The Best US Cities for Football Fans

The upcoming Super Bowl may signal the end of the football season but there are still many more one-of-a-kind tailgating experiences and exciting plays to come in 2022. WalletHub recently compared more than 240 U.S. cities with at least one college or professional football team across more than 21 key metrics, including things like the number of teams, championships, fan engagement and stadium accessibility, among other factors. Here's how the top 10 shakes out for this year.

Although fans in the Mile High City haven't had much to cheer about lately, Denver ranks 15th among the hundreds of cities that WalletHub analyzed, including 12th among large cities with a total score of 41.81.

The Buffalo Bills have been one of the hottest teams in the NFL in recent seasons, helping the city to a fourth-place ranking for best-performing NFL teams. Buffalo also ranks third for lowest average ticket price for an NFL game and second for most accessible NFL stadium.

Out in the desert, Glendale ranks as the second-best midsize city for football fans in 2022 with an overall WalletHub score of 42.87. The Arizona Cardinals' State Farm Stadium is third-most accessible in the NFL and boasts the fourth-lowest average ticket price for an NFL game. Glendale also ranks fifth for most engaged NFL fans.

San Francisco ranks as the nation's 12th-best city for football fans even though the hometown 49ers play 40 miles away at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara. This might not be the destination for budget-conscious fans either as it ties Boston and Las Vegas for the highest average ticket price for an NFL game.

The Kansas City Chiefs are routinely in the mix for the NFL's crown and so it's not surprising to learn that Kansas City ranks second among the 30 NFL cities when it comes to team performance, an important metric for determining the best cities for football fans. The city is also home to one of the most iconic stadiums in sports in Arrowhead.

Rounding out the top 10 with an overall score of 43.18, Indianapolis doesn't dominate any one particular metric. However, the NFL's Colts are a perennial contender for the playoffs and are among the few teams to have won multiple Super Bowls.

Cincinnati is buzzing in 2022 as the hometown Bengals eye their first Super Bowl title this winter. Cincinnati's Paul Brown Stadium is the fifth-most accessible in the NFL, according to WalletHub and only Jacksonville boasts a lower average ticket price for NFL games.

The Saints might as well be a religion in New Orleans. The Big Easy ranks fourth nationwide in terms of NFL fan engagement and only Green Bay and Kansas City earned higher marks for on-field performance, which looks at the number of wins versus games played over the past three seasons.

Miami has hosted more Super Bowls than any other city. So while the Dolphins have disappointed more often than not over the last two decades-having made just two playoff appearances since 2002-sunny South Florida remains an appealing destination for football fans.

The Big Apple is one of just two U.S. cities featuring a pair of NFL franchises but on-field success has been hard to come by for both the Giants and the Jets of late. Amazingly, NYC ranks sixth overall despite ranking third to last for NFL team performance and last in a handful of categories, including NFL and college football stadium accessibility and NFL and college football fan engagement.

Los Angeles, which will host Super Bowl LVI this February, also has the advantage of offering visitors not one but two NFL teams to cheer for in the Rams and Chargers. If there's a downside to L.A. though it's that it ranks 29th out of 30 NFL cities in terms of both fan engagement and stadium accessibility.

Although the six-time Super Bowl champion New England Patriots play their home games more than 20 miles outside of Boston in Foxborough, Beantown ranks as the fourth-best city for football fans in 2022. Boston's NFL fans are the third-most engaged in the country, making it one of the top cities on the East Coast for sports lovers.

Home to the 13-time NFL champion Packers, Green Bay ranks as the best midsize city for football fans. Green Bay also finished number one for best-performing NFL team, the most accessible NFL stadium in Lambeau Field and most engaged NFL fans.

Dallas narrowly edges out Green Bay as the second-best U.S. city for football fans this year. After all, the Dallas Cowboys is easily one of the most popular teams in professional sports and their home field, AT&T Stadium is among the largest venues in the NFL in terms of capacity.

The Steel City is the number one city for football fans in 2022, according to WalletHub. Pittsburgh, which earned an overall score of 62.58, tied Green Bay for the most engaged NFL fans and boasts the fourth-most accessible NFL stadium in Heinz Field. Football fans visiting the city can also root on the University of Pittsburgh Panthers, who racked up 11 wins en route to a conference championship last season.