Although Portland may not be known nationally as a first-tier sports city, there are plenty of options for enjoying live sporting events. Portland actually has a thriving sports scene. Portland is home to the Portland Trailblazers (NBA Basketball), Portland Timbers (MLS Soccer) and the Portland Thorns FC (NWSL Soccer). There are also minor league baseball teams in the area, including the Hillsboro Hops (High A, Arizona Diamondbacks), Portland Pickles (West Coast League) and the Portland Mavericks (Mavericks Independent Baseball League). Heading out to see a minor league baseball game can be a fun and affordable family outing!
If you’re into college sports, Portland State University (Div I), The University of Portland (Div I) and Lewis & Clark College (Div III) all offer athletic events.
Portland is really a soccer town though. The Portland Thorns professional women’s soccer team is the reigning NWSL Champions and the Portland Timbers men’s MLS team are regularly amongst the top teams, and the 2015 MLS Cup Champions. The University of Portland Women’s Soccer Team are also historically good. Their alumni include US Women’s Team stars Megan Rapinoe ’08, Christine Sinclair ’06, and Sophie Schmidt ’10.
Finally, if you like auto racing, there’s the Portland International Raceway where you can watch IndyCar, NASCAR Xfinity Series, NASCAR Truck Series and SuperBike races.
