🏈 NFL: 1960-2020
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Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team was founded by Bud Adams who owned it until his death in 2013 and began play in 1960 in Houston, Texas, as a charter member of the American Football Le...
🏀 NBA: 1996-2020
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The team was originally established as the Vancouver Grizzlies, an expansion team that joined the NBA for the 1995–96 season. After the 2000–01 season concluded, the Grizzlies moved to Memphis.
The V...
NHL: 1999-2020
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The club was founded in 1998 when the NHL granted an expansion franchise to Craig Leipold. After five seasons, the Predators qualified for their first Stanley Cup playoffs during the 2003–04 season. I...
Defunct Teams
Teams that have folded or moved away from the Tennessee area.F i l t e r & S o r t Filter & Sort
🏀 ABA: 1971-1975
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The Memphis Sounds were an American professional sports franchise that played in Memphis, Tennessee from 1970 until 1975 as a member of the American Basketball Association. The team was founded as the...
⚾ NAL: 1921-1948
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Originally named the Barber College Baseball Club the team was never a titan of the Negro leagues like wealthier teams in northern cities of the United States, but sound management lead to a continuous thirty-nine years of operation, including five eventual major-leaguers, and two Hall of Famers.
⚾ NNL: 1920-1934
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The team's origins lie in two local negro amateur baseball teams: the Nashville Maroons and the Elites. The Giants welcomed any competition, including white-only teams, but played independently of any leagues until the mid-1920s.
The early history of sports contains hundreds of teams that appeared for only 1 or 2 seasons before folding. Most of these teams have no historical photographs or articles, so are omitted from this list to reduce clutter. To view a comprehensive list of all defunct teams, browse to the early leagues section for baseball, football, basketball, or hockey.