Im starting off with Baseball, than I shall do how this effects what happens in Football, then Basketball, then Hockey, then NASCAR (maybe)
1948: The Philadelphia Phillies have just completed their sixteenth consecutive losing season, and their 29th in the 30 years. Attendance is down, and though their cross town rivals, the Philadelphia Athletics are struggling, they still draw much better than the Phillies. There is only one clear option, the team was sold to a group from Baltimore, and the Philadelphia Phillies moved south, taking on the name the Baltimore Orioles, and began playing in Municipal Stadium. The move was approved overwhelmingly by National League owners, eager to tap the Baltimore market (where the minor league Orioles drew large crowds).
1949: The move to Baltimore paid off for the franchise where the Orioles finished third in the National League with an 84-70.
1950: The Baltimore Orioles win the first pennant in franchise history, going on to defeat the New York Yankees in the World Series (Ironically the Yankees were once known as the Baltimore Orioles before moving to New York, half a century before). The team is called the Whiz Kids by the Baltimore media. It also was the first year, the Orioles played in Baltimore Memorial Stadium, where the team remained for over forty years.
1952: Hoping to duplicate the success the Orioles have had after their move from Philadelphia, the Boston Braves move westward to Milwaukee becoming the Milwaukee Braves.
1953: Like the Orioles, the Braves first season in their new city is a resounding success, squeaking past Baltimore to lead the National League in attendance.
1955: The American League is the first to become bi-coastal, when the St Louis Browns relocate to Los Angeles after Bill Veeck sold the franchise. The team became known as the Los Angeles Angels playing in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
1957: The National League expands to San Francisco (Seals) and Minnesota (Twins)
1958: The American League expands to Houston (Colt .45’s) and Kansas City (Blues); the Los Angeles Angels begin play at their new park, Angel Stadium at Chavez Ravine.
1959: Two major league franchises begin sniffing around to relocate, the rumor mill has the Brooklyn Dodgers looking to Buffalo and Indianapolis, and the Washington Senators talking to New Orleans and Louisville. Both situations are resolved by new stadiums deals, with D.C. Stadium scheduled to open in 1961 and Dodger Stadium scheduled to open in 1962. New York also approves construction of a new stadium in Flushing to host both the baseball Giants, and the football Giants, the Stadium was appropriately named Giants Stadium, and it was scheduled to open in 1964.
1960’s: It was a new era for Major League Baseball, teams began looking to increase their venue by relocating into new stadiums, and Major League Baseball would add four new franchises.
1962: Dodger stadium opens in Brooklyn, as does Candlestick Park in San Francisco, the two stadiums were dubbed the Twin Diamonds. The two parks were identical in nearly every way.
1965: The Houston Colt .45’s, change their name to the Astros, beginning play in the Astrodome. After years in Sportsman Park, the Cardinals played their final game defeating the Baltimore Orioles 3-2.
1966: Busch Stadium opens in St Louis, Mo; the Philadelphia Athletics threaten to move to Toronto, much to the outrage of the people of Philadelphia who lost the Phillies 18 years before. The move proposal is blocked by the American League; MLB promises the city of Toronto an expansion franchise.
1967: MLB adds four new teams, the American League expands to Toronto (Canucks) and Seattle (Rainers), and the National League expands to San Diego (Padres) and Dallas (Texans).
1968: Surprised and upset to be passed up by the expansion, Atlanta successfully lures the struggling Chicago White Sox to Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. The team becomes known as the Atlanta White Sox.
1970: Riverfront Stadium opens in Cincinnati as a home for the Reds; Three Rivers Stadium opens in Pittsburgh as a home for the Pirates.
1971: Veterans Stadium opens in Philadelphia, becoming the home of the Athletics.
1972: Brooklyn Dodgers all-star outfielder Roberto Clemente is killed in a plane crash en route to Puerto Rico.
1973: Kansas City Stadium opens as a home to the Blues. After failing to purchase the Cleveland Indians, George Steinbrenner purchases the Washington Senators from the Griffith family. It is the dawning of a new era for baseball in the nation’s capital; the team which had constantly been in last place became a winner by signing great players such as Reggie Jackson, Frank Robinson, and Pete Rose in the era of Free Agency.
1974: The Seattle Rainers move to Denver, Colorado, renamed the team Colorado Rockies; the team began play in Mile High Stadium
1981: The American League Expands, adding a new team to Seattle (Mariners) and Indianapolis (Arrows)
1982: A strike costs the game 79 days, with owners using replacement players to complete season. The San Francisco Seals win their first world series beating the Atlanta White Sox 4 games to 1. The strike ends in April, when the owners are poised to continue using replacement players. The 1983 season is shortened one month, and MLB now has a salary cap. The Metrodome opens in Minneapolis.
1983: The Potomac Series drew very poorly as the Baltimore Orioles defeated the Washington Senators in a seven game series. The Hoosier Dome opens in Indianapolis
1988: The National League expands to Miami (Marlins) and New Orleans (Pelicans)
1989: The Skydome opens in Toronto
1990: Pelican Stadium opens in New Orleans, receiving much fanfare, but soon falls out of favor when the retro-classical stadium look grips the 1990s.
1992: The first retro stadium Oriole Park at Camden Yards opens in Baltimore; it becomes the standard for future ball parks.
1994: The Dallas Texans move into the state of the art Ballpark in Arlington, and the Miami Marlins new retractable roof stadium opens in downtown Miami, the Cleveland Indians leave their old run down stadium for Jacobs Field. It would go down as being one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory with Los Angeles Angels leftfielder Tony Gwynn batting a .404, Cincinnati Reds slugger Dave Justice hit 63 homeruns, Red Sox ace Tom Glavine went 24-5 with a 1.97 era to win the AL Cy Young, and longtime Milwaukee Braves outfielder Dale Murphy got his 3000th hit on the final game of the season against the Miami Marlins, leading the Braves to the National League’s first Wild Card position. The World Series featured two loved teams struggling to win the ever elusive World Series, as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Boston Red Sox in seven games, with each game being decided by one run, and five running into extra innings.
1995: In a tough act to follow MLB had more surprises in 1995, the Rockies opened up Coors Field, Baltimore Orioles Third Baseman Cal Ripken, Jr. broke Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak in August against the St Louis Cardinals. The World Series featured the Philadelphia Athletics Sweeping the New York Giants.
1996: The National League expands for the final time locating a team in Phoenix (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Charlotte (Hornets). Both immediately began play in new stadiums with Bank One Ballpark opening in Phoenix, and the retro-classical BellSouth Stadium just outside of Charlotte.
1997: The White Sox move into Olympic Stadium in downtown Atlanta. Dale Murphy, the player-manager from the Milwaukee Braves retires from playing to free up roster space for a young short stop Derek Jeter.
1998: The final expansion in Major League Baseball, Tampa Bay (Hurricanes) and San Jose (Diablos). Ronald Reagan Stadium opens in Washington D.C. on the banks of the Anacostia River.
1999: Safeco Field opens in Seattle, the baseball world is stunned to learn Hall of Fame First baseman Pete Rose was busted for betting on baseball, he is suspended by Commissioner Bush. Fans debate whether or not Rose, who was managing the Philadelphia Athletics at the time, should remain in the Hall of Fame.
2000: The year of the new stadiums, Pacific Bell Park opens in San Francisco, Comerica Park open in Detroit, and Enron Field opens in Houston.
2001: The Milwaukee Braves get a new home in Miller Park and PNC Park in Pittsburgh
2002: After 40 years in Dodger Stadium, the Brooklyn team moves into the 38,000 seat, retro-classical New Ebbets Field, the stadium is built over the old field, which was torn down in 1963.
2003: Great American Ball Park opens in Cincinnati, and hosts the 2003 World Series Champion, the Cincinnati Reds.
2004: Two new stadiums open this year, Petco Park in San Diego and Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. The New York Yankees win their first world series since 1990 over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
2005: The New York Giants baseball team moves into their new stadium in Manhattan, NY. The stadium was named after the Giants owner Donald Trump. The Boston Red Sox win their first world series since World War I, triumphing over former cross-city rivals, the Milwaukee Braves.
2006: The St Louis Cardinals move into new Busch Stadium, it is sometimes called the Camden Yards of the mid-west.
Baseball’s future is bright, though the sport is highly unlikely to expand again anytime in the near future. Some fans have criticized the stadium boom as unnecessary, it however can’t be argued over the effect it has had at the team gates. As of opening day 2006, only the Minnesota Twins are scheduled for a new stadium, with construction taking place in St Paul with opening date set in 2008. With both the Giants and Dodgers getting new stadiums, the New York Yankees have moved temporarily to old Dodger Stadium in Brooklyn, while Yankee Stadium is being renovated.