Kentucky Sports

Kentucky boasts no major league sports teams, but several minor league teams call it home. Professional teams in nearby cities, however, have strong fan support depending on the part of the state, with Nashville teams having strong fan support in South Central and most of Western Kentucky, Nashville and St. Louis teams competing for loyalties in the Purchase, Indianapolis and Chicago teams predominating in the Louisville area, and Cincinnati teams having strong support in Central and Eastern Kentucky.[citation needed] The northern part of the state lies across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, which is home to a National Football League team, the Bengals, and a Major League Baseball team, the Reds. It is not uncommon for fans to park in the city of Newport and use the Newport Southbank Pedestrian Bridge, locally known as the "Purple People Bridge," to walk to these games in Cincinnati. Many restaurants and stores in Newport rely on business from these fans. Also, Georgetown College in Georgetown is the location for the Bengals' summer training camp.[122]

As in many states, especially those without major league professional sport teams, college athletics are very important. This is especially true of the state's three Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs, including the Kentucky Wildcats, the Western Kentucky University Hilltoppers, and the Louisville Cardinals. The Wildcats, Hilltoppers, and Cardinals are among the most tradition-rich college basketball teams in the United States, combining for nine championships and 22 NCAA Final Fours; and all three are on the lists of total all-time wins, wins per season, and average wins per season. Louisville has also stepped onto the football scene in recent years, with eight straight bowl games, including the 2007 Orange Bowl. Western Kentucky, the 2002 national champion in Division I-AA football (now Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), is currently transitioning to Division I football.

Kentucky's Churchill Downs hosts the Kentucky Derby.