Recap
Sports in San Diego includes one major professional sports team, several teams from minor professional leagues, semi-pro and amateur teams, and college teams, in addition to other sporting events. The most popular sports team in San Diego is the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball (MLB). Also popular are the college sports teams of the San Diego State Aztecs, which play in NCAA Division I.
San Diego previously hosted the National Football League (NFL)'s San Diego Chargers (now the Los Angeles Chargers) from 1961 to 2017. The city has also previously hosted three professional basketball teams, although all three were limited to short stints of existence due to ownership and arena issues: the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s San Diego Rockets from 1967 to 1971 (now the Houston Rockets), and the San Diego Clippers from 1978 to 1984 (now the Los Angeles Clippers), in addition to the now-defunct American Basketball Association (ABA)'s San Diego Conquistadors/Sails from 1972 to 1975. San Diego has never had a National Hockey League (NHL) franchise, but has hosted multiple minor league teams, including the current American Hockey League (AHL) franchise, the San Diego Gulls. San Diego likewise has never hosted a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise, but is home to the minor league USL Championship (USLC)'s San Diego Loyal SC and the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA)'s San Diego 1904 FC, as well as Major Arena Soccer League (MASL)'s San Diego Sockers.
