List of Shared Franchise Names in North American Professional Sports - Teams

Teams

• Alouettes – Two separate CFL teams in Montreal, but the league considers all of the city's CFL teams to be a single franchise, now represented by the current Montreal Alouettes.
• Americans – New York (hockey, defunct), Boston (baseball, renamed)
• Angels – Los Angeles (baseball), Anaheim (baseball, renamed), California (baseball, renamed)
• Athletics – Oakland (baseball), Kansas City (baseball, moved), Philadelphia (baseball, moved)
• Blackhawks – Chicago (hockey), Tri-Cities (basketball, moved and renamed)
• Blazers – Philadelphia (hockey, moved), *Vancouver (hockey, defunct)
• Blue Jays – Toronto (baseball), Philadelphia (baseball, renamed)
• Blues – St. Louis (hockey), Cleveland (baseball, defunct), Cleveland (baseball, renamed), Hartford (football, defunct), Indianapolis (baseball, defunct)
• Braves – Atlanta (baseball), Boston (baseball, moved), Milwaukee (baseball, moved), Buffalo (basketball, moved and renamed), Boston (football, moved)
• Brewers – Milwaukee (baseball), Milwaukee (baseball, defunct)
• Browns – Cleveland (football), Cleveland (football, moved and renamed), St. Louis (baseball, renamed), St. Louis (baseball, moved and renamed)
  • Although the Baltimore Ravens are the corporate successor to the first team that played as the Cleveland Browns, the NFL treats the Ravens as a completely separate franchise from the Browns, and considers the current Browns as heirs to the history of the original Browns. See Cleveland Browns relocation controversy for more details.
• Buccaneers – Tampa Bay (football), Los Angeles (football, defunct), New Orleans (basketball, defunct)
• Bulldogs – Canton (football, defunct), Cleveland (football, defunct), New York (football, defunct), Quebec (hockey, defunct)
• Bullets – Washington (basketball, renamed), Baltimore (basketball, moved), Capital (basketball, "moved"), Baltimore (basketball, defunct)
  • In the case of the Capital Bullets, "moved" is placed in quotes because the team abandoned the name due to a rebranding, not a physical move. The Bullets adopted the "Capital" name for the 1973–74 season after leaving Baltimore for the immediate Washington area. In that season, they played their first few home games at Cole Field House on the University of Maryland campus in College Park before their new home, the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland, opened in December 1973. Beginning with the 1974–75 season, the team changed its name to the Washington Bullets, but remained at Capital Centre.
• Bulls – Chicago (basketball), Birmingham (hockey, defunct)
• Cardinals – Arizona (football), St. Louis (baseball), St. Louis (football, moved), Chicago (football, moved)
• Chargers – San Diego (football), Los Angeles (football, moved)
• Capitals - Washington (Hockey)
• Clippers – Los Angeles (basketball), San Diego (basketball, moved)
• Colonels – Louisville (baseball, defunct), Kentucky (basketball, defunct)
• Colts – Indianapolis (football), Baltimore (football, moved), Chicago (baseball, renamed), Baltimore (football, defunct)
• Cowboys – Dallas (football), Kansas City (Union Association baseball, defunct), Kansas City (National League baseball, defunct), Kansas City (American Association baseball, defunct), Calgary (hockey, defunct)
• Dodgers – Los Angeles (baseball), Brooklyn (baseball, moved), Brooklyn (football, renamed)
• Eagles – Philadelphia (football), St. Louis (hockey, defunct)
• Earthquakes – San Jose (soccer), San Jose (soccer, defunct)
• Falcons – Atlanta (football), Detroit (basketball, defunct), Detroit (hockey, renamed)
• Flames – Calgary (hockey), Atlanta (hockey, moved)
• Flyers – Philadelphia (hockey), Muncie (football, defunct)
• Giants – San Francisco (baseball), New York (football), New York (baseball, moved)
• Grays – Louisville (baseball, defunct), Milwaukee (baseball, defunct), Providence (baseball, defunct)
• Grizzlies – Memphis (basketball), Vancouver (basketball, moved)
• Hawks – Atlanta (basketball), Milwaukee (basketball, moved), St. Louis (basketball, moved), Waterloo (basketball, defunct)
• Hornets – New Orleans (basketball, renamed), New Orleans/Oklahoma City (basketball, temporary move), Charlotte (basketball, moved)
• Indians – Cleveland (baseball), Akron (football, defunct), Oorang (football, defunct), Cleveland (football, defunct)
• Jazz – Utah (basketball), New Orleans (basketball, moved)
• Jets – New York (football), Winnipeg (hockey, moved and renamed), Indianapolis (basketball, defunct), Winnipeg (hockey)
• Kings – Los Angeles (hockey), Sacramento (basketball), Kansas City (basketball, moved), Kansas City/Omaha (basketball, suspended Omaha operations)
• Lakers – Los Angeles (basketball), Minneapolis (basketball, moved)
• Lions – Detroit (football), British Columbia (Canadian football), Brooklyn (football, defunct)
• Mariners – Seattle (baseball), San Diego (hockey, defunct)
• Maroons – Montreal (hockey, defunct), Toledo (football, moved), Kenosha (football, defunct), Pottsville (football, defunct), St. Louis (baseball, defunct)
• Nationals – Washington (baseball), Syracuse (basketball, moved and renamed), Washington (baseball, defunct), Ottawa (hockey, defunct)
• Nets – Brooklyn (basketball), New Jersey (basketball, moved), New York (basketball, moved)
• Nuggets – Denver (basketball), Denver (basketball, defunct)
• Oilers – Edmonton (hockey), Alberta (hockey, "moved"), Houston (football, moved), Tennessee (football, renamed)
  • The situation with the Alberta Oilers is similar to that of the Capital Bullets in that the team changed its geographic designation due to a rebranding and not a physical move. The franchise was founded in 1971 as the Edmonton Oilers, alongside a Calgary franchise known as the Broncos. However, before the WHA's inaugural season in 1972–73, the Broncos' owner died, and the new owners moved the team to Cleveland. The Oilers then began play as the Alberta Oilers, intending to split home games between Edmonton and Calgary, but never played a game in Calgary. The team reverted to the Edmonton Oilers name in 1973–74.
• Orioles – Multiple teams from Baltimore; see Baltimore Oriole (disambiguation)
• Packers – Green Bay (football), Anderson (basketball, defunct), Chicago (basketball, renamed)
• Panthers – Florida (hockey), Carolina (football), Detroit (football, defunct)
• Patriots – New England (football), Boston (football, moved)
• Pirates – Pittsburgh (baseball), Pittsburgh (hockey, defunct)
• Pistons – Detroit (basketball), Fort Wayne (basketball, moved)
• Pros – Akron (football, renamed), Syracuse (football, defunct)
• Quakers – Philadelphia (hockey, defunct), Philadelphia (baseball, renamed)
• Raiders – Oakland (football), Los Angeles (football, moved), New York (hockey, defunct)
• Rams – St. Louis (football), Cleveland (football, moved), Los Angeles (football, moved)
• Rangers – New York (hockey), Texas (baseball)
• Reds – Cincinnati (baseball), Cincinnati (football, defunct), Cincinnati (baseball, defunct)
• Redskins – Washington (football), Boston (football, moved), Sheboygan (basketball, defunct)
• Rockets – Houston (basketball), San Diego (basketball, moved), Denver (basketball, renamed)
• Rockies – Colorado (baseball), Colorado (hockey, defunct)
• Royals – Kansas City (baseball), Rochester (basketball, renamed), Cincinnati (basketball, moved)
• Senators – Ottawa (hockey), Washington (baseball, defunct), Washington (baseball, moved and renamed), Washington (baseball, moved and renamed), Washington (football, defunct)
• Sharks – San Jose (hockey), Los Angeles (hockey, defunct)
• Sounders – Seattle (soccer), Seattle (soccer, defunct)
• Spurs – San Antonio (basketball), Calgary (hockey, defunct)
• Stars – Dallas (hockey), Syracuse (baseball, defunct), Utah (basketball, defunct)
• Texans – Houston (football), Dallas (AFL football, moved and renamed), Dallas (NFL football, defunct)
• Titans – Tennessee (football), New York (football, renamed)
• Timbers – Portland (soccer), Portland (soccer, defunct)
• Tigers – Detroit (baseball), Hamilton (hockey, defunct), Chicago (football, defunct), Columbus (football, defunct), Brooklyn (football, defunct)
• Tornados – Orange (football, defunct), Racine (football, defunct)
• Warriors – Golden State (basketball), Philadelphia (basketball, moved), San Francisco (basketball, renamed)
• Whalers – New England (hockey, moved), Hartford (hockey, moved and renamed)
• Whitecaps – Vancouver (soccer), Vancouver (soccer, defunct)
• Wizards – Washington (basketball), Kansas City (soccer, renamed)
• Yankees – New York (baseball), New York (multiple football teams, all defunct)