Sports Lists
The 20 Most Famous Songs in Sports
Nick Dimengo@@itsnickdimengoTwitter LogoFeatured ColumnistDecember 26, 2012
If you've ever owned any of the Jock Jams albums, you know that there are some songs that sporting events just can't help but play.
For whatever reason, these songs get fans fired up and on their feet during a game, hoping to inspire performances from the players.
While some songs are definitely overplayed, getting blared through the stadium's sound system every single game, there's no denying their popularity.
Journey: "Don't Stop Believin'"
Sure, this might be every drunk sorority girl's go-to karaoke song, but while you plug your ears at every singing bar Thursday through Saturday, you get up and dance each time it plays at a sporting event.
We all know the words, so go ahead and get out of your seat to try and get on that Jumbotron man!
House of Pain: "Jump Around"
Though it's from the early 90s, this crowd-pleaser still gets the youngest of fans ready for whatever sport they're watching.
It gains extra points for the over decade-long tradition that Wisconsin football fans have going, since it's one of the best in college football.
Queen: "We Will Rock You"
If we were putting together a list of top sports bands, Queen might just find itself at the top.
With numerous songs that blast at sporting events everywhere, "We Will Rock You" is the first one we recognize here.
It's short and sweet, making fans taunt the opposition with each word.
Ozzy Osbourne: "Crazy Train"
At some point in baseball's history, some Director of Gameday Events thought it'd be clever to play this Osbourne song each time the bases were loaded.
Thanks to its opening line of "All aboard," it makes plenty of sense, so it's stuck with almost every stadium since.
The Rolling Stones: "Start Me Up"
This classic pregame song, the Stones' classic, can typically be found before a tipoff at a basketball game or a kickoff at a football stadium.
That first guitar chord just gets every fan out of their seat and ready to go.
Blur: "Song 2"
It's one of the more intense songs that found its way into sports, but it definitely gets fans going.
Whenever there's a timeout and the arena needs something to play for fans to get rowdy and on their feet, this song usually finds its way coming through the speakers.
We personally played hoops in our driveway to this song when it first came out, so why wouldn't millionaire athletes do the same?
Ray Charles: "Hit the Road Jack"
Whether it's a guy getting tossed from a basketball game or a pitcher being pulled after getting shelled, this song's typically the go-to at any sporting event.
Hey! It fits pretty damn perfectly, so why not use it?
Guns N' Roses: "Welcome to the Jungle"
With the Cincinnati Bengals (actually) finding success by making the playoffs in the past two seasons, this song's become quite popular in Ohio.
But even outside the 'Nati, fans can be seen making as much noise as possible to the song, reminding opposing teams that they just walked into a zoo full of crazed animals—or just really rowdy fans.
Kevin Rudolf Ft. Lil Wayne: "Let It Rock"
If you've been to an NBA game over the past decade, we bet you've heard this song way too many times to remember.
For whatever reason, it's not too popular in other sports, but when it comes to the hardwood, it's inescapable.
Survivor: "Eye of the Tiger"
When players need to get pumped up and motivated to push themselves over a late-game deficit, where else does the sound guy turn but here?
Fans, players, coaches...pretty much everyone in the building gets that image of Rocky training each time it comes on.
Eminem: "Lose Yourself"
For runners, this song's always on tap for that last mile when we just need to zone out and rap the words in our heads.
But it's not only runners who use it to get amped-up while winding down a long run, as evidenced by its popularity around the sports world.
Let's face it...for any athlete success should be the only option, failure's not.
C+C Music Factory: "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)"
For a song that was released in 1990, it sure has had some staying power amongst sports fans, hasn't it?
Even though the chick actually singing the song and the one who appears in the video aren't even the same person, it's still one of those songs that gets people pumped up, so it just can't fall out of love in stadiums.
Jay-Z and Kanye Ft. Rihanna: "Run This Town"
One of the newer songs being added to an arena's playlist, if there's one way to tell an opponent you're the best, you might as well let two of the biggest rappers on the planet do it for you!
Forget being the best in the damn arena, the home team's got the swag to be the best in town.
Zombie Nation: "Kernkraft 400"
Admit it. This song pisses you off every time you hear it.
We know it does, yet it effectively gets our tipsy behinds out of our seats and moving.
Without sports, where on Earth would this German techno song ever be played? Chances are, absolutely nowhere.
The Alan Parsons Project: "Sirius"
Thanks to every kid in the mid-90s basically loving MJ and the Bulls, we all know that the Parsons Project's jam was how Jordan and his teammates found their way onto the court in introductions.
We're still not convinced Jordan didn't do more for these guys' careers than he did for Scottie Pippen's.
The White Stripes: "Seven Nation Army"
Though it gained most of its popularity overseas thanks to it becoming the theme song for a majority of soccer clubs around Europe, every time someone says the famous, "Ohh, ohh, oh, oh, oh, ohhhhh, ohhhhh," it gets every fan going.
Who would have ever thought a pale-skinned guy like Jack White would influence so many in the sports world?
Village People: "YMCA"
A bunch of guys dressed as Indians and cops might not exactly scream athletics, but for some reason, this song just stuck at sporting events everywhere.
At this point, the YMCA has become similar to the wave, where everyone knows it and is absolutely expected to throw their hands up when it comes on.
Van Halen: "Jump"
While we really like this song because of the rendition Adam Sandler had on his answering machine during the movie Big Daddy, we guess it's cool to hear during a sporting event.
Hey, you might as well jump!
Darude: "Sandstorm"
How can you hear this song and not think about sports?
In fact, if this song weren't played at most sporting events—primarily college venues—we might all be saved from its wrath.
As it is though, its popularity continues to grow thanks to drunken student sections everywhere hopping up and down to it everywhere.
Queen: "We Are the Champions"
If losing a game, or worse, a heartbreaking seven-game series in the playoffs hurts, what adds insult to that injury? The playing of Queen's most famous songs.
Having to walk off the court or field seeing the opposition celebrate with confetti falling to this song definitely rubs it in the losing team's face a little more.