Pittsburgh is among the only cities that have pro teams that wear the same colors. Each professional sports team, the Major League Baseball (MLB) Pittsburgh Pirates, National Football League (NF) Pittsburgh Steelers, and National Hockey League (NHL) Pittsburgh Penguins, from the Pennsylvania city has the same official team colors of black and gold. The color scheme is in reference to Pittsburgh’s black and gold city flag. However, only the Pittsburgh Steelers have always been black and gold. The Pittsburgh Pirates baseball team colors were red and blue from 1887 to 1947, while the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey team colors have ranged from blue and gold to red and gold from the 1920s until 1980.
More about Pittsburgh sports:
- The black and gold color scheme of Pittsburgh sports teams originates from the family coat of arms from William Pitt, the Lord of Chatham, whom the city is named after.
- In 1943, the Pittsburgh Steelers temporarily merged with the Philadelphia Eagles and became known as the Steagles due to a World War II shortage of football players.
- The Pittsburgh Pirates set the record for longest consecutive losing streak, with 20 losing seasons from 1992 through 2012.
By Allison Boelcke
, Former Writer
Allison Boelcke, a digital marketing manager and freelance writer, helps businesses create compelling content to connect with their target markets and drive results. With a degree in English, she combines her writing skills with marketing expertise to craft engaging content that gets noticed and leads to website traffic and conversions. Her ability to understand and connect with target audiences makes her a valuable asset to any content creation team.