Will 2025 be a big year for Atlanta sports?

Atlanta is home to five major sports franchises. The Braves. The Falcons. The Hawks. The Dream, and Atlanta United FC. It’s not hard for sports fans in Atlanta to find a game to tune into. What’s more, many of these teams have shown promising results in the last few years.

As we head into the holiday season for 2024, sports fans are already looking ahead to the next calendar year, Googling  Super Bowl betting odds, and marking their calendars for events in the next season. Will this be a good year for Atlanta sports fans?

Atlanta basketball

Atlanta basketball fans had a lot to watch last year. While the Atlanta Hawks failed to make the playoffs during the 2024 season, the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream generated considerable interest, making it to the first round of the postseason during a year where the spotlight was on the women’s game.

Though the Dream was eliminated in the first round by the New York Liberty (who would go on to win the championship in a fiercely contested series against the Minnesota Lynx) they showed momentum at the end of the regular season, beating the Liberty in the final game of play to secure their playoff position.

This past year made for two consecutive post-season appearances for a team with an otherwise spotty playoff record.

It’s worth noting that the Dream will head into 2025 under new leadership. Despite making the playoffs, the team fired coach Tanisha Wright after recording a three season losing record. As of this November, they have announced Florida Gulf Coast coach Karl Smesko as her replacement. 

While the outlook for the men’s game is slightly less optimistic, it’s still early in the season. While the Hawks currently rank toward the bottom of the Eastern Conference roster, there is plenty of basketball ahead.

Atlanta baseball

The Atlanta Braves managed to do a lot with their injury-depleted roster this year. The season began with a mantra among fans. “World Series or bust.” While Braves fans didn’t see their team win the Pennant this year, it’s fair to say that they also didn’t witness a bust.

The Braves had to fight their way into the postseason with two wins against the Mets in late September. Though they didn’t make it out of the first round of postseason play for the second straight year, the team showed that it could produce results even under less-than-ideal circumstances.

Spencer Strider and Ronald Acuna Jr. were both out with injuries for much of the season, making it hard for the franchise to develop the momentum it originally expected at the beginning of the season.

Still, there is hope for a better 2025 from this franchise, which will be going in with an impressive seven consecutive postseason appearances behind them.

Atlanta football

At the time of writing, the Atlanta Falcons have a strong 6-4 record. The team is currently heavily favored to make the playoffs this season. While critics have expressed concern about the team’s defense, they have a relatively soft schedule ahead of them, only playing three teams that appeared in the post-season last year for the remainder of their schedule. Of course, the likelihood of them appearing come February in the Superbowl is another matter.

While many analysts express doubt on that point, you never know what will happen in the playoffs.

Atlanta soccer

Then there is Atlanta United. This franchise, which formed in 2017, had a moment recently when they eliminated Lionel Messis’ favored Inter Miami from the first round of playoffs. Sportswriters are currently referring to the victory as the biggest upset in MLS history.

Obviously, that’s exciting stuff for fans of Atlanta soccer. The premise of this article is to look ahead into next season’s sporting events, in the world of soccer, there is still plenty of excitement left in the 2024 season.

Will Atlanta United grab the brass ring? They aren’t supposed to, but they also weren’t supposed to beat Inter Miami.

Atlanta United does have a history of success at the highest level. They won the league championship back in 2018, in their second season of existence. While there is no telling what will happen this year, Atlanta soccer fans have a lot to be excited about.  

Conclusion

Atlanta sports do not enjoy the same level of nationwide attention that is experienced by New York franchises. That’s the rest of the country’s loss. True though it is that none of our franchises have yet earned championships this 2024 season (fingers still crossed for United, and the Falcons) it is true that our fanbase has enjoyed consistent postseason appearances, both this year and in the past.

There is a lot of excitement to look forward to in the world of Atlanta sports, in 2025.

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