our survey also found that Americans believe Super Bowl LIX will be a rematch between these two powerhouses.

Who takes the crown? America’s most beloved NFL teams

Half the people reading this won’t want to hear what I’m about to say, but the Cowboys are still America’s Team. The Boys claimed a majority of NFL watchers in five states, more than any other team. The 49ers, LA Chargers, and New England Patriots were runners-up in taking over four states. And not one state was dominated by Houston Texans or NY Jets fans.

Most popular NFL teams by state

Beyond the stadium: How Americans watch the NFL today

NFL fans will need ABC, CBS, ESPN, FOX, NBC, NFL Network, Amazon Prime Video, and Netflix to watch locally and nationally televised NFL games this 2024 season.

In our survey, we asked Americans to choose all the ways they watch NFL games: 50% use a live TV streaming service, 48% rely on cable or satellite TV, and 45% opt for an on-demand streaming service.

Why do we need these channels and services for NFL games?

• Thursday Night Football is on Amazon Prime Video.
• Your local Sunday games will air on FOX and CBS (though you can stream CBS games on Paramount+).
• Sunday Night Football will broadcast on NBC and stream on Peacock.
• Monday Night Football will air on ESPN, but when there are doubleheaders, the second game will air on ABC or stream on ESPN+. You’ll also need ESPN+ for one exclusive MNF game this season.
• You’ll want Peacock and NFL Network for international football games.
• This year, NFL Christmas games will be streamable on Netflix (only).

Depending on the type of fanatic you are, there are a couple of other MVP viewing options. If you’re a diehard Lions fan, for example, and don’t live near Detroit, an NFL Sunday Ticket subscription will be a solid pick. You’ll get all out-of-market Sunday games straight to your TV with the Ticket.

If you’re a fantasy manager like me and want to keep tabs on up to eight games at once on Sundays, you’ll need access to the NFL RedZone. This channel is where you’ll catch every vital play in real-time or seconds later. After all, we know keeping an eagle eye on all games will magically make our fantasy team perform much better.

No matter how you decide to watch NFL games this season, get excited that the best time of the year is finally here.

Methodology

The team at CableTV.com reviewed Google Trends search volume over the past 12 months (7/30/23–7/30/24) to determine the NFL team each state searches for the most. The team with the most search volume in each state was deemed that state’s “favorite”. We also surveyed 1,059 U.S. adults aged 18 and up that was fielded from August 2 to 4, 2024, to determine how many Americans will be watching the 2024–2025 NFL season, the most and least interesting teams to watch, which teams will meet in the Super Bowl, and how Americans choose to watch NFL games.

Most popular NFL teams by state FAQ