Living in Arizona is Perfect for the Sports-Lover

If you love sports, you will definitely love living in Arizona. The spectators’ list goes on and on and includes professional teams like the Arizona Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury and more, in addition to plenty of college teams including the University of Arizona Wildcats, the Arizona State Sun Devils and the Northern Arizona University Lumberjacks. There’s also a whole roster of community college teams, but if actively participating is more your style, there are tons of recreational leagues looking for ‘weekend warriors’ and regular team members.

Let’s start with the pros. The Arizona Cardinals (NFL) football team takes to the gridiron every year in the University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale, while the Phoenix Coyotes (NHL) play at Jobing.com arena, which is also in Glendale near the Cardinals’ facility. Downtown Phoenix is host to the US Airways Center, home of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, and Chase Field, home of the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team. Other professional teams that call the Phoenix area home are the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA and the Arizona Rattlers of the AFL.

Getting back to baseball, every March the Phoenix area hosts numerous Major League Baseball teams for their annual Spring Training ritual. Thousands upon thousands of fans flock to the Valley of the Sun to watch professional teams play in smaller, more intimate stadiums where being close to the action is definitely the name of the game.

Moving to college sports, the Arizona State University Sun Devils in Tempe have a wide variety of sports options for both students and fans, from men’s football, baseball, basketball and cross-country to women’s softball, track and field, swimming and gymnastics. In Tucson, the University of Arizona Wildcats boasts athletic opportunities such as football, soccer, basketball, swimming and golf. Up north in Flagstaff, Northern Arizona University’s Lumberjacks also enjoy a full roster of sports choices.

High schools across the state offer multiple opportunities for students to participate in athletics, and most campuses have their own sports fields and/or stadiums adjacent to the main school buildings; on game-nights, the stands are often packed with friends, family members and local media.

If you would rather play sports than watch, you’re in luck because Arizona is home to at least 300-plus golf courses, hundreds of miles of hiking and biking trails, fun-filled swimming facilities and a plethora of recreational leagues for the young and not-so-young alike. As you can see, it is easy, healthy and fun to stay active in sports-rich Arizona.