The city of San Francisco has been witness to two of the greatest moments in sports history.
On Jan. 10th, 1982 Dwight Clark caught Joe Montana's pass in the back of end of zone in the final moments of the NFC Championship game. "The Catch," as it's now called, sent the 49'ers to their first ever Super Bowl and secured Montana and Clark's place in NFL lore.
On Aug. 7, 2007, San Francisco Giants slugger Barry Bonds hit his 756th home run to establish the new mark for most home runs in a career. Despite being embroiled in a steroid scandal, Bonds broke the sports' most venerated and hallowed record.
The city of San Francisco is home to two prominent sports team, the 49'ers of the NFL and the Giants of Major League Baseball.
The 49'ers have been around since 1946. After years of mediocrity, the franchise finally broke through with a world title at the end of the 1981 season. The team would go on to win four more Super Bowls in an eleven-year period.
Perhaps the greatest football player of all-time, wide receiver Jerry Rice, played for the 49'ers from 1985 to 2000. Other 49'er greats include Montana, Steve Young, Ronnie Lott and Hugh McElhenny.
Since 1971 the 49'ers have called Candlestick Park their home. The team currently plays in the NFC West. Their rivals are the Arizona Cardinals, the St. Louis Rams and the Seattle Seahawks. Due to numerous postseason meetings, the 49'ers also have a fierce rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys.
The baseball Giants moved to San Francisco from New York in 1958. The ballclub plays their home games at AT&T Park.
Since moving to the City by the Bay, the Giants have won three NL Pennants and reached the postseason eight times. Unfortunately since coming to California the ballclub has yet to capture a World Series title.
In 1989, the Giants were involved in the tragic Earthquake Series. That year the Giants faced their Bay Area rivals, the Oakland Athletics, in a World Series that was suspended 10 days due to the Loma Pieta earthquake. The Giants were eventually swept by the A's in one of the most lopsided Fall Classics in Major League Baseball history.
The Giants and their NL West counterpart, the Los Angeles Dodgers, have one of baseball's fiercest rivalries. Regardless of where the two teams are in the standings their games are always contentious and hard fought.
The Giants also have heated rivalries with the three other members of the NL West: the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Colorado Rockies, and the San Diego Padres.
Notable Giants include hall of famers Willie Mays, Juan Marichal, Orlando Cepeda and Willie McCovey.
If you include the entire San Francisco Bay Area, sports fans have a wide variety of teams to root for at both the professional and the collegiate level.
Across the bay in Oakland you'll find the Golden State Warriors, the Oakland Athletics and the Oakland Raiders.
The Raiders play in the AFC West and are rivals with just about every team they come in contact with. However, the Denver Broncos, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the San Diego Chargers have historically been the Silver and Black's main foes.
The three-time Super Bowl champion Raiders play at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. They have some of the most loyal and creative fans in all of sports. Many of them come to games dressed in ghoulish costumes apparently left over from Halloween. It's no wonder there's a section of the stadium called the Black Hole.
The Athletics also play at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. They were originally founded in 1901 in the city of Philadelphia. After a brief stint in Kansas City, the franchise made their way to Oakland. Since coming to the Bay Area in 1968, the A's have won four World Series.
The Athletics play in the American League West and have rivalries with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the Seattle Mariners and the Texas Rangers.
The Golden State Warriors, also originating from Philadelphia, are the Bay Area's lone representative in the NBA. They play at Oracle Arena and are currently aligned in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They have not won a championship since 1975.
The San Jose Sharks joined the NHL as an expansion team in 1991. They currently play at the HP Pavilion at San Jose. They've won the Pacific Division of the Western Conference four times and in 2008-09 won the league's President's Trophy for the most regular season points.
Major League Soccer is represented in San Francisco County by the San Jose Earthquakes. Their home pitch is at Buck Shaw Stadium in Santa Clara.
In 1995, the team won the very first MLS game ever played. The franchise was suspended at the conclusion of the 2005 season and its players and coaches moved to Houston. San Jose returned to the MLS in 2008.
The Bay Area has three schools with Division I football teams: California, Stanford and San Jose State.
The annual game between Cal and Stanford is one of college football's most anticipated matchups. The contest is simply known as the "Big Game." In 1982, it produced what many call the greatest play in college football history.
"The Play," as it has come to be known, saw Cal use a series of laterals to score a game-winning touchdown with no time left on the clock. In one of college football's most indelible highlights, a Cal player spiked the ball on a member of the Stanford band who was prematurely running onto the field to celebrate.
Both California and Stanford play in the Pac-Ten. Cal plays its home games at California Memorial Stadium located in Berkeley while Stanford plays at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto.
San Jose State is a member of the Western Athletic Conference. Their home field is called Spartan Stadium. They have rivalries with Boise State, Hawaii, and Fresno State.
Every year, San Jose plays Stanford in the Bill Walsh Legacy Game. The Super Bowl winning coach of the 49'ers had ties with both schools--he graduated from San Jose State and coached at Stanford.
While they don't have division I football squads, Saint Mary's College, University of San Francisco, and Santa Clara Universities all have prominent athletic programs.
