Spectator Sports in Tampa
Major-league baseball fans were thrilled when the Tampa Bay Rays made it to the World Series against Los Angeles in 2020. Although they lost, the team is still a hugely popular draw for sports fans flocking to Tropicana Field, 1 Tropicana Dr., St. Petersburg (tel. 727/825-3137). Tickets range from as low as $35 to as high as in the hundreds, depending on how good their season is.
New York Yankees fans can watch the Bronx Bombers during baseball’s spring training, from mid-February to the end of March, at George M. Steinbrenner Field (tel. 813/875-7753), opposite Raymond James Stadium. This scaled-down replica of Yankee Stadium is the largest spring-training facility in Florida, with a 10,000-seat capacity. Tickets are $45 to $120. Season tickets are expensive and hard to come by. The club’s minor-league team, the Tampa Tarpons, plays at Steinbrenner Field April through August.
National Football League fans can catch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the modern, 66,000-seat Raymond James Stadium, 4201 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard (tel. 813/879-2827), August through December. Single-game tickets are very hard to come by, as they are usually sold out to season-ticket holders. This is a huge football city.
The National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning, winners of the 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup, play in the Amalie Arena starting in October (tel. 813/301-6500). You can usually get single-game tickets ($63–$271) on game day.
The only thoroughbred racetrack on Florida’s west coast is Tampa Bay Downs, 11225 Racetrack Rd., Oldsmar (tel. 813/855-4401), home of the Tampa Bay Derby. Races are held Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from December to May (free on Wednesdays, $3 Fri-Sun), and the track presents simulcasts year-round. Call for post times.
New York Yankees fans can watch the Bronx Bombers during baseball’s spring training, from mid-February to the end of March, at George M. Steinbrenner Field (tel. 813/875-7753), opposite Raymond James Stadium. This scaled-down replica of Yankee Stadium is the largest spring-training facility in Florida, with a 10,000-seat capacity. Tickets are $45 to $120. Season tickets are expensive and hard to come by. The club’s minor-league team, the Tampa Tarpons, plays at Steinbrenner Field April through August.
National Football League fans can catch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the modern, 66,000-seat Raymond James Stadium, 4201 N. Dale Mabry Hwy., at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard (tel. 813/879-2827), August through December. Single-game tickets are very hard to come by, as they are usually sold out to season-ticket holders. This is a huge football city.
The National Hockey League’s Tampa Bay Lightning, winners of the 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup, play in the Amalie Arena starting in October (tel. 813/301-6500). You can usually get single-game tickets ($63–$271) on game day.
The only thoroughbred racetrack on Florida’s west coast is Tampa Bay Downs, 11225 Racetrack Rd., Oldsmar (tel. 813/855-4401), home of the Tampa Bay Derby. Races are held Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from December to May (free on Wednesdays, $3 Fri-Sun), and the track presents simulcasts year-round. Call for post times.
