Study reveals which sports fans cry the most for their favorite team

Do emotions run so high during certain games that your tear ducts become the real top scorers when the final whistle blows? Dry those tears—you’re not alone!

51% of U.S. and Canadian sports fans admit to occasionally shedding a tear for their favorite team, according to Wetten.com’s latest study. Interestingly, only 31% of those tears are shed out of anger or sadness; in most cases, sports fans wipe away tears of joy. Whether it’s that long-awaited goal no one saw coming, a heartfelt tribute to a star player, or salty tears mingling with the bitter taste of defeat as victory slips through your fingers—sometimes, emotions just run high.

But which fan bases from MLB, MLS, NBA, NFL and NHL shed most tears for their teams and claim the top spots on the Sobbing Sports Fan Scoreboard? Wetten.com surveyed 3,500 U.S. and Canadian fans from the five major professional sports leagues to find out.

Here’s what we found:

51% of sports fans in the U.S. and Canada occasionally shed a tear for their favorite team, with Arizona leading the U.S. at 83% and Alberta topping Canada at 70%.
Of all the fan bases in the five major professional sports leagues, Inter Miami has the highest percentage of fans who shed tears for their club, with an astonishing 88% occasionally crying for their team.
Among the five major professional sports leagues, MLS fans are the most likely to cry for their team.
San Diego Padres fans stand out as the most emotional among all MLB fan bases.
Of all NBA teams, the San Antonio Spurs fans are the ones who reach for the tissues most often.
Minnesota Vikings fans top the list as the most likely to shed tears over their team among all NFL fan bases.
Tampa Bay Lightning supporters are the most emotionally moved by their team in the NHL.

For most Inter Miami fans, emotions can get… messy

Soccer fans are nothing but tough macho types? Think again! Among the five major sports leagues, MLS fans not only stand out as the supporters who cry the most for their favorite club—of all the teams in MLB, MLS, NBA, NFL, and NHL, Inter Miami CF has the highest percentage of fans who admit to shedding tears for their team. A staggering 88% confess to doing so at times. Hopefully, those are mostly tears of joy, as David Beckham’s club, featuring star players like Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez, is currently enjoying a successful season, with betting odds reflecting their strong performance.

Top 5 fan bases shedding tears for their team

But also on the West Coast, emotions run high at times. Fans of the San Diego Padres have the second-highest percentage when it comes to tearfulness, with 81% admitting to sometimes crying for their team. That’s just one percentage point higher than the shared third place, which goes to the San Antonio Spurs and Tampa Bay Lightning. For both of these fan bases, 80% say they occasionally experience watery eyes because of their team. Rounding out the top five are the St. Louis Cardinals. With 78% of fans admitting to shedding tears for their team, it’s safe to say that when it comes to the Cardinals, emotions really take wing.

The most emotional sports leagues

When it comes to shedding tears for their favorite teams, MLS fans take the crown, with a whopping 63% admitting to occasionally crying over their beloved clubs. Hot on their heels are NBA fans, with 62% of them also getting misty-eyed. The gap widens for third place, where less than half (49%) of MLB fans confess to tearing up for their sports heroes. Meanwhile, NHL and NFL fans round out the top five, with 47% and 45% respectively letting the tears flow for their teams. For fans looking to dive deeper into the emotional world of sports, a Daily Fantasy Sports Strategy Guide could be the perfect way to turn those feelings into some serious fantasy game insights.

Fans of U.S. teams shed more tears than Canadian ones

When it comes to the biggest tearjerkers in the U.S., Arizona tops the charts. A solid 83% of sports fans there admit to shedding a tear or two for their favorite team. Arkansas comes in a close second. In Georgia, 2 out of 3 fans get emotional over their sports heroes, while Nevada sits at 64%. Rounding out the top 5 is Michigan, where 63% of fans have cried over their team at some point.

Canada, on the other hand, seems to keep its emotions more in check, with lower percentages across the board. Alberta leads the way, with 7 in 10 fans admitting to tearing up for their team. Manitoba claims the second spot at 67%. Quebec and Saskatchewan tie for third, with half of their sports lovers reaching for tissues. Ontario rounds out the top 5, with 47% of fans shedding a tear now and then.

Methodology

In October 2024, Wetten.com surveyed 3,500 sports fans from the United States and Canada, covering the five major sports leagues: MLB, MLS, NBA, NFL, and NHL. We asked them about their favorite team and whether they sometimes cry for their favorite sports team, both out of joy and sadness. The average age of the respondents was 41.5 years. The representative sample consisted of 59% men, 40% women, and 1% non-binary.