Detroit is home to four professional U.S. sports teams; it is one of twelve cities in theUnited States to have teams from the four majorNorth American sports. Since 2017, it is the only U.S. city to have its MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL teams play within its downtown district (broadly defined)^[1][a] and one of only four U.S. cities to have said teams play within the city limits of their namesake.

All four teams compete within the city of Detroit. There are three active major sports venues within the city: 41,782-seatComerica Park (home of theDetroit Tigers), 65,000-seatFord Field (home of theDetroit Lions), andLittle Caesars Arena (home of theDetroit Red Wings andDetroit Pistons). Detroit is known for its avid hockey fans. Interest in the sport has given the city the moniker "Hockeytown." In 2008, the Tigers reported 3.2 million visitors with a 98.6 percent attendance rate.^[2]

In college sports, theUniversity of Detroit Mercy has anNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)Division I program.Wayne State University has aDivision II program, and once had Division I teams in men's and women's ice hockey but has since dropped both sports. The NCAA footballGameAbove Sports Bowl (formerly known as the Quick Lane Bowl) is held at Ford Field each December.

On July 12, 2005, Comerica Park hosted that year'sMajor League Baseball All-Star Game, and Ford Field hostedSuper Bowl XL on February 5, 2006. Comerica Park hosted games 1 and 2 of the2006 World Series, as well as games 3 and 4 of the2012 World Series.

The Palace heldNBA Finals games 3, 4 and 5 in both 2004 and 2005, and also hosted all but two home games of theDetroit Shock (now known as theDallas Wings) in that franchise's fourWNBA Finals appearances while based in the Detroit area (championships in 2003, 2006, and 2008, plus a losing appearance in 2007). The two exceptions were the title-clinching victories in 2006 and 2008, which both took place elsewhere due to scheduling conflicts—Joe Louis Arena in 2006 and theEastern Michigan University Convocation Center inYpsilanti in 2008.

In addition, the2014 NHL Winter Classic was played on January 1, at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor. The Alumni Game and college and amateur hockey games were played on an ice surface at Comerica Park.

Detroit was given the name "City of Champions" in the 1930s, for a series of successes both in individual and in team sport. TheDetroit Lions won the National Football League championship in 1935. TheDetroit Tigers won the American League pennant in 1934 and again in 1935, subsequently winning the World Series in 1935. TheDetroit Red Wings won the National Hockey League'sStanley Cup in 1936 and 1937.^[3][4] This meant Detroit featured the defending champions in the NFL, NHL and MLB simultaneously from April 11, 1936 through October 5, 1936. Detroit remains the only city to win threemajor professional sports championships in the same year and until 2020 the only city to win NHL and NFL titles in the same year (a feat it repeated in 1952).

In individual sports,Gar Wood (a native Detroiter) won theHarmsworth Trophy for unlimited powerboat racing on theDetroit River in 1931. In the following year, Eddie "the Midnight Express" Tolan, ablack sprinter who had graduated from Detroit's Cass Technical High School in 1927, won the 100- and 200-meter races and two gold medals at the1932 Summer Olympics.BoxerJoe Louis, who came to Detroit when he was 12 years old and started his professional career in the city, won the heavyweight championship of the world in 1937.

April 18, 2011 was the 75th anniversary ofChampions Day in Michigan.^[5]

The following table shows the NCAA Division I and Division II college sports programs in the metro Detroit area:

There are also numerous small college athletic programs in theDetroit Metro area.

On December 13, 2003, what was then the largest verified crowd in basketball history (78,129)packed Ford Field to watch theUniversity of Kentucky defeatMichigan State University, 79–74.^[6] Ford Field hosted the Final Four of the2009 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.

TheFrozen Four, the term for the semifinals and final of theNCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, was held at Ford Field on April 8 and 10,2010.

Detroit has bid to hostSummer Olympic Games more often than any other city which has not yet hosted, participating inInternational Olympic Committee elections for the1944 (placing 3rd, behind bid winnerLondon),1952 (5th place),1956 (4th place),1960 (3rd place),1964 (2nd place),1968 (2nd place) and1972 (4th place) Games.

Oakland Hills Country Club, located in the Detroit suburb ofBloomfield Township, has hosted numerous high-profile golf events. It has hosted theU.S. Open six times, most recently in 1996; thePGA Championship three times, most recently in2008; theU.S. Senior Open in 1981 and 1991; theU.S. Amateur in 2002; and theRyder Cup in2004. The 2034 and 2051U.S. Open are scheduled forOakland Hills Country Club.

TheDetroit Marathon is also organized annually in the city, usually held in October.

Detroit is home to theDetroit Indy Grand Prix. The race took place on thestreets of downtown Detroit from 1982 until 1988, and then from 1989 (when the event switched disciplines fromFormula One toIndy cars) at Belle Isle until now. The race was not held from 2002−2006.

TheVirginia Slims of Detroit was aWTA Tour women's tennis tournament held from 1972 to 1983, which featured top ranked players such asMargaret Court,Billie Jean King,Chris Evert andMartina Navratilova.

TheUFC 9 mixed martial arts event was held at Cobo Arena in 1996 andUFC 123 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in 2010.

The Palace of Auburn Hills held NCAA Division I Wrestling Tournament Finals on March 15–17, 2007.

TheProfessional Bowlers Association Lumber LiquidatorsPBA Tour holds theMotor City Classic at Taylor Lanes in the suburb ofTaylor.

The suburb ofSouthfield hosts the annual Gold CupPolo tournament at Word of Faith International Christian Center, formerly known asDuns Scotus College.^[7]

The city hosted theRed Bull Air Race in 2008 on theInternational Riverfront.

Detroit's Cobo Arena hosted theNCAA Division I men's Indoor Track and Field Championships competition from 1965-1981. The Pontiac Silverdome hosted the event 1982-1983.

Sailboat racing is a major sport in the Detroit area. Lake Saint Clair is home to many yacht clubs which host regattas.Bayview Yacht Club, theDetroit Yacht Club,Crescent Sail Yacht Club,Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, The Windsor Yacht Club, and the Edison Boat Club each participate in and are governed by the Detroit Regional Yacht-Racing Association orDRYA. Detroit is home to many One-Design fleets including North American 40s, Cal 25s, Cuthbertson and Cassian 35s, Crescent Sailboats,Express 27s, J 120s, J 105, and Flying Scots. TheCrescent Sailboat, NA-40, and theL boat were designed and built exclusively in Detroit. Detroit also has a very active and competitive junior sailing program.

Since 1904, the city has been home to theAmerican Power Boat AssociationGold Cup unlimitedhydroplane boat race, held annually on the Detroit River nearBelle Isle.^[8]Since 1916, the city has been home to UnlimitedHydroplane racing, held annually (with exceptions) on the Detroit River near Belle Isle. Often, the hydroplaneboat race is for the APBA Challenge Cup, more commonly known as theGold Cup (first awarded in 1904, created by Tiffany) which is the oldest active motorsport trophy in the world.^[9]

^* In 1967, Detroit was selected as one of the cities to adopt aEuropean professional soccer club in a bid to promote the game Stateside. The event was planned to coincide with Europe's off/close season when the teams would have otherwise been dormant for the summer. Detroit was represented by theNorthern Irish teamGlentoran, playing as the Detroit Cougars. Detroit City FC played in special jerseys as an homage to the cougars in a 2017 International Friendly against Glentoran at Keyworth Stadium on the 50th anniversary of the European club representing the city of Detroit.^[10]

TheSoul Sisters softball team, an all-female softball team existed in Detroit in 1960s–1980s.

• 
  Ford Field
• 
  Comerica Park
• 
  Lexus Velodrome
• 
  Raceway at Belle Isle

Detroit has one FM radio station broadcasting sports in the metro Detroit area, 97.1 FM WXYT. WJR-AM 760 broadcasts the Michigan State Spartans games and WWJ-AM 950 broadcasts University of Michigan Wolverines games. There are now several sports podcast networks broadcasting daily. The Detroit Sports Podcast Network airs daily sports podcasts and has reporters covering sports all across metro Detroit.

Historically, Detroit was home to its own professional wrestling territory,Big Time Wrestling, from the 1950s until the 1980s. In 2007, Detroit hostedWorld Wrestling Entertainment (WWE)'sWrestleMania 23 which attracted 80,103 fans toFord Field on April 1, 2007; the event marking the 20th anniversary ofWrestleMania III which drew a reported 93,173 to thePontiac Silverdome in nearbyPontiac in 1987. WWE has also held three of the annualSurvivor Series events in Detroit with the1991,1999, and2005 pay-per-views emanating fromJoe Louis Arena,Vengeance 2002, andSummerSlam 2023 at Ford Field. Detroit also hosted the returningSaturday Night's Main Event XXXII on March 18, 2006 and numerous episodes of the weeklyMonday Night Raw andSmackDown telecasts since 1994 and 1999, respectively.

• Gavrilovich, Peter and Bill McGraw (2000).The Detroit Almanac.Detroit Free Press.ISBN 0-937247-34-0.
• Gavrilovich, Peter and Bill McGraw (2006).The Detroit Almanac, 2nd edition. Detroit Free Press.ISBN 978-0-937247-48-8.
• Cameron, T.C.Metro Detroit's High School Basketball Rivalries.Arcadia Publishing, 2009.ISBN 0738560146, 9780738560144. Available atGoogle Books.
• Cameron, T.C.Metro Detroit's High School Football Rivalries.Arcadia Publishing, 2008.ISBN 0738561681, 9780738561684.

• Detroit Metro Sports Commission
• West Michigan Sports Commission
• In Play! magazine
• Book - Detroit:City of Champions
• Detroit Wolfetones Gaelic Football

• Sports in Detroit
• Metro Detroit

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