Sports located in the U.S.
state of Pennsylvania
Sports in Pennsylvania includes numerous professional sporting teams, events, and venues located in the😊 U.S.
state of Pennsylvania.
Major league professional teams [ edit ]
Pennsylvania is home to eight teams from the five major American professional😊 sports leagues.
Major league professional championships [ edit ]
Philadelphia Eagles (NFL) [ edit ] 3 NFL championships (pre–Super Bowl) 19481949
1960 1😊 Super Bowl title 2017 (LII) Frankford Yellow Jackets (NFL) [ edit ] 1 NFL championship (pre–Super Bowl) 1926 Pittsburgh Steelers😊 (NFL) [ edit ] 6 Super Bowl titles 1974 (IX)1975 (X)1978 (XIII)1979 (XIV)2005 (XL)
2008 (XLIII) Philadelphia Flyers (NHL) [ edit😊 ] 2 Stanley Cup titles 1974
1975 Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL) [ edit ] 5 Stanley Cup titles 1991199220092016
2017 Philadelphia Athletics (MLB)😊 [ edit ] 5 World Series titles 1910191119131929
1930 Philadelphia Phillies (MLB) [ edit ] 2 World Series titles 1980
2008 Pittsburgh😊 Pirates (MLB) [ edit ] 5 World Series titles 1909192519601971
1979 Philadelphia Warriors (NBA) [ edit ] 2 NBA Finals titles😊 1947
1956 Pittsburgh Pipers (ABA) [ edit ] 1 ABA Finals title 1968 Philadelphia Atoms (NASL) [ edit ] 1 Soccer😊 Bowl / NASL Final title 1973
Football is the most popular sport in Pennsylvania, especially in the Lehigh Valley, Northeastern Pennsylvania,😊 Central Pennsylvania, and Western Pennsylvania.
Western Pennsylvania in particular was home to some of the earliest moments in football history, and😊 the earliest professional clubs played in the Western Pennsylvania Professional Football Circuit.
Pudge Heffelfinger was the first known professional football player,😊 while John Brallier was the first openly professional player.
The Allegheny Athletic Association fielded the first entirely openly professional team in😊 1896.
[1] In 1902, three Pennsylvania teams founded the National Football League (which has no ties to today's NFL), the first😊 attempt at a national professional football league.
Jim Thorpe, a multi-sport athlete who played in the NFL and won Olympic gold😊 medals in the pentathlon and decathlon, attended Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania is named after him.
Today,😊 football is popular on all levels, from high school, college, and professionally.
The high school games get regular attention in the😊 local newspapers and games regularly draw over 10,000 fans.
Pennsylvania produces several college and professional players every year, and Western Pennsylvania😊 is noted for being the home of numerous quarterbacks, including Dan Marino, Joe Montana, and Johnny Unitas.
Professionally, the Pittsburgh Steelers😊 and Philadelphia Eagles of the NFL are also hugely popular.
Both franchises entered the NFL in 1933, and the two franchises😊 briefly merged during World War II.
Both teams have fan bases across the entire state, and in the case of the😊 Steelers, are one of the most popular sports teams in the United States, if not the world.
(This is likely due😊 to that team's dominance in the NFL during the 1970s.
) While the Eagles are not quite as popular as the😊 Steelers outside Pennsylvania, they still maintain a passionate fan base in the Philadelphia area and across the United States as😊 they are one of the more popular teams in the NFL.
Often one of the most rowdy in the NFL, the😊 Eagles fanbase is known for their passion and dedication.
In fact, the Eagles' old home field, Veterans Stadium, was the first😊 sports stadium in the United States to have a jail cell as a result of the rowdiness of the fans,😊 but was removed only a couple years later after incidents settled down.
Both fanbases though are considered to be among the😊 best traveled fanbases in the NFL.
During games in which the teams are on the road, Steelers fans and Eagles fans😊 alike migrate to the opposing team's stadium and always have a strong presence, and in some cases, their numbers have😊 made opposing teams feel as if they are not in their home stadium-a testament to the die-hard fanbases of professional😊 football in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania has also been home to two defunct NFL franchises, both of which played in the 1920s.
The Pottsville😊 Maroons played in Pottsville, Pennsylvania; the franchise is notable for its part in the 1925 NFL Championship controversy.
Frankford (a neighborhood😊 in Philadelphia) also briefly had its own team in the 1920s, known as the Frankford Yellow Jackets.
The team won the😊 1926 NFL Championship, but disbanded during the Great Depression.
A third NFL franchise, the Dallas Texans, was briefly headquartered in Hershey,😊 Pennsylvania during the 1952 season.
Pennsylvania also had teams in four national leagues that competed with the NFL: the 1920s AFL,😊 the 1930s AFL, the World Football League, and the USFL.
Philadelphia was also home to an Arena Football League team, the😊 Philadelphia Soul who played in the league from 2004 to 2019.
Pittsburgh was also the home to one of the founding😊 Arena Football League franchises, the Pittsburgh Gladiators.
After four seasons in Pittsburgh, the team moved to Tampa, Florida, in 1991 and😊 became the Tampa Bay Storm.
Pittsburgh got another AFL team in 2011, the Pittsburgh Power, which folded in 2014.
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers😊 played in the AFL's minor league af2 until that league disbanded in 2009.
In addition to NFL and arena football teams,😊 Pennsylvania is also home to minor professional teams from numerous other leagues.
Men's teams include the Chambersburg Cardinals and the Pittsburgh😊 Colts.
There are also several women's football teams, including the Keystone Assault, Pittsburgh Passion, and Philadelphia Firebirds.
Baseball [ edit ]
Baseball is😊 one of the more popular sports in Pennsylvania.
The state has both major league and minor league baseball teams.
The two major😊 league baseball teams in Pennsylvania are the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Phillies and the Pirates are two of😊 the eight National League franchises that originated in the nineteenth century.
As such, the Phillies and the Pirates have had a😊 rivalry for over one hundred years.
The rivalry was particularly strong during the 1970s and 1980s, when the two teams frequently😊 competed to win the National League East.
The rivalry has cooled off since the Pirates moved to the NL Central in😊 1994, but the two teams continue to play each other every year.
Although the Pirates have won more World Series (five😊 in total), the Phillies won the World Series more recently (in 2008).
Both teams have had stretches of success and futility.
Pennsylvania😊 is the only state with two teams that are in the same league (National League) but in separate divisions (Pittsburgh😊 in the NL Central and Philadelphia in the NL East).
Philadelphia and Pittsburgh were also the home of numerous defunct and😊 relocated major league franchises, including the American League's Philadelphia Athletics, which moved to Kansas City, Missouri, in the 1950s.
The franchise😊 now plays in Oakland, California, as the Oakland Athletics.
Pittsburgh briefly hosted a second major league team in the 20th century:😊 the Pittsburgh Rebels played in the Federal League during the fledgling league's two seasons of existence.
Altoona also had a short-lived😊 team in the 19th century Union Association.
Prior to the integration of Major League Baseball that occurred after World War II,😊 both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh had negro league baseball teams.
Pennsylvania is the original home of Little League Baseball.
In 1939, Carl Stotz😊 founded Little League Baseball in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
The Little League World Series is held every year in South Williamsport.
Minor league baseball😊 [ edit ]
As of 2021, Pennsylvania has nine minor league baseball teams.
Six of these teams are affiliates of major league😊 teams, while the remaining teams are independent.
Pennsylvania has also been home to minor leagues and minor league teams that are😊 now defunct, such as the Pennsylvania State Association and the Allentown Peanuts.
Pennsylvania is also home to two teams in the😊 new MLB Draft League, the State College Spikes and the Williamsport CrosscuttersBasketball [ edit ]
Unlike the other major professional sports😊 leagues, the National Basketball Association only has one team in Pennsylvania.
The Philadelphia 76ers, which relocated from Syracuse, New York, in😊 1963, have won three NBA championships and, as of 2018, the franchise has won the fifth most championship games in😊 NBA history (tied with the Detroit Pistons and Miami Heat).
Philadelphia also hosted another NBA team from 1946 to 1962, the😊 Philadelphia Warriors, but the franchise moved to San Francisco and later became what is now known as the Golden State😊 Warriors.
Pittsburgh briefly had a team in the Basketball Association of America known as the Pittsburgh Ironmen, and an American Basketball😊 Association franchise called the Pittsburgh Condors, but no NBA franchise has ever called Pittsburgh home.
In addition to the 76ers, Pennsylvania😊 also has a few other professional basketball teams.
The Erie BayHawks are an NBA G League team affiliated with the NBA's😊 New Orleans Pelicans.
This team will play in Erie until moving to its intended permanent home of Birmingham, Alabama, in 2022.
The😊 Steel City Yellow Jackets play in the ABA.
The Harrisburg Horizon are a member of the Eastern Basketball Alliance, while the😊 Harrisburg Lady Horizon are a member of the Women's Eastern Basketball Alliance.
Pennsylvania has never had a team in the Women's😊 National Basketball Association, the top women's basketball league in the United States.
The Philadelphia area has produced NBA players such as😊 Wilt Chamberlain, Kobe Bryant, and Paul Arizin, while Pete Maravich was from Aliquippa.
Ice hockey [ edit ]
Due in large part😊 to Pennsylvania's cold winter climate and the state's geographic location in the Northeast, hockey is fairly popular throughout Pennsylvania.
In all,😊 seven professional hockey teams call Pennsylvania home, including two NHL teams.
Perhaps the strongest current in-state professional sports rivalry is between😊 the Philadelphia Flyers and the Pittsburgh Penguins, both of which play in the Metropolitan Division of the NHL.
With the exception😊 of a seven-year period in the 1970s, the two teams have been divisional rivals since they joined the NHL in😊 the 1967 expansion.
The rivalry is generally considered to be one of the fiercest in the NHL.
[3][4] The two franchises have😊 been among the most successful teams since they joined the league, as the Flyers have the most Stanley Cup Finals😊 appearances among the non-Original Six teams, while the Penguins are tied for the third most Stanley Cup wins among non-Original😊 Six teams.
The Hershey Bears are renowned for being the oldest existing AHL franchise, and the oldest existing hockey franchise outside😊 of the NHL's Original Six.
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms, also of the AHL, are the primary development team of the Philadelphia😊 Flyers and play their home games at PPL Center in Allentown.
Pennsylvania is notable for being one of the few states😊 with a team in the Canadian Hockey League, and the state was also home to the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League,😊 one of the first professional hockey leagues.
In addition to the two current NHL teams that joined the league in the😊 1960s, Pennsylvania also had an NHL franchise in the 1920s: a hockey team named the Pirates played in the NHL😊 for five seasons before moving to Philadelphia and becoming the Philadelphia Quakers.
The franchise disbanded after its only season in Philadelphia.
Philadelphia😊 also briefly had a WHA franchise.
A number of notable current and former professional hockey players are Pennsylvania natives: Mike Richter,😊 one of the most successful American-born goaltenders in NHL history; Pete Babando; Bob Beers; Jay Caufield; Ryan Malone; Gerry O'Flaherty;😊 George Parros; Jesse Spring; and R.J.Umberger.
Legendary amateur hockey player Hobey Baker, namesake of U.S.
college hockey's Hobey Baker Memorial Award, was😊 also born in Pennsylvania.
Minor league & major junior hockey [ edit ]Soccer [ edit ]
Pennsylvania has three active professional outdoor😊 soccer teams.
Since 2010, Chester, Pennsylvania has been home to the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer, the top league in😊 the US Soccer Pyramid.
Additionally, Pennsylvania has two teams in the second-tier USL Championship (previously the United Soccer League), Philadelphia Union😊 II and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC.
Both are the official reserve sides for MLS teams, respectively the Union and Columbus Crew SC.
The😊 state had a third team in the USL Championship, the Harrisburg-based Penn FC, but that team suspended professional operations for😊 the 2019 season and ultimately folded.
Pennsylvania also has several indoor soccer and amateur teams, including the Harrisburgh Heat of the😊 Major Arena Soccer League, Reading United A.C.
and the Pittsburgh Riverhounds U23 of USL League Two (formerly the Premier Development League),😊 and numerous teams in the National Premier Soccer League.
Pennsylvania also women's teams, including the Lancaster Inferno of the Women's Premier😊 Soccer League.
As of 2020, Pennsylvania does not have a team in the top-level women's league, the National Women's Soccer League.
Pennsylvania😊 has a long history with soccer.
The first professional American soccer league, the American League of Professional Football, included a team😊 named the "Philadelphia Phillies" (all of the teams were affiliated with National League baseball teams).
The original Bethlehem Steel won championships😊 in the National Association Football League and the American Soccer League.
Despite disbanding in the 1930s, the club still shares the😊 record (with Maccabi Los Angeles) for most U.S.
Open Cup wins, with five.
The North American Soccer League, which was perhaps the😊 most prominent American soccer league until the formation of Major League Soccer, had two teams in Pennsylvania: the Philadelphia Atoms😊 and the Philadelphia Fury.
Pennsylvania-based clubs have captured the U.S.
Open Cup a total of 14 times, the third-most among states, and😊 Pennsylvania teams have won the National Amateur Cup several times.
Pennsylvania has also been home to numerous soccer players, including Walter😊 Bahr, the captain of the U.S.
national team at the 1950 FIFA World Cup.
Minor league soccer [ edit ]
College teams [😊 edit ]
There are fourteen NCAA Division I schools spread across Pennsylvania.
In addition to the Division I schools listed below, there😊 are also several other college athletic programs in Pennsylvania.
Pennsylvania is home to several prominent collegiate rivalries.
The Penn State–Pittsburgh football rivalry😊 began in the 19th century, and was once considered one of the most important rivalries north of the Mason–Dixon line.
[7]😊 Although the two schools have not played as frequently since Penn State and Pittsburgh joined football conferences in the 1990s,😊 the rivalry between the two schools continues to divide the state.
The Philadelphia Big 5 play a basketball round robin every😊 year to determine the top basketball school in the Philadelphia area.
Pittsburgh is also home to a heated basketball rivalry, as😊 Duquesne and Pittsburgh play each other every year in the City Game.
The Lehigh Valley is home to a heated college😊 football rivalry so deeply ingrained into both schools' traditions that the annual game is simply known as "The Rivalry."
Since the😊 NCAA tournament began in 1939, Pennsylvania has produced four Division I basketball champions: La Salle won the championship in 1954,😊 while Villanova won the championship in 1985, 2016, and 2018.
In football, four different Pennsylvania schools claim Division I FBS championships.
Pittsburgh😊 claims nine national titles, Penn claims seven titles, Penn State claims two titles, and Lafayette claims one title.
Since the division's😊 formation in 1978, Villanova's 2009 championship is the lone FCS championship won by a Pennsylvania school.
Lehigh also has one appearance😊 in the championship game.
List of championships [ edit ]
Championships won by Pennsylvania teams in NCAA Division I FBS football,[8] NCAA😊 Division I Men's Basketball,[9] and the five major leagues (MLB, NHL, NFL, NBA, NASL/MLS):Lacrosse [ edit ]
Lacrosse in Pennsylvania has😊 a long history.
Lehigh, Swarthmore, and Penn were early members of the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association, and lacrosse is now😊 played at many Pennsylvania colleges.
Pennsylvania has had professional lacrosse teams such as the Philadelphia Wings and the Pittsburgh Bulls, and😊 the Wings have now returned to action, beginning in 2018.
Olympians [ edit ]
Bicycle racing [ edit ]
Pennsylvania hosts the Pro😊 Cycling Tour "Triple Crown of Cycling" bicycle races each June, with the Tom Bamford Lancaster Classic, the Reading Classic, and😊 the Philadelphia International Championship.
The PCT is sanctioned by USA Cycling, the national governing body for cycling in the United States.
Pennsylvania😊 also hosts the Univest Grand Prix professional bicycle race each year in September, sanctioned by the Union Cycliste Internationale, the😊 worldwide governing body for cycling.
The road race starts and finishes in Souderton, while the criterium is located in Doylestown.
The Valley😊 Preferred Cycling Center annually hosts a USA Cycling Elite Nationals qualifying event.
Floyd Landis, of Farmersville was stripped of his 2006😊 Tour de France title due to prohibited doping.
Motorsports [ edit ]
The Mario Andretti dynasty of race drivers hails from Nazareth,😊 Pennsylvania.
Pocono Raceway in Long Pond is home to two NASCAR race weekends a year, the Axalta "We Paint Winners" 400😊 in early June and the Pennsylvania 400 in late July or early August, and an IndyCar race weekend, the ABC😊 Supply 500 in August.
Pennsylvania has also seen success in the sport of drag racing in the form of five time😊 NHRA Top Fuel champion Joe Amato
Dirt track racing [ edit ]
Dirt ovals include Dunn Hill 2 Speedway in Monroeton, Allegheny😊 Mountain Raceway in Kane, Bedford Speedway in Bedford, Big Diamond Raceway in Minersville, Blanket Hill Speedway in Kittanning, Borger's Speedway😊 in Saylorsburg, Bradford Speedway in Bradford, Challenger Raceway in Indiana, Clinton County Raceway in Lock Haven, Clyde Martin Memorial Speedway😊 in Schaefferstown, Dog Hollow Speedway in Strongstown, Eriez Speedway in Erie, Farmington VFD Speedway in Farmington, Gamblers Raceway Park in😊 Clearfield, Grandview Speedway in Bechtelsville, Greenwood Valley Action Track in Millville, Hamlin Speedway in Hamlin, Hesston Speedway in Huntingdon, Hill😊 Valley Speedway in Orbisonia, Hummingbird Speedway in Falls Creek, Lake Moc-A-Tek Speedway in Lakeville, Latrobe Speedway in Latrobe, Lernerville Speedway😊 in Sarver, Lincoln Speedway in Abbottstown, Linda's Speedway in Jonestown (Lebanon County), Marion Center Speedway in Marion Center, McKean County😊 Raceway in East Smethport, Mercer Raceway Park in Mercer, Path Valley Speedway Park in Spring Run, Penn Can Speedway in😊 Susquehanna, Pittsburgh's Pa Motor Speedway in Imperial, Port Royal Speedway in Port Royal, Redline Raceway in Troy, Roaring Knob Motorsports😊 Complex in Markleysburg, Selinsgrove Speedway in Selinsgrove, Shippensburg Speedway in Shippensburg, Silver Spring Speedway in Mechanicsburg [Operated 1953–2005], Snydersville Raceway😊 in Snydersville, Susquehanna Speedway in Newberrytown, The Fairgrounds At Kutztown in Kutztown, Thunder Valley Raceway in Central City, Trail-Way Speedway😊 in Hanover, Tri-City Speedway in Franklin, Williams Grove Speedway in Mechanicsburg, and Windber Speedway in Windber.
Other motorsport venues [ edit😊 ]
Asphalt ovals in Pennsylvania include Jennerstown Speedway in Jennerstown, Lake Erie Speedway in North East, Mahoning Valley Speedway in Lehighton,😊 Motordome Speedway in Smithton (closed), Mountain Speedway in St.
Johns, Nazareth Speedway in Nazareth (closed), and Pocono Raceway in Long Pond,😊 CNB Bank Raceway Park Formerly known as Central PA Speedway Clearfield, Pennsylvania
Drag Strips include Beaver Springs Dragway in Beaver Springs,😊 Lucky Drag City in Wattsburg, Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Numidia Raceway in Numidia, Pittsburgh Raceway Park in New Alexandria,😊 and South Mountain Dragway in Boiling Springs.
Road Courses include Pittsburgh International Race Complex in Wampum, and Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix😊 in Pittsburgh.
Pocono Raceway in Long Pond also has a road course that hosts SCCA and other events.
Horse racing [ edit😊 ]
Pennsylvania has a long history of horse racing, as the sport was one of the few that was not banned😊 in 17th century Pennsylvania.
William Penn, the founder of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania, reportedly raced his horses down the streets of Philadelphia.
[11]😊 Stephen Foster wrote the song "Camptown Races" about horse racing in Pennsylvania.
Philadelphia-area businessman Samuel D.
Riddle owned prominent horses Man o'😊 War and War Admiral.
Penn National Race Course in Grantville, Parx Racing in Bensalem, and Presque Isle Downs near Erie offer😊 thoroughbred racing.
The Meadows in Pittsburgh, Mohegan Pennsylvania in Wilkes-Barre, and Harrah's Philadelphia in Chester offer harness racing in Pennsylvania.
Smarty Jones,😊 the 2004 Kentucky Derby winner, was owned by Roy Chapman and wife Patricia.
Smarty Jones was bred at Chapman's Someday Farm😊 (Patricia explains the name: "Some day we were going to do this and some day we were going to do😊 that.
And my husband said, 'I think we ought to call it Someday Farm,' so we did.
") near Philadelphia, and had😊 Philadelphia Park (now Parx Racing) as his home course.[12]
Barbaro, the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner, came from Mr.and Mrs.
Roy Jackson's Lael😊 Stables in West Grove.
After suffering injuries in the Preakness Stakes on May 20, 2006, Barbaro was treated for laminitis.
He developed😊 further complications, and was euthanized on January 29, 2007.
Golf [ edit ]
PGA Tour tournaments in Pennsylvania include the 84 Lumber😊 Classic, played at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort in Farmington, and the Northeast Pennsylvania Classic, played at Glenmaura National Golf Club in😊 Scranton.
There is also the PGT (Pittsburgh Golfers Tour) which is people from all over the east coast joining a club😊 where the owner schedules tournaments all over the state.
Arnold Palmer, winner of seven major golf championships and 62 PGA Tour😊 events, was from Latrobe.
Jim Furyk, winner of the 2003 U.S.
Open and 2010 Tour Championship, grew up near Lancaster.
Wrestling [ edit😊 ]
Pennsylvania is an area of the United States that features some of the most elite levels of high school wrestling😊 and collegiate wrestling.
[13] Many of the top collegiate wrestlers are produced from Pennsylvania,[14] with Pennsylvania's own Pittsburgh Wrestling Classic serving😊 as a national level high school All-Star event, featuring the top PA wrestlers in a dual team match against the😊 top wrestlers from other states in the country.
[15] It was started in 1975 as the Dapper Dan Wrestling Classic,[16] sponsored😊 by Dapper Dan Charities.[17]
During the 2010s, the Penn State Nittany Lions wrestling team won eight national championships.
Many Pennsylvania wrestlers have😊 also represented the U.S.
on the international circuit, including on Team USA World and Olympic teams.
Notable Pennsylvania wrestlers include Kurt Angle😊 (from Mt.
Lebanon), Nate Carr (from Erie), Stanley Dziedzic (from Allentown), Carlton Haselrig (from Johnstown), Jake Herbert (from Pittsburgh), Cary Kolat😊 (from Rices Landing), Spencer Lee (from Saegertown), Jason Nolf (from Yatesboro), Jordan Oliver (from Easton), Zain Retherford (from Benton), Ed😊 Ruth (from Harrisburg), Coleman Scott (from Waynesburg), Wade Schalles (from Hollidaysburg), Bobby Weaver (from Easton), and others.
Poker [ edit ]
Texas😊 Hold 'em Poker [ edit ]
Texas hold'em poker was found in 2009 not to be gambling under the Pennsylvania Crimes😊 Code by Judge Thomas A.James Jr.
in the case of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania vs Walter Watkins.[18]
The case involved a $1/$2 table😊 stakes Texas Hold 'em Poker game with a dealer making tips.
The organizers were charged with 20 counts of violating Section😊 5513 sections (a)(2), (a)(3), and (a)(4), related to "unlawful gambling", and had materials related to the games confiscated by police😊 as "gambling devices".
[18] Section 5513 of the Pennsylvania Code makes it a misdemeanor of the first degree for a person😊 to invite or allows other people to gather in a place of his control for the purpose of "unlawful gambling".
In😊 his decision, Judge Thomas A.James Jr.
stated, "[T]here are three elements of gambling: consideration, chance and reward.
" The judge found through😊 a four pronged test that skill predominates over chance, and that Texas Hold' em is a game of skill, therefore😊 not gambling.[18]
Specifically, the decision states:
The court finds that Texas Hold 'em poker is a game where skill predominates over chance.
Thus,😊 it is not "unlawful gambling' under the Pennsylvania Crimes Code.
Section 5512(d), which provides definitions, states:
As used in this section the😊 term "unlawful" means not specifically authorized by law.
Section 5513 states: (emphasis added)§ 5513.
Gambling devices, gambling, etc.
(a) Offense defined.
--A person is😊 guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree if he: (1) intentionally or knowingly makes, assembles, sets up, maintains, sells,😊 lends, leases, gives away, or offers for sale, loan, lease or gift, any punch board, drawing card, slot machine or😊 any device to be used for gambling purposes, except playing cards; (2) allows persons to collect and assemble for the😊 purpose of unlawful gambling at any place under his control; (3) solicits or invites any person to visit any unlawful😊 gambling place for the purpose of gambling; or (4) being the owner, tenant, lessee or occupant of any premises, knowingly😊 permits or suffers the same, or any part thereof, to be used for the purpose of unlawful gambling.
Other Poker games😊 [ edit ]
In the 1949 case of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania V.
Silverman, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that the "Sporadic or😊 casual act of playing cards or betting is not an indictable offense in Pennsylvania."
In 2004, Lackawanna County District Attorney Andy😊 Jarbola was quoted as saying, "it's legal to gather with friends to play poker but it's not legal when the😊 'house' or an outside party profits from the game."[19]
In 2005, York County District Attorney Stan Rebert was asked about illegal😊 poker games in the York area by the York Daily Record.
He replied that he had not heard of any and😊 that it's not something that he would worry about."Casual gambling ...
that is not illegal", he said, "It's kind of a😊 fine line."[20]
Previous legal challenges and legislative initiatives have taken place, but until recently, none have changed the status of poker😊 in Pennsylvania.
HB2121 would authorize table games, including poker, in Pennsylvania's recently authorized casinos.
HB947 would authorize poker tournaments to be held😊 by the holders of licenses for small games of chance.
In Lewistown, three members of the Brooklyn Hose Fire Co.
were charged😊 with unlawful gambling for the poker tournaments held there.[21]
In Greensburg, a defense attorney who had $10,000 and equipment confiscated from😊 his office from poker tournaments is suing for their return.
The attorney has not been charged and insists that poker tournaments😊 are legal games of skill.[22]
The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board has published an FAQ page on the legalities of Texas Hold'em😊 Poker for licensed establishments.
Other sports [ edit ]
Joe Sweeney holds the national Pennsylvania championship for table tennis.
After each victory, he😊 celebrates by staring directly into the eyes of his opponent and let's out a classic "surfer dude laugh."
The Delaware Valley😊 was a center of cricket in the United States, with players such as Bart King competing for early 20th century😊 teams such as the Philadelphia Cricket Club.
Pennsylvania has been home to many accomplished boxers, including Tommy Loughran, Joe Frazier, and😊 Bernard Hopkins.
Pennsylvania has also been home to prominent tennis players, such as Donald Johnson and Bill Tilden.The U.S.
Pro Indoor was😊 held from 1969 to 1998, and the Advanta Championships of Philadelphia from 1971 to 2005.
The Philadelphia Freedoms play in World😊 TeamTennis.
Another team, the Pittsburgh Triangles, played in the league in the 1970s.
Pennsylvania has a strong track and field tradition.
Events include😊 the Penn Relays and the Pittsburgh Great Race.
Famous swimmers from Pennsylvania include Johnny Weissmuller and Brendan Hansen.
The Professional Inline Hockey😊 Association was founded in Middletown, Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Typhoon and Harrisburg Lunatics both play in the league.
The American Inline Hockey League😊 was founded in Bensalem after the league split off from the Professional Inline Hockey Association.
The Delco Demons and the Pittsburgh😊 Bandits play in the AIHL.
The Bucks County Sharks, the Philadelphia Fight and the Pittsburgh Sledgehammers are members of the USA😊 Rugby League, the top rugby league competition in the United States.
The Pennsylvania Rebellion played in the National Pro Fastpitch league,😊 the former professional women's softball league in the United States.
Allentown is home to The Holy Name Cadets of Drum Corps😊 International.
The Pittsburgh Thunderbirds and the Philadelphia Phoenix compete in the American Ultimate Disc League.
See also [ edit ]
