Maryland has a number of major and minor professional sports franchises. Two National Football League teams play in Maryland, the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore and the Washington Commanders in Prince George's County. The Baltimore Orioles compete as Major League Baseball franchise in Baltimore.
Other professional sports franchises in the state include five affiliated minor league baseball teams, one independent league baseball team, the Baltimore Blast indoor soccer team, two indoor football teams, two low-level Basketball teams, and three low-level outdoor soccer teams.
Since 1962, the official state sport of Maryland is jousting. Lacrosse was named the official team sport in 2004,[1] and Sports Illustrated wrote the sport "has always been the showcase for the flower of Maryland manhood."[2] In 2008, intending to promote physical fitness for all ages, Maryland declared walking the official state exercise and became the first state with an official state exercise.[3]
Maryland has major professional sports teams in the city of Baltimore and in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. Two major league teams play in Baltimore — the NFL's Baltimore Ravens and MLB's Baltimore Orioles. Additionally, the NFL's Baltimore Colts played in Baltimore from 1953 to 1983 before moving to Indianapolis.
The following table details baseball teams which were located in Maryland. For minor league teams that changed affiliations, each affiliation is listed as a separate team.
The Johns Hopkins Blue Jays men's lacrosse team, founded in 1883, is the school's most prominent sports team, which has won 44 national titles. The Blue Jays play at Homewood Field (pictured right). Lacrosse is the only sport in which Hopkins participates as an NCAA Division I member; both the men's and women's lacrosse teams compete at that level in the Big Ten Conference. All other Hopkins sports compete in NCAA Division III, in which athletic scholarships are not allowed. Hopkins is one of a small number of Division III schools authorized by the NCAA to continue awarding scholarships in their Division I sports.
Loyola fields 17 varsity teams and 22 club teams. The varsity teams, known as the Greyhounds, participate in the NCAA's Division I. All Loyola varsity teams compete in the Patriot League in the following sports:
The athletics teams of Towson University participate in the NCAA's Division I and are members of the Colonial Athletic Association, as well as CAA Football, the technically separate football league operated by that conference. Some sports compete in the Eastern College Athletic Conference. The school's sports teams are called the Tigers, and the mascot of the University is named Doc.
The University of Maryland, Baltimore County sports teams participate in the NCAA's Division I, and is member of the America East Conference.
The school's sports teams are called the Retrievers, and the mascot of the University is a Chesapeake Bay Retriever which has been referred to as both True Grit and Fever.
The Frostburg State Bobcats began a transition from Division III to Division II in July 2019, joining the Mountain East Conference. The Bobcats will be eligible for Division II national championships in the 2022–23 school year. The following sports are sponsored:
Baseball – Men's
Basketball – Men's & Women's
Cross Country – Men's & Women's
Field Hockey – Women's
Football – Men's
Lacrosse – Women's (plays in the East Coast Conference because the Mountain East sponsors lacrosse only for men)
Soccer – Men's & Women's
Softball – Women's
Swimming – Men's & Women's
Tennis – Men's & Women's
Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor) – Men's & Women's
Volleyball – Women's
NCAA Division III
Goucher College
Goucher College athletic teams are members of the Landmark Conference. Their teams are called the Gophers and compete in the following sports:
Basketball – Men's & Women's
Cross Country – Men's & Women's
Equestrian – Women's
Field Hockey – Women's
Lacrosse – Men's
Soccer – Men's & Women's
Swimming – Men's & Women's
Tennis – Men's & Women's
Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor) – Men's & Women's
Except for the men's and women's lacrosse teams, Johns Hopkins athletic teams are members of the Centennial Conference and compete in the following sports:
Baseball – Men's
Basketball – Men's & Women's
Crew – Men's & Women's
Cross Country – Men's & Women's
Fencing – Men's & Women's
Field Hockey – Men's
Football – Men's
Soccer – Men's & Women's
Swimming – Men's & Women's
Tennis – Men's & Women's
Track & Field (Indoor and Outdoor) – Men's & Women's
Notre Dame athletic teams are members of the Colonial States Athletic Conference. Their teams are called the Gators and compete in the following sports:
The Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League (CRCBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league located in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Of the eight teams in the league, five play home games in Maryland.
The Baltimore Catholic League (BCL), is a competitive basketball association composed of private Catholic high schools in the Baltimore, Maryland geographic area.
The Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland (or IAAM), established 1993, is a girls’ sports conference for parochial / private / independent high schools generally located in the Baltimore metropolitan area but extending to various other regions, including the state's mostly rural Eastern Shore.
The Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (or MIAA) established 1993, is a boys' sports conference for parochial / private / independent high schools generally located in the Baltimore metropolitan area but extending to various other regions, including the state's mostly rural Eastern Shore.
The Washington Catholic Athletic Conference or WCAC is a high school athletic league for boys, girls, and co-ed Catholic high schools located around and in Washington, D.C., United States.