New York is one of the more popular sports destinations in the world, which comes as no surprise given that the state is home to 10 major sports teams. There’s almost always some sporting event or the other to enjoy in The Big Apple and, as a consequence, several reputable venues deserving of your attendance.
Let’s have a look at five of them.
Citi Field
Citi Field hosts the New York Mets and has been doing so for several decades. The venue has lots of local baseball history, such as the home plate entrance and arched limestone front that pays homage to Ebbets Field, the famous ground that once hosted the National League’s New York Dodgers, as well as three NFL teams.
If you can’t make it to the stadium, you could always check out McFadden’s Restaurant & Saloon and enjoy games on 50 hi-def televisions in the company of local Mets fans.
Yankee Stadium
Yankee Stadium, which opened in 2009 right opposite the original venue, is the proud home of the New York Yankees, one of the most treasured sports teams in NY. This newer Yankee Stadium was designed to look and feel like the old 1923 stadium and even bears a remake of the famous scalloped frieze from the original upper deck.
While you’re supposed to feel the history when you’re in there, Yankee Stadium’s concourses are more spacious and it’s packed with plenty of restaurants and various amenities, as well as cutting-edge tech that allows for a very modern experience.
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden is one of the most famous sports venues on the planet. Located in midtown Manhattan, it’s home to the New York Knicks and is considered the Mecca of basketball. MSG, as it’s also known, hosts the New York Rangers of the NHL and the NCAA’s St. John’s Red Storm too.
You could probably catch a hockey game and basketball game on the same date over there, so plan well.
You can also enjoy some of the best views from up above and there are also the options of one of two glass-sided sky bridges that are 22 feet wide and offer traditional and bar seating choices from where you’d have a remarkable view of the action.
The bridges are suspended from the arena’s ceiling and they each weigh 331 tons.
Barclays Center
Brooklyn’s Barclays Center is another top basketball venue as it’s the home of the Brooklyn Nets. The New York Islanders also play their home games there. It was expected that basketball would be played there right up until June but the Nets were shockingly swept from the playoffs in the first round though they started the season as the favorites for the NBA title. The playoffs are still going on and, though New York does not have an active team therein, you can bet on the mainland with New York Caesars sportsbook if you have a favorite among the teams still fighting for glory.
The Barclays Center really is something to look at and is one of the greenest buildings in the city as it has three acres of vegetation on its roof. That changes in the summertime, though, when flowers begin blooming.
Sadly, the aesthetic garden is closed to the public. But the rest of the stadium is replete with other pleasures, not least the exciting sports hosted there.
USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center
If you’re anything of a tennis fan, you have to visit the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center if you’re ever in Queens.
The aforementioned venue has 50 tennis courts and a number of stadiums, with the most popular one being the iconic Arthur Ashe Stadium which boasts a retractable roof and can accommodate 33,000 fans during the U.S Open. You could also book a tour or tennis lesson but can also simply walk in. What more can you ask for, right?
Maimonides Park
Formerly known as MCU Park and KeySpan Park, Maimonides Park is the home stadium of the Brooklyn Cyclones, an affiliate of the Mets. The park is smack in the middle of BK’s popular Coney Island, which makes for lots of excitement, whether it be from the fans inside or the folks enjoying the nearby rides.
A luminous but no longer operational Parachute Drop is up high, right outside, while the smell of Nathan’s Famous hot dogs and burgers lingers in the air. Groups of 15 can enjoy the game through the outfield wall in the backyard, which also offers games like cornhole and shuffleboard before matches, as well as barbecues.
