The state of Wisconsin has the 20th ranked population among states in the United States with 5.9 million residents. Despite not having a larger population like Texas, California, and New York, there are still three Wisconsin professional sports teams.
Wisconsin Pro Sports Landscape
Of course, those three teams are the Green Bay Packers of the NFL, Milwaukee Brewers of MLB, and Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA.
In recent years, Wisconsin sports fans have been fortunate to see all three of their professional sports teams be competitive all at the same time. Indeed, all three have made their league’s version of the postseason in each of the last two seasons, and in every year but two since 2018.
While other sports such as horse racing are present throughout the United States, horse racing in the UK today, for instance, remains a much more popular option. Team sports dominate the Wisconsin landscape. While each of the Packers, Brewers, and Bucks have been competitive in recent seasons, one stands alone historically as the most successful team in the state of Wisconsin.
The Green Bay Packers Have 13 NFL Championships
There is a reason Green Bay, Wisconsin is known as Titletown. One of the oldest franchises in the history of the NFL, the Packers also have more league titles than any other team.
They won their first three by having the best record in the NFL in each season between 1929-1931, making them the first (and still the only) team in league history to win three championships in a row.
Green Bay has won 10 titles since the NFL introduced their playoff system, which included victories in Super Bowl I and Super II. These were preceded by an NFL Championship in 1965, which made their victory in the second Super Bowl their third consecutive NFL title.
Prior to this second three-peat, Green Bay won NFL titles in 1933, 1936, 1939, 1944, 1961, and 1962.
Most recently, the Packers have added Super Bowl wins in Super Bowl XXXI and XLV.
The Milwaukee Bucks Have Won Two NBA Championships
Outside of the Packers, the state of Wisconsin has not seen many league championship trophies come home to the state. The Bucks, however, are the most recent team in the state to have won a league title.
They did this most recently winning the Championship in 2021 with a 4-2 series win against the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Finals that year. It was their first league title in 50 years.
Their previous NBA Finals win came in 1971 in just their third season in the league.
The Milwaukee Brewers Have Not Won Any World Series Titles
Unfortunately, the fans in Wisconsin are still waiting for the Brewers to bring home their first World Series title in franchise history. The city of Milwaukee did see a World Series won by their home-state team back in 1957, but that was before the Braves moved to Atlanta.
There Have Been Multiple League MVP Awards Won by Packers, Bucks, and Brewers Players
While the Brewers may not have won a World Series yet, they do have the second-most league MVP Awards won by players representing Wisconsin’s professional sports teams.
Green Bay Packers Who Have Won NFL MVP
- Paul Hornung (1961)
- Jim Taylor (1962)
- Bart Starr (1966)
- Brett Favre (1995, 1996, 1997)
- Aaron Rodgers (2011, 2014, 2020, 2021)
In addition having five MVP Award winners in their history, the Packers also boast two Defensive Players of the Year:
- Reggie White (1998)
- Charles Woodson (2009)
Milwaukee Bucks Who Have Won NBA MVP
- Kareem Abdul Jabbar (1971-72, 1973-74)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (2018-19, 2019-2020)
In addition to these league MVP awards, the following two players have won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award:
- Sidney Moncrief (1982-83, 1983-84)
- Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019-20)
Milwaukee Brewers Who Have Won AL/NL MVP
- Rollie Fingers (1981)
- Robin Yount (1982, 1989)
- Ryan Braun (2011)
- Christian Yelich (2018)
In addition to league MVP’s the Brewers also boast three league Cy Young Award winners:
- Rollie Fingers (1981)
- Pete Vuckovich (1982)
- Corbin Burnes (2021)
