Who Plays In California? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Padres

Padre is the Spanish word for father. It's also used to describe a Franciscan order friar. They founded Mission San Diego de Alcala in San Diego, California in 1769. So when San Diego was granted a franchise team in 1969, they paid homage to their roots. The team sometimes gets the nickname of "The Friars". Their team colors are brown, gold, and white.

Answer: Chargers

Many of the California NFL teams have a rich history of moving their franchises. The Raiders have played in Oakland, Los Angeles, and have even moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. The Los Angeles Chargers were originally located in San Diego. In 2017, the Chargers moved to Los Angeles and shared the city with the Los Angeles Rams who had previously played in St. Louis.

The original owner named the team, Chargers, as it sounded exciting when the crowds yelled "charge!".

Answer: Sharks

San Jose Sharks joined the National Hockey League in season 1991-92. They played their first games at the Cow Palace in San Francisco. They moved to the SAP Center in San Jose (50 miles or 80km south of SF) and it was quickly nicknamed "the Shark Tank".

The team's colors are Pacific teal, white, black, and orange. Their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals was in 2016 where they lost in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Answer: Warriors

In 1946, the Philadelphia Warriors joined the National Basketball League. In 1962 the team headed out west and became the San Francisco Warriors. In 1971, they adopted the new team name, Golden State Warriors (so as to represent the whole state). The team plays in the Western Conference and had a dynasty run that included six NBA championships between 2015 and 2022.

Answer: Sparks

In 1996, Jerry Buss was the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA team and purchased one of the original franchises in the Women's National Basketball League. The Los Angeles Sparks also played in the Staples Center for their home games. Their team's colors are not too different from the Lakers as the Sparks wear purple, gold, black, teal, and white.

The team won back-to-back titles in the 2001 and 2002 WNBA seasons.

Answer: Kings

In 1985, California's capital city got their first major professional franchise when the Sacramento Kings joined the NBA. Prior to reaching Sacramento, the team had six different names and locations including the Rochester Seagrams, Rochester Royals, Cincinnati Royals, and the Kansas City-Omaha Kings. The franchise won their first NBA title in 1951 while in Rochester.

Answer: 49ers

San Francisco 49ers were founded in 1946. It's rare to see a team that hasn't moved or changed their team name in the pro leagues. The team's name is a throwback to the 1849 Gold Rush in California. Fittingly, the team's colors include gold and also red. Their mascot is called Sourdough Sam, dressed as 1849 gold miner.

Answer: Ducks

In 1993, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were admitted to the National Hockey League as an expansion team. The team was named after the Disney movie, "The Mighty Ducks" (1992). The team reached the Stanley Cup Final in 2003 as the Mighty Ducks. In 2006, the team was sold and was renamed the Anaheim Ducks.

The following season the Anaheim Ducks won the Stanley Cup making them the first California team to win the cherished trophy.

Answer: Giants

The New York Giants were one of the most dominant baseball teams in the first half of the 20th Century. But in 1958, they moved out west and became the San Francisco Giants. Over the years they have played in Seals Stadium, then Candlestick Park, and in 2000 moved to Oracle Park in San Francisco. The team had a stretch of winning three World Series titles between 2010 and 2014.

Answer: Galaxy

While they do play in Los Angeles, the Major League Soccer team is known as simply the LA Galaxy. They were founded in 1994 and were one of the new soccer league's ten original MLS franchises. Their first games were played in the iconic Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.

The 2007 season for the Galaxy received a lot of attention when David Beckham joined the Galaxy and it gave the financially struggling league a new jolt of excitement. The Galaxy were the first franchise to win five MLS titles.