Sports in Minnesota
Sports in Minnesota include professional teams in all major sports,
Major professional sports
Baseball
The
The current St. Paul Saints are the Minnesota Twins AAA affiliate team. The team used to be part of the Northern League. The team was founded in 1993 as an inaugural team in the league. They won the Northern League Championship in 1993, 1995, 1996, and 2004.[3] Notable current and former players include Kevin Millar, Darryl Strawberry, Jason Varitek, Jack Morris, and Ila Borders. The Saints play their home games at CHS Field in St. Paul and are the current Triple-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's Minnesota Twins. They moved to downtown St Paul in time for the 2015 season, to start play at the new CHS Field.
Basketball
The Minnesota Lynx are a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team founded in 1999 and play their home games at Target Center in Minneapolis. The Lynx have won four WNBA Championships, doing so during the 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2017 season.[4] In 2005, the Lynx drafted Seimone Augustus from Louisiana State University. She quickly became the foundation of the franchise and has been the focus of many WNBA advertisements. Maya Moore, drafted first overall in 2011, has contributed in great part to the Lynx's success, winning an MVP award in 2014.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an NBA team founded in 1989[5] and play their home games at Target Center in Minneapolis. The "Wolves", as they are called by fans, have yet to appear in an NBA Finals series, but made it to the Western Conference Finals in 2004. In 2000, NBA officials ruled that the Wolves violated league rules when signing then-free agent Joe Smith. They then declared the contract was henceforth invalid, fined the organization $3.5 million and took the team's next three first-round draft picks.[6] Notable current and former players include Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love, Sam Cassell, Karl-Anthony Towns, Ricky Rubio, Stephon Marbury, Latrell Sprewell, Terry Porter, Sam Mitchell, Wally Szczerbiak, Malik Sealy, Anthony Edwards and Andrew Wiggins.
The
Football
The
Before the Vikings, Minnesota also hosted the
The
Ice Hockey
The Minnesota Wild are an NHL team founded in 2000 based at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul. The Wild have not appeared in the Stanley Cup Finals. The Wild made it to the Western Conference Finals in 2003, by beating the Colorado Avalanche and Vancouver Canucks both in seven games after being down three games to one in the series, before being swept by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. With their second draft pick in franchise history, the Wild drafted Mikko Koivu, who now holds the team's record total franchise points. Notable Wild players include Marián Gáborík, Wes Walz, Darby Hendrickson, Mikko Koivu, Zach Parise, Ryan Suter, Thomas Vanek, Eric Staal, Jordan Leopold, and Kirill Kaprizov.
The
.The Minnesota Whitecaps were a professional women's team that played in the amateur Western Women's Hockey League (WWHL) from 2004 to 2011 and eventually joined the professional Premier Hockey Federation (PHF, formerly the National Women's Hockey League, or NWHL) for the 2018–19 season as an expansion team. The team has one Clarkson Cup title from 2010, and won the Isobel Cup in their first PHF sesaon.[9] They played at Richfield Ice Arena in Richfield. However, in the summer of 2023, the PHF was shut down as part of the launch of a new, unified professional women's league, the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).[10] Minnesota was awarded one of the six charter franchises in the new league, and it was announced that the new team would play its home games at the Xcel Energy Centre.[11][12] The team held the first ever PWHL draft pick and used it to select Minnesota Golden Gophers forward Taylor Heise.[13]
The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Eveleth, on the Iron Range.
Soccer
Minnesota United FC is a Major League Soccer team that was founded in 2010 as the NSC Minnesota Stars. In 2013, the club rebranded with a new crest and a new name, Minnesota United FC. In 2010 when the club was founded, it began to play in North American Soccer League in the second tier of US Soccer. In March 2015, MLS announced that Minnesota United had been awarded an expansion spot in MLS. The team continued to compete in the NASL until the 2017 season when Minnesota United began to compete in MLS.[14] This marked the introduction of top division soccer to Minnesota since the Minnesota Kicks dissolved in 1981.[15] Minnesota United currently plays its home games at Allianz Field in Saint Paul. Minnesota United is nicknamed "the Loons" after Minnesota's state bird, the common loon. Notable players for Minnesota United include Kevin Molino, Darwin Quintero, Osvaldo Alonso, and Miguel Ibarra.
The Thunder were a
The Minnesota Lightning were a W-League team founded in 2006. They also played at the National Sports Center. The team folded after the 2009 season.
The newest addition to Minnesota sports, the Minnesota Aurora FC are a USL W League team founded in 2021 and began play in May 2022.
Table of professional teams
Current teams
Former Minnesota teams
Other professional and semi-pro sports
Bandy
Bandy has been played on a regular basis in the United States since the early 1980s and the game is most popular in Minnesota, where the winter climate makes it possible to play outdoors for many months a year.
Most games in the
Guidant John Rose Minnesota Oval was also the main venue of the 1995 Bandy World Championship and the 2006 Women's Bandy World Championship. It will also host the 2016 Women's Bandy World Championship.
Lacrosse
The Minnesota Swarm were the state's professional lacrosse team from 2005 to 2015. All home games for the Minnesota Swarm were played at the Xcel Energy Center. The National Lacrosse League (NLL) awarded St. Paul the inactive Montreal Express franchise on August 10, 2004. After eleven seasons of mixed success playing in Minnesota, the Swarm left Minnesota for Georgia as they became the Georgia Swarm. Swarm owner John Arlotta cited difficulty negotiating a lease with the Xcel Energy Center, competition from other local sports teams, and decreasing ticket sales as reasons for the franchise's relocation.[20]
Gaelic games
In the
Golf
Minnesota plays host to several professional golf events. Beginning in 2019, the state will become host to the
.The state has hosted several major events. The U.S. Open has been played in the state four times, twice at
Disc Golf
Disc golf courses in the Twin Cities play host to the Minnesota Majestic on the third weekend every June.[21] It is part of the Professional Disc Golf Association's National Tour, the top level of pro/am disc golf events in America.[22] The tournament has frequented Kaposia Park, Blue Ribbon Pines and Hyland Ski Area, among other courses. The 2010 Minnesota Majestic was the 23rd annual.
Ultimate Frisbee
The Minnesota Wind Chill
Softball
Minnesota had a professional slow-pitch softball team from 1977 to 1979 called the
Motorsports
NASCAR
There are two
- Joe Frasson – Ran several races in the 1970s, best career finish is third (three times)
- NASCAR Camping World Truck Seriesdriver
- NASCAR Camping World Truck Seriesdriver
- Brent Sherman – Ran six NASCAR Cup Series races in 2006
- Blackie Wangerin – Best career finish was 13th[25]
- Nick Lewis - 2009 Raceway Park Bomber Track Champion
- William Sawalich – NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver
NHRA
Minnesota is known for being the home of the
- Greg Anderson
- Jason Line
Open Wheel
Perhaps the most successful driver from Minnesota is
The aforementioned Brainerd International Raceway also hosts a 3-mile road course, which held a
Rally
World of Outlaws
There is a yearly World of Outlaws (WoO) sprint car event held at Princeton Raceway. Known as the PolyDome Princeton Nationals, the event is most likely held at the track due to WoO driver, Craig Dollansky, being from nearby Elk River. The 1/4 mile track leads to some exciting, action-packed racing.
Athletics
Minnesota has a long history with athletics which dates back to the early years as a state, when arena track racing and college track teams drew large crowds. As the cities and towns in the state of Minnesota grew in the 1890s, track and field events became popular at schools and colleges. The early Olympic competitions (especially the 1908 Summer Olympics) boosted the profile of the "marathon," a 26.2 mile road running distance, and Minnesota had its own runnings of the race before 1920.[28]
Minnesota is often touted as one of the healthiest states in America, which coincides with its strong base of road runners and high participation numbers in local road races.[29] By the 1960s, future Olympian Ron Daws started the Land of Lakes Marathon in Minneapolis, which grew into the City of Lakes Marathon. Participation grew in the marathon while local smaller road races flourished.[30] The City of Lakes grew into the Twin Cities Marathon, which first ran in 1982.
The success of Olympian
Now nearly every high school and college in the state offers cross-country and track and field teams for both genders. The state is also host to a team of distance running professionals training for national road races: the MN Distance Elite team (formerly known as Team USA Minnesota).[31]
There are dozens of running clubs in the state, and they compete in a circuit of races known as the USATF Team Race Circuit.
Marathons
Today, there are eight Minnesota road marathons certified by
- Grandma's Marathon (from Two Harbors to Duluth, founded 1977)
- St. Paul, founded 1982, but preceded by the Land of Lakes Marathon [1963–1975], the City of Lakes Marathon [1976–1981] and the St. Paul Marathon [1981]).
- Med City Marathon (in Rochester, founded 1996)
- Mankato Marathon (in Mankato, founded 2010)
- Lake Wobegon Trail Marathon (on paved trail from Holdingford to St. Joseph, founded 2008)
- Run for the Lakes Marathon (in Nisswa, founded 2008)
- Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon (in Bemidji, founded 2013)
- Ely Marathon (in Ely, Minnesota, founded 2015)
College
The state of Minnesota has 27 schools competing in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Minnesota is one of eleven US states that do not have a school listed as a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) member,[32] though there are schools transitioning from the NAIA to the NCAA.
Division I
The
Four other universities in Minnesota also compete in NCAA Division I with teams competing nationally in ice hockey. The other Division I schools are
In July 2021, the University of St. Thomas became the state's newest Division I school. The Tommies were expelled from their longtime Division III home of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC), effective with the end of the 2020–21 school year, due to perceptions by most of the other MIAC members that they had grown too strong for the conference.[35] St. Thomas soon received an invitation from the Summit League, a non-football Division I conference, to become a member effective upon its MIAC departure.[36] St. Thomas eventually received a waiver of an NCAA rule mandating that Division III schools can only transition to Division II, allowing the school to move directly to D-I on the originally announced schedule.[37] Of the school's 21 varsity sports, 18 participate in the Summit League. The football team plays in the Pioneer Football League, a football-only conference that competes in the second level of D-I football, the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), thereby becoming the state's first FCS member.[38] Men's hockey joined the revived CCHA,[39] and women's hockey is in the WCHA.[37]
Division II
The NCAA Division II teams in Minnesota primarily compete in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). There are 9 Division II classified schools for the 2017–2018 year. The NSIC was founded in 1932 and joined the NCAA in 1992.[40] Teams competing in the NSIC are:[41]
- Bemidji State University – Beavers
- Concordia University, St. Paul – Golden Bears
- Minnesota State University, Mankato – Mavericks
- Dragons
- Southwest Minnesota State University – Mustangs
- St. Cloud State University – Huskies
- University of Minnesota Crookston – Golden Eagles
- University of Minnesota Duluth – Bulldogs
- Winona State University – Warriors
Bemidji State, Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, and St. Cloud State notably compete in Division I in men's and women's hockey. All four are members of the women's WCHA; Bemidji State and Minnesota State are also members of the men's WCHA but set to move to the new CCHA in 2021, with Minnesota–Duluth and St. Cloud State competing in the NCHC. Bemidji State University has won five NCAA Division II titles in men's hockey. Minnesota State has produced won 6 team and 49 individual national championships including men's hockey, women's softball. Minnesota Duluth has produced eight Division II and Division 1 titles, five in NCAA Division I Women's Hockey, one in NCAA Division I Men's Hockey, and two in NCAA Division II Football. Winona State has won two NCAA Division II in Men's Basketball titles. Concordia St. Paul has won nine NCAA Division II titles in Volleyball. Saint Cloud State was won two NCAA Division II titles in Wrestling. Minnesota Crookston, MSU Moorhead, and Southwest Minnesota State have not won any NCAA team titles.[42]
Division III
The NCAA Division III teams in Minnesota play in one of two leagues, the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) or the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC).
Teams competing in the MIAC:[43]
- Augsburg University – Auggies
- Bethel University – Royals
- Carleton College – Knights
- Concordia College, Moorhead– Cobbers
- Gustavus Adolphus College – Gusties
- Hamline University – Pipers
- Macalester College – Scots
- College of Saint Benedict – Blazers (women only)
- St. Catherine University – Wildcats (women only)
- St. John's University – Johnnies (men only)
- St. Mary's University – Cardinals
- St. Olaf College – Oles
The MIAC was founded in 1920.[44] Conference schools have won 30 total NCAA titles.[42]
Teams competing in the UMAC:[45]
- Bethany Lutheran College – Vikings
- Crown College – Storm
- Martin Luther College – Knights
- University of Minnesota Morris – Cougars
- North Central University – Rams
- University of Northwestern - St. Paul– Eagles
- College of St. Scholastica– Saints
- St. Scholastica will leave the UMAC after the 2020–21 school year and replace St. Thomas in the MIAC.
The UMAC was founded in 1972.[46] The conference became an active NCAA Division III conference July 1, 2008. There are nine full members, seven from Minnesota. All seven Minnesota members are full Division III members.
Olympians from Minnesota
The United States hockey team won the Olympic gold medal for ice hockey in 1980, coached by Minnesota native Herb Brooks. Eleven of the twenty players on the roster were from Minnesota.[citation needed] The team beat the long-dominant Soviet team in what has been called the Miracle on Ice, and went on to win the gold medal by defeating Finland.
The 1960 United States hockey team won the Olympic gold medal in the 1960 Winter Olympics. Six of the 18 members of that team were from Minnesota.[citation needed] The team beat the Canadian ice hockey team in the final game to secure the gold medal. A substantial number of players on the 1956 Olympic silver medal hockey team came from Minnesota.[citation needed] The 1948 Winter Olympics had a native Thief River Falls, MN member on the team. The majority of players on the 1972 Olympic silver medal hockey team came from Minnesota.[47]
In the
Bloomington native Tom Malchow won a gold medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics and a silver medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in swimming.
Minnesota was well represented in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Bejiing,[48] including
.Minnesota Lynx players were part of six consecutive and eight overall victories in women's basketball. Seimone Augustus, Sylvia Fowles, Maya Moore, Lindsay Whalen, and Katie Smith were among those who earned Team USA their gold medals.[49]
Amateur sports
Baseball
Summer collegiate baseball is present in Minnesota with the SCBA-sanctioned
The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks are an American Association team founded in 1996 and based in Fargo, North Dakota. While not primarily based in Minnesota the team also includes fans from Moorhead, Minnesota. They won five Northern League titles in 1998, 2003, 2006, 2009 and 2010 (the last year of the league).[50]
Golf
Minnesota has more golfers per capita than any state in the U.S.
Curling
In addition to the Bemidji Curling Club whose members competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics, there are over two dozen curling clubs in the state.
Roller derby
The Twin Cities is home to Minnesota Roller Derby (Saint Paul), North Star Roller Derby (Minneapolis) and Twin Cities Roller Derby (Minneapolis), as well as two junior derby leagues, Minnesota Junior Roller Derby (MNJRD) and Minnesota Frostbite.
Minnesota Roller Derby was founded in 2004 as the Minnesota RollerGirls, and were the fourth flat-track league to host a bout. Their venue for the first season was a roller rink in a northern Minneapolis suburb. After selling out all four bouts in their first season, they were approached by the City of
North Star Roller Derby was founded in 2006 as North Star Roller Girls, and played in a roller rink for two seasons before moving to the
TCRD and MNJRD play in various venues around the Twin Cities. Twin Cities Roller Derby was founded in 2009 as Minnesota Men's Roller Derby, and rebranded in 2018.
Soccer
Every year in summer (generally in July) at Blaine's National Sports Center the Schwan's USA CUP is played. It is the largest international youth soccer tournament in North America with over 1,000 teams and participants from 22 countries.[54][55]
The
Formed in 1953, the Minnesota Amateur Soccer League is one of several adult amateur soccer leagues in the state. MASL is considered the top sanctioned adult league, which features four divisions using the promotion-relegation system.
Bandy
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{{cite web}}
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