Professional Sports
Baseball | Basketball | Hockey | Horse Racing | Racing (Auto/Drag) | Soccer |
Portland Beavers (AAA Baseball)
The Portland Beavers are the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres. The Beavers returned to Portland in 2001. They play all of their home games at PGE Park.
Portland International Raceway
Portland International Raceway (PIR) is built on the former location of the World War II city of Vanport, which was wiped out by a 1948 flood. The Army Corps of Engineers sold the site to the City of Portland in 1960 and in 1961 the first Rose Cup races were held. In 1965 the first drag races were held at PIR and the first Trans Am races in 1972. In 1978 IMSA came to Portland with the first GTP sports car race in the G.I. Joe's/Camel Gran Prix, followed in 1984 by CART with Indy Cars in the Freightliner/G.I. Joe's 200.
Portland Meadows
Portland Meadows opened September 14, 1946 and made history as the first thoroughbred track in the nation to offer night time racing. This was made possible by use of a lighting system designed by General Electric which has been said has enough power "to light a four-lane superhighway from Portland to Salem, a distance of 40 miles."
Portland Timbers (USL Soccer)
The Portland Timbers re-emerged in 2001 with the same spirit and passion for the game as the old Timbers of the North American Soccer League (NASL) days in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Since joining the United Soccer Leagues (USL) First Division, previously called the A-League, in 2001, the Timbers have quickly established a tradition of success in the Rose City - posting five winning seasons - and have advanced to the playoffs in four of the past six years. The Timbers have called PGE Park in downtown Portland home since the inaugural USL First Division season in 2001. At PGE Park the Timbers have played numerous key matches against USL rivals the Seattle Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps as well as high-profile exhibition matches against MLS clubs and English sides Sunderland and Coventry City.
Portland Trail Blazers (NBA Basketball)
The Portland Trail Blazers joined the NBA in 1970. After struggling through several building years, in 1977, the Trail Blazers had their first winning season and remarkably won their first World Championship. Blazermania was born and "Rip City" was on the map.
Since then, the Trail Blazers have become one of the most solid franchises in NBA history. After missing the playoffs for a few years, they were back in the playoffs in 2009.
Portland Winterhawks (WHL Hockey)
The Portland Winterhawks are a major junior ice hockey team, playing in the Western Hockey League, a member league in the Canadian Hockey League, the highest level of non-professional hockey in the world. They play their home games at the Memorial Coliseum, though typically a few games each season are also played in the neighboring Rose Garden.
The Winterhawks have won the President's Cup twice, and the Memorial Cup twice in four appearances. The team has been in Portland since 1976–77 when the team moved from Edmonton, Alberta. While known as the Edmonton Oil Kings, the team won the Memorial Cup twice and was runner-up seven times.
