Facebook Releases Study On Most Popular NFL Teams By County
By Ray Boyd
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- It is pretty easy to determine NFL fan allegiances by state. It isn't that hard to figure out city as well, especially if a team occupies that town, but what about on the county level?
There are numerous states, including Pennsylvania, that have more than one NFL franchise. There are also states that are not represented in anyway by a team like Delaware and New Jersey (even though New Jersey has two teams that play their home games in the state).
Facebook has utilized it's "Like," information to come up with a graphic that shows fan allegiance based on counties. Now we can actually see just how much of Pennsylvania sides with the Eagles and how much sides with the Steelers. We can also figure out exactly how states like New Jersey and Delaware sway as well.
CLICK HERE to see the Facebook's "Fandom Map 2014"
There are some interesting points that stand out when you examine the map.
For instance, Eagles nation is almost as big outside of the state of Pennsylvania as it is within the state. The entire state of Delaware belongs to the Eagles. One might assume that the Ravens would have a footing in the state, but it seems there's only room for one Bird in Delaware.
The entire southern half of New Jersey also sides with the Eagles. Pennsylvania overwhelmingly has a yellow hue. Steeler Nation runs a solid portion of the state and takes up territory in West Virginia and Ohio among pockets in other states. The Giants also have a small contingent in Pennsylvania and much of New Jersey.
In all fairness to the Eagles, the team does dominate the most populous area of the state of Pennsylvania.
Another interesting note is that the Jets were the only NFL team to not win the majority of "Likes," in any county in the United States. New York went to the Giants and the Bills and the Giants managed to split New Jersey with the Eagles.
The teams with some of the biggest contingents appeared to be the Broncos and the Cowboys. However, teams in those regions are more spread out than the Northeast part of the country so there is more room to lure in fans.
So next time you're traveling around our region, you may want to take this map with you. Always good to know what area of Fandom you are in.
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