Every Philly team has something unique and special about attending one of their games. And all fans have their own opinions so ranking them objectively is sure to prove challenging with results that will be disagreed with by many.
But J.D. Power attempted to rank the "fan experience" of Philadelphia's major sports teams using a set of objective criteria (see full study here).
Here's how they described the process:
Fan satisfaction is evaluated across seven factors (in order of importance): seating area and game experience; security and ushers; leaving the game; arriving at the game; food and beverage; ticket purchase; and souvenirs and merchandise. Satisfaction is measured on a 1,000-point scale. Additional factors that are measured but not included in the official ranking are loyalty and future intentions; team performance (on-field); and team image.
The Union scored highest of all the Philly teams while the Eagles came in last in our town.
If you ask me where the best time is had at a sporting event in Philly, I'm going with an Eagles game. But that's not really considering bang for your buck.
"This study is about finding out which teams are giving their fans the best experience for their dollar," said Greg Truex, Senior Director, Sports Research at J.D. Power.
Philadelphia Eagles
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And while the Sixers have been the worst team in the NBA for seasons now, they still make extra strides to provide a solid fan experience on the periphery.
The Phillies came in second to the Union, followed by the Sixers with the Flyers and Birds rounding out the bottom.
Here are the key takeaways J.D. Power took for Philadelphia:
• The Union rings the bell: The Union takes the top-scoring spot in the Philly market, aided by top performances in stadium arrival at the game, and seating area and game experience.
• Another reason to boo: There was no road to victory for the E-A-G-L-E-S in this year's study, whose score of 701 puts them in fifth. The next closest team in the Philadelphia market is the Flyers, which scores 51 points higher (752).
• Trust the process: Despite years of tanking, the Sixers still score a respectable 759 points, proving it's possible to provide fans with a good experience even in the face of on-court failures.
