# Professional sports teams and "their" cities

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professional-sports-teams-and-their-cities/707961>\
**Category:** The Game Room\
**Created:** [December 22, 2014, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professional-sports-teams-and-their-cities/707961 "2014-12-22T22:34:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\
**Post date:** [January 4, 2015, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professional-sports-teams-and-their-cities/707961/41 "2015-01-04T01:26:15Z")

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While most of the Steelers are not from Pennsylvania, the Rooney family hired Bill Cowher as head coach partly because he grew up outside Pittsburgh, and they wanted a coach with ties to the city. Runner-up Dave Wannstedt was also from Western Pennsylvania.

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**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\
**Post date:** [January 7, 2015, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/professional-sports-teams-and-their-cities/707961/42 "2015-01-07T03:27:48Z")

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> [@RickJay](#):
>
> No, I really do not believe that is true at all. One of the common things people were saying in Toronto during the NHL lockout is how much BETTER a lot of bars and restaurants were doing.
> 
> For a sports-themed bar it might not have been great… but for a non-sports-themed restaurant times were terrific. The addition of a sports team basically just routes money that would have been spent on other forms of entertainment away from them and into the sports team - great for the Penguins, but not so great for Pittsburgh bowling alleys, cinemas, and standup comedy bars. Money spent in a bar near the arena is money not spent at a bar closer to the customer’s home where he would have gone had he not been going to the game.
> 
> My anecdotes aren’t any better than yours of course, but it remains the case that every serious study into the matter has come up with the same answer; money spent to attract a pro sports team is money set on fire.

I provided cites, you didn’t. And most bars in Pittsburgh ARE sports bars. Or even if that isn’t their main attraction, if one of our teams are playing that night, it’ll be on at any bar you go to. I can almost guarantee it.

And the people who worked at the arena lost a lot of work as well. It’s interesting to note here that the old Civic Arena wasn’t actually built for hockey, but for the Civic Light Opera. (In fact, the Pens didn’t even exist when it was built) It’s primary purpose was to be a concert venue. Oh sure, they planned to have sports games played there, but that was the main purpose. That’s where the Beatles played the only time they came to Pittsburgh, the Doors released an album titled _Live in Pittsburgh_, when they played there (considered one of their greatest live albums).

And I don’t even have to tell you how much the STEELERS have meant to Pittsburgh. We’re basically a drinking town with a sports problem, as they say. And proud of it. 😃

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