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Cardinals Nation, or Redbird Nation, is a term commonly used to describe, in aggregate, the fans of theSt. Louis Cardinals baseball franchise. Cardinals Nation encompasses not just the area aroundSt. Louis, but also a large portion of theMidwest. The team is traditionally popular in this region and Cardinals games are broadcast on radio and TV onFanDuel Sports Midwest. The term "Cardinal Nation" has been in use since the 1930s,[1] when the team's success and St. Louis radio greatly increased the Cardinals' popularity over a large area of the United States. "Cardinals Nation" remains a major term in team promotion.
In addition, the team is also popular in othermajor league markets, most notably inColorado, where the Cardinals were the team of choice until the creation of theRockies franchise in 1993. To this day, the Cardinals have many fans in attendance at games on the road inDenver, as well as every other major league venue.
Major League Baseball experienced a half-century of stability from 1902 through 1952, during which no franchises moved and none were established or closed. During this time, the Cardinals were the westernmost and southernmost major league franchise. They were geographically the closest team to anyone living southwest of a line stretching approximately fromSavannah, Georgia throughCentral Illinois intothe Dakotas, an area encompassing much the greater portion of the United States. (The Cardinals shared this distinction with theSt. Louis Browns, but the Browns were generally less successful and less popular.)
Although some franchises were established at the outer periphery of this area beginning in the 1950s (TheBraves in Milwaukee in 1953, teams in California beginning in 1958, theTwins in Minneapolis in 1961) it was not until the move of theA's from Philadelphia to Kansas City in 1955 followed by the establishment of theHouston Colt .45s in 1962, the shift of the Braves toAtlanta in 1966, and the creation of theKansas City Royals in 1969 (replacing the A's, who had moved to Oakland in 1968) that significant inroads into this market began. (The Browns left St. Louis after 1953, ending whatever competition they offered for this fan base.)
During this period (1902 to 1955 and to some extent later) when the Cardinals were the closest team to a vast geographical area, baseball became firmly established as America's national pastime and by far its premier professional sport. Also during this time, commercial radio broadcasting – including broadcasting of baseball games – was widely adopted and commonplace, and broadcasting atnight andon television began. Also during this period the population of the Cardinals'mediashed grew considerably, even compared to the rest of the United States (themean center of United States population moved from Indiana to the approximate location of St. Louis during this time).
During the core of this period the Cardinals were generally successful on the field, often contending for the league title and winning two pennants in the 1920s, three in the 1930s, and four in the 1940s (the Cardinals in their overall history have the fourth-best overall percentage of baseball's 30 teams, at about .520).[2] In the latter part of this period, the Cardinals' games began airing on the 50,000-wattclear-channel radio stationKMOX, which has the power to reach almost all of the continental United States at night.
All these factors combined such that for most of the 20th century the Cardinals' listening audience, and consequently fan base, extended throughout the American south and deep into the plains and Rocky Mountain states, a state of affairs that, although diminished, has persisted into the 21st century to some degree. As of 2020, the Cardinals still had the largest radio network in Major League Baseball, with 145 affiliated stations in eight states.[3]
In 2019, attendance at Cardinal home games grew to 3.48 million. In 2022, the Cardinals were one of four teams with over 3 million in attendance, includingLos Angeles Dodgers,New York Yankees, and Atlanta Braves. Cardinal fans are found in multiple states outside of Missouri such asIllinois,Indiana,Iowa,Arkansas,Kentucky,Tennessee,Mississippi,Oklahoma,Alabama, andKansas.[4][5]
St. Louis is regarded as one of the best baseball cities in the United States. The Cardinals enjoy great popularity with a large fan base, who are loyal to their team.[6][7][8] The Cardinals have been one of the most successful baseball franchises in history with 19National League pennants (third only to theLos Angeles Dodgers and theSan Francisco Giants) and a National League record 11World Series Championships. They are second only to theNew York Yankees (who have 27) in totalWorld Series Championships.
Cardinals fans are known for traveling to see their team on the road as well. This is especially true for theirclassic rivalry against theChicago Cubs. It is not unheard of for Cardinal fans to fill nearly half ofWrigley Field. (The converse is true when Cubs fans go toBusch Stadium in St. Louis when the Cubs visit.) When theRoyals play the Cardinals inKansas City every season duringinterleague play, the games often sell out.[9]
Many fans around the nation grew up listening to two baseball broadcasters considered among the best in history,Jack Buck andHarry Caray, call Cardinals' games starting in the mid-1940s, into the 1950s and through the 1960s. Jack Buck (withMike Shannon, starting 1972), remained the voice of the Cardinals through 2001. KMOX dropped Cardinals' broadcasts after 2005, but resumed in 2011.[10]
Like many other teams, Cardinals fans have a gathering of their own before the start of the regular season. During the Third week of January, Cardinals fans gather together at theHyatt Regency in Downtown St. Louis at a pre-season convention called "Winter Warm Up", which is run by Cardinals Care - the charity fundraising arm of the Cardinals' organization. The last day takes place onMartin Luther King Day. Cardinals fans are directed to the opportunity to get autographs from many of their favorite Cardinal players - past and present.[11] All proceeds from the event, including those derived from the sale of autograph tickets for certain players (though some of them sign for free), go directly to Cardinals Care.