Despite the powerhouse market value of other NFL franchises, Baltimore Ravens football fans are ranked fifth, according to a study from Forbes. I took a quick comparison on market value from Forbes list of 50 most valuable sports teams and then ranked only the NFL teams. Comparing the NFL Team value rank to the NFL fan rank, it's not the big money teams rounding out the the top compared to NFL fandom.
- Green Bay No. 1 NFL fans and 12th in NFL Market Value with $1.183 billion
- Denver No. 2 NFL fans and 13th in NFL Market Value with $1.161 billion
- New Orleans No. 3 NFL fans and 23rd in NFL Market Value with $1.004 billion
- New England No. 4 NFL fans and second in NFL Market Value with $1.8 billion
- Baltimore No. 5 NFL fans and ninth in Market Value with $1.227 billion
- Indianapolis No. 6 NFL fans and 11th in NFL Market Value with $1.2 billion
- Dallas tied for seventh in NFL fans rank and first in Market value with $2.3 billion
- Pittsburgh tied for seventh in NFL fans rank 14th in NFL Market Value with $1.118 billion
- Seattle ranks ninth in NFL fans and 15th in NFL Market Value with $1.081 billion
- Chicago ranks 10th in NFL fans and eighth in NFL Market Value with $1.252 billion
The top four being Green Bay, Denver, New Orleans and New England seem to prove it's more about the stellar QB talent and also perennial success, but I feel the NFL fan ranking is biased for success. The Bills or Titans are not going to be ranked top 10 in fans when recent team history hasn't fared well.
Nonetheless, Baltimore is undeniably a football loving city, and should be top five in NFL fans with photos like this and this!