The Greater Sacramento area is a metropolitan region in

Northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...

comprising either the U.S. Census Bureau defined Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade metropolitan statistical area or the larger Sacramento–Roseville combined statistical area, the latter of which consists of seven counties, namely

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

, Yolo, Placer, El Dorado, Sutter, Yuba, and

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

counties. Straddling the Central Valley and

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

regions of California, Greater Sacramento is anchored by the state capital of Sacramento, the political center of California. Greater Sacramento also contains sites of natural beauty including

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; Washo language, Washo: ''dáʔaw'') is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the Western United States, straddling the border between California and Nevada. Lying at above sea level, Lake Tahoe is the largest a ...

, the largest alpine lake in North America and numerous ski and nature resorts. It is also located in one of the world's most important agricultural areas. The region's eastern counties are located in Gold Country, site of the

California Gold Rush The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the U ...

. Since the late 20th century, it has been one of the fastest growing urban regions in the United States as Sacramento continues to emerge as a distinct metropolitan area. In the 1990s, the metro area experienced a growth of just over 20%, with subsequent growth remaining above 10% per decade. In the 2020 Census, the metropolitan region had a population of 2,680,831.

Regional composition

The Greater Sacramento area is composed of seven counties, two metropolitan statistical areas and one micropolitan area. The following counties are located in the Greater Sacramento area: * El Dorado County, California *

Nevada County, California Nevada County ( ) is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California, in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 102,241. The county seat is Nevada City, Califor ...

* Placer County, California *

Sacramento County, California Sacramento County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,585,055. Its county seat is Sacramento, California, Sacramento, which has been the List ...

Sutter County, California Sutter County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 99,633. The county seat is Yuba City, California, Yuba City. Sutter County is includ ...

* Yolo County, California *

Yuba County, California Yuba County (; Maidu: ''Yubu'') is a county located in north-central Central Valley, California, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 81,575. Yuba County is included in the Yuba City metropolitan statistical area, ...

El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo counties comprise the Sacramento–Roseville-Folsom, California, Metropolitan Statistical Area. Sutter and Yuba counties comprise the Yuba City Metropolitan Statistical Area, known as the Yuba–Sutter area. Nevada County comprises the Truckee–Grass Valley Micropolitan Area.

Overview

Greater Sacramento straddles two key regions of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, the Central Valley and the Sierra Nevada mountains and is overlapped by the cultural influences of three areas, the Bay Area, Eastern California and

. An increasing phenomenon taking shape in Greater Sacramento is growth of

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...

as Sacramento and its metropolitan area continue to expand. The growth is due in part to first, higher costs of living in the Bay Area which have caused commuters to move as far as Yolo and Sacramento counties and more recently, growth and rising living costs in the core of Sacramento, building up more areas in the surrounding counties for commuters. Local and state governments are trying to prevent destruction of forests and open land and curbing the spread before Sacramento faces an urban sprawl crisis as the

Greater Los Angeles Area Greater Los Angeles is the most populous metropolitan area in the U.S. state of California, encompassing five counties in Southern California extending from Ventura County in the west to San Bernardino County and Riverside County in the east, ...

has.

is the most populous city in the metropolitan area, home to approximately 526,000 people, making it the sixth-most populous city in California and the 35th most populous in the United States. It has been the state capital of California since 1851 and has played an important role in the history of California. When gold was discovered in nearby

Sutter's Mill Sutter's Mill was a water-powered sawmill on the bank of the South Fork American River in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in California. It was named after its owner John Sutter. A worker constructing the mill, James W. Marshall, found go ...

in Coloma, Sacramento became a boom town luring in migrants making their way from

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

to the gold fields of the Sierras. Although it did not become the financial and cultural center of Northern California, titles that were given to San Francisco, Sacramento became the largest transportation hub of not only Northern California, but also the West Coast following the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad. Sacramento today continues to be one of the largest rail hubs in North America, and its rail station is one of the busiest in the United States. In 2002, Time Magazine featured an article recognizing Sacramento as the most diverse and integrated city in America. Government (state and federal) jobs are still the largest sector of employment in the city and the city council does considerable effort to keep state agencies from moving outside the city limits. The remainder of Sacramento County is suburban in general with most of the working population commuting to Downtown Sacramento and with a smaller proportion commuting all the way to the Bay Area. Squaw Valley California

Yolo County is a mixture of an agricultural area and commuter region, with most of its working population commuting either to the Bay Area or Sacramento for work. It is home to the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...

, campus, the northernmost UC campus and only UC campus in the Greater Sacramento region. El Dorado and Placer Counties form the remainder of the inner core of Greater Sacramento and are composed of the

foothills and mountains. The western areas of the counties are composed of commuter suburbs, with Roseville in Placer County being Sacramento's most populous edge city. The Sierra foothills mostly contain residential acreage properties and small farms. The easternmost areas border Lake Tahoe and are home to numerous ski resorts and towns such as South Lake Tahoe, site of the Heavenly Mountain Resort, which are popular in winter months and nature camps and resorts in summer months. Placer County has been an important mining area not only for gold, but also other minerals and granite. It is also the site of Squaw Valley, which hosted the

1960 Winter Olympics The 1960 Winter Olympics (officially the VIII Olympic Winter Games and also known as Squaw Valley 1960) were a winter multi-sport event held from February 18 to 28, 1960, at the Squaw Valley Resort (now known as Palisades Tahoe) in Squaw Valley ...

, which has been up to date, the only

Winter Olympic Games The Winter Olympic Games (), also known as the Winter Olympics, is a major international multi-sport event held once every four years for sports practiced on snow and ice. The first Winter Olympic Games, the 1924 Winter Olympics, were held in ...

to be held in

and the US West Coast and the smallest city to host an Olympics. The Yuba–Sutter area consists of Yuba and Sutter counties and is a primarily agricultural area, although the southern area is more suburban in character. It is home to Sunsweet Growers, which owns the world's largest dried fruit plant in Yuba City. Nevada County, like El Dorado and Placer Counties, borders Lake Tahoe and contains numerous ski resorts such as the Boreal Mountain Resort, but is more rural than the former two counties and is an important gold mining area. The Donner Memorial State Park is located in the county, where the ill-fated

Donner Party The Donner Party, sometimes called the Donner–Reed Party, was a group of American pioneers who migrated to California interim government, 1846-1850, California in a wagon train from the Midwest. Delayed by a multitude of mishaps, they spent ...

was trapped in winter storms in 1846–47 while attempting to make it to California on a poorly organized trip.

Douglas County, Nevada Douglas County is a County (United States), county in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 49,488. Its county seat is Minden, Nevada, Minden. Douglas County comprises the Gardnerville Ran ...

was recently briefly added to the Sacramento Combined Statistical Area. As Greater Sacramento continues to grow beyond its inner region, Western Nevada continues to be influenced by Sacramento and California and their cultures. However, Douglas County has since been removed again from the Sacramento CSA, and transferred to the Reno-Carson City-Fernley, NV CSA.

Geography and climate

Geography

The western half of Greater Sacramento is centered on the Central Valley, one of the most vital agricultural areas in the country. The Sierra Nevada and its foothills compose the eastern portion of the region. Yolo County contains a large flood control basin. The Sacramento River and the

American River The American River is a List of rivers of California, river in California that runs from the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountain range to its confluence with the Sacramento River in downtown Sacramento. Via the Sacramento River, it ...

are major rivers that form a deepwater port connected to the

San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay (Chochenyo language, Chochenyo: 'ommu) is a large tidal estuary in the United States, U.S. state of California, and gives its name to the San Francisco Bay Area. It is dominated by the cities of San Francisco, California, San ...

by a channel through the Sacramento River Delta. Coniferous and oak-dominated woodland are prevalent in the Sierra Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area.

Climate

Sacramento and the valley area have a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Csa''), characterized by damp to wet, cool winters and hot, dry summers. The wet season is generally October through April. Summer heat is often moderated by a sea breeze known as the "delta breeze" which comes through the

Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta The Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta, or California Delta, is an expansive inland river delta and estuary in Central California and Northern California Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that ...

from the

. January is the coolest month for the entire region with an average maximum of 41.0 °F (5.0 °C) and an average minimum of 15.1 °F (-9.4 °C) in Lake Tahoe. The eastern portion of Greater Sacramento experiences a more varied climate with 90 °F (32.2 °C) temperatures in August to below freezing temperatures in winter. In higher elevations, freezing temperatures have been recorded every month. In the winter, below freezing temperatures are common in Sacramento and lower valley elevations although snowfall is scarce and usually melts on ground contact with significant snowfall occurring roughly every 3–5 years. However, blizzard conditions in winter storms can be common in the higher elevations.

Communities

Incorporated places

* Places with more than 500,000 inhabitants **

* Places with 100,000 to 200,000 inhabitants ** Elk Grove ** Roseville * Places with 50,000 to 100,000 inhabitants ** Citrus Heights ** Davis ** Folsom ** Rancho Cordova ** Rocklin ** West Sacramento ** Woodland ** Yuba City * Places with 10,000 to 50,000 inhabitants ** Auburn ** Galt ** Grass Valley ** Lincoln ** Marysville ** Placerville ** South Lake Tahoe ** Truckee * Places with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants ** Colfax ** Isleton **

Live Oak Live oak or evergreen oak is any of a number of oaks in several different sections of the genus ''Quercus'' that share the characteristic of evergreen foliage. These oaks are generally not more closely related to each other than they are to o ...

** Loomis ** Nevada City ** Wheatland ** Winters

Census-designated places

* Alta Sierra *

Antelope The term antelope refers to numerous extant or recently extinct species of the ruminant artiodactyl family Bovidae that are indigenous to most of Africa, India, the Middle East, Central Asia, and a small area of Eastern Europe. Antelopes do ...

* Arden-Arcade *

Beale Air Force Base Beale Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force base in Yuba County, California, Yuba County, California. It is outside Linda, California, Linda, about east of the towns of Marysville, California, Marysville and Yuba City, and abo ...

* Challenge–Brownsville * Cameron Park * Carmichael * Diamond Springs * Dollar Point * El Dorado Hills * Elverta *

Esparto Esparto, halfah grass, or esparto grass is a fiber produced from two species of perennial grasses of north Africa, Spain and Portugal. It is used for crafts, such as cords, basketry, and espadrilles. '' Stipa tenacissima'' and '' Lygeum spar ...

* Fair Oaks *

Florin The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

* Foothill Farms * Foresthill * Fruitridge Pocket * Georgetown * Gold River * Granite Bay * Kings Beach * La Riviera * Lake of the Pines * Lake Wildwood * Lemon Hill * Linda * Loma Rica * Meadow Vista * North Auburn * North Highlands * Olivehurst * Orangevale *

Parkway A parkway is a landscaped thoroughfare. The term is particularly used for a roadway in a park or connecting to a park from which trucks and other heavy vehicles are excluded. Over the years, many different types of roads have been labeled p ...

* Penn Valley * Plumas Lake * Pollock Pines * Rancho Murieta * Rio Linda * Rosemont * Shingle Springs * South Yuba City * Sunnyside–Tahoe City * Sutter * Tahoe Vista * Tierra Buena *

Vineyard A vineyard ( , ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines. Many vineyards exist for winemaking; others for the production of raisins, table grapes, and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is kno ...

* Walnut Grove * Wilton

Demographics

As of the 2020

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, there were 2,397,382 people residing within the MSA. The racial makeup was 52.5% White, 7.0% Black, 1.1% American Indian, 14.9% Asian, 0.9% Pacific Islander, 10.4% Other and 13.2% Two or More Races. 22.2% identified as Hispanic or Latino. The median income for a household in the MSA in 2000 was $48,401, and the median income for a family was $57,112. Males had a median income of $43,572 versus $31,889 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the MSA was $23,508.

Transportation

Owing to its central location between the

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose. The Association of Bay Area Governments ...

and Nevada border, Greater Sacramento is a key transportation hub into Northern California. While the region doesn't have an extensive public transportation system as the San Francisco Bay Area, Greater Sacramento has had an earlier history of public mass transit and is served by a vast freeway system as well as some light rail.

Freeways and highways

Sacramento is served by numerous highways. Five highways merge in the ''Capital City Corridor'', serving the immediate downtown Sacramento area. The major freeways of the Greater Sacramento area are Interstate 80, US Route 50,

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels thro ...

, and State Route 99, which serve the northern Tahoe area, southern Tahoe area, and valley areas, respectively, as well as forming the Capital City Corridor along with Interstate 80 Business. Outside downtown Sacramento, there is only one principal route that serves its respective area and there are smaller state routes as well. Freeways and highways in the Greater Sacramento areas include: *

* Interstate 80 * Interstate 505 *

U.S. Route 50 U.S. Route 50 or U.S. Highway 50 (US 50) is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching from Interstate 80 (I-80) in West Sacramento, California, to Maryland Route 528 (MD 528) in Ocean City, Maryland, on the Atlantic ...

U.S. Route 395 * Business Loop 80

Interstate 80 Business * California 12

California State Route 12 * California 16

California State Route 16 * California 20

California State Route 20 * California 28

California State Route 28 * California 45

California State Route 45 * California 49

California State Route 49 * California 65

California State Route 65 * California 70

California State Route 70 * California 89

California State Route 89 State Route 89 (SR 89) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that travels in the north–south direction, serving as a major thoroughfare for many mountain communities in the Sierra Nevada and the Cascade Range. It starts from ...

California State Route 99 * California 104

California State Route 104 * California 113

California State Route 113 * California 128

California State Route 128 * California 160

California State Route 160 * California 174

California State Route 174 * California 193

California State Route 193 * California 220

California State Route 220 * California 244

California State Route 244 * California 267

California State Route 267 * Nevada 28

Nevada State Route 28 * Nevada 88

Nevada State Route 88 State Route 88 (SR 88) is a north–south State highway#United States, state highway in the Carson Valley (California–Nevada), Carson Valley in western Douglas County, Nevada, Douglas County, Nevada, United States. It runs from the Calif ...

Nevada State Route 206 * Nevada 207

Nevada State Route 207 * Nevada 208

Nevada State Route 208 * Nevada 756

Nevada State Route 756 * Nevada 757

Nevada State Route 757 * Nevada 759

Nevada State Route 759 State Route 759 (SR 759) is a short state highway (US), state highway in Douglas County, Nevada, Douglas County, Nevada serving the county's airport facility. Route description State Route 759 begins at U.S. Route 395 in Nevada, U.S. Route 39 ...

Rail

Sacramento is the largest rail hub west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

and was the first terminus of the

First transcontinental railroad America's first transcontinental railroad (known originally as the "Pacific Railroad" and later as the "Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad), Overland Route") was a continuous railroad line built between 1863 and 1869 that connected the exis ...

before it extended to

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

. The Sacramento Valley Station is the largest train station in the region, near Old Sacramento, and is connected by the ''

Coast Starlight The ''Coast Starlight'' is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on the West Coast of the United States between Seattle and Los Angeles via Portland, Oregon, Portland and the San Francisco Bay Area. The train, ...

'', ''

California Zephyr The ''California Zephyr'' is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago, Illinois, Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area (at Emeryville station, Emeryville), via Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha, Denver, Sa ...

'', '' San Joaquins'',

Capitol Corridor The ''Capitol Corridor'' is a passenger train route in Northern California operated by Amtrak between San Jose, California, San Jose, in the Bay Area, and Auburn, California, Auburn, in the Sacramento Valley. The route is named after the two ...

and

Amtrak Thruway Amtrak Thruway is a system of through-ticketed transportation services to connect passengers with areas not served by Amtrak trains. In most cases these are dedicated motorcoach routes, but can also be non-dedicated intercity bus services, transi ...

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

routes. The Sacramento Regional Transit District is the local transit agency for Sacramento County and operates three light rail routes, the Blue Line, Green Line, and Gold Line, along of right of way that serve Sacramento and its immediate suburbs. Other train stations in the Greater Sacramento area are Davis, Roseville, Rocklin, Auburn, Colfax and Truckee.

Air

The main airport servicing Greater Sacramento is the

Sacramento International Airport Sacramento International Airport is an international airport located in Sacramento, northwest of Downtown Sacramento in Sacramento County, California, United States and covers . It serves the Sacramento Metropolitan Area, and it is run by th ...

north of downtown while the Sacramento Mather Airport, Sacramento McClellan Airport, Sacramento Executive Airport and Minden–Tahoe Airports provide general aviation. The Reno-Tahoe International Airport in Reno provides more direct access to

than Sacramento International. For a wider range of destinations, residents must travel down to San Francisco International Airport, the largest airport in Northern California and 10th largest in the United States.

Bus

Greater Sacramento is served by extensive bus systems that link the region to the Reno and Bay Area metropolitan areas. The Sacramento Regional Transit District operates bus lines in Sacramento County and Yolobus serves Yolo County while providing connections to downtown Sacramento and northern Solano County in the Bay Area. El Dorado Transit links El Dorado County with downtown Sacramento and the city's western suburbs. Placer County Transit and Roseville Transit link Sacramento with Placer County with the latter providing direct connection from Roseville to Sacramento. The Yuba-Sutter Transit provides bus service in the Yuba–Sutter area and direct connection to downtown Sacramento on weekdays. Gold Country Stage and Tahoe Truckee Area Rapid Transit serve Nevada County and transfer service to Auburn to Sacramento is provided.

Greyhound The English Greyhound, or simply the Greyhound, is a dog breed, breed of dog, a sighthound which has been bred for coursing, greyhound racing and hunting. Some are kept as show dogs or pets. Greyhounds are defined as a tall, muscular, smooth-c ...

, Megabus, Flixbus, and

provide long-distance bus lines to Greater Sacramento.

Higher education

Greater Sacramento's higher education system consists of the northernmost

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

campus,

, and the

California State University, Sacramento California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California, United States. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is part of the California State Universit ...

("Sac State"), as well as several community colleges in the region.
Community colleges: * American River College * Cosumnes River College * Folsom Lake College * Lake Tahoe Community College * Sacramento City College * Sierra College * Woodland Community College * Yuba College

California State University The California State University (Cal State or CSU) is a Public university, public university system in California, and the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, largest public university system in the United States ...

: *

UC Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...

Private: *

Alliant International University Alliant International University is a Private university, private For-profit higher education in the United States, for-profit university with its main campus in San Diego, five additional campuses in California (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Irv ...

* Drexel University (Sacramento campus) * Lincoln Law School of Sacramento * McGeorge School of Law (part of University of the Pacific) *

National University A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state. In the United States, the term "national university" connotes the highe ...

* University of Northern California, Lorenzo Patiño School of Law
University of Phoenix - Sacramento Valley Campus
* University of the Pacific, Sacramento Campus * William Jessup University

Politics

In addition to being home of the state capital of California, Greater Sacramento is considered a politically competitive area with no major political party having a majority over the region. Sacramento and Yolo counties have large Democratic pluralities and have had Democratic majorities since the 2008 presidential election, attributed to the former county being mainly urban and the latter home to the strongly Democratic university town of Davis. El Dorado, Placer, Yuba, and Sutter counties are predominantly Republican while Nevada County, despite a history of being held by Republican candidates, reflects the metropolitan area's competitiveness with pluralities between the two major parties.

Sports teams

Professional sports

The only major professional sports team based in the Greater Sacramento area are the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

, who play at Golden 1 Center in Downtown Sacramento. The Athletics, who are relocating from Oakland to

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, will temporarily play at Sutter Health Park from 2025 to 2027 (with an option for 2028) until their new stadium in Las Vegas is completed. Prior to 2009, the Sacramento Monarchs of the

Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is a women's professional basketball league in the United States. The league comprises 13 teams (scheduled to expand to 15 in 2026). The WNBA is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. The WNBA w ...

(WNBA) were also based at the Sleep Train Arena (then known as ARCO Arena), and were one of the most successful WNBA teams until the team folded. Greater Sacramento is the only metropolitan area in California to have ever hosted a

when Squaw Valley hosted the

, becoming the smallest city to ever host an

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

, a title it still holds. Squaw Valley was the second Olympic games hosted in California and the only one not held in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, where the

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

and

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and commonly known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the ...

were hosted and was the only Winter Olympics held west of the Mississippi River until the

2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 (; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; ; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), were an international wi ...

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

Minor league teams

Greater Sacramento is also home to minor or secondary league sports teams. Sacramento Republic FC is a

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

team that plays in the

USL Championship The USL Championship (USLC) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the second tier of the United States soccer league system#Men's leagues, United States league system. It is organized by the United Soccer League (USL) a ...

at Papa Murphy's Park, which is located on the grounds of Cal Expo. A new stadium in downtown Sacramento is planned to be completed ahead of the club's move to

Major League Soccer Major League Soccer (MLS) is a professional Association football, soccer league in North America and the highest level of the United States soccer league system. It comprises 30 teams, with 27 in the United States and 3 in Canada, and is sanc ...

(MLS). The Sacramento River Cats are a triple-A baseball team affiliated with the

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...

. The team plays in West Sacramento at Sutter Health Park, which is located just across the Sacramento River from downtown Sacramento. ;

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

Division I College Sports * Sacramento State Hornets * UC Davis Aggies

References

{{Authority control Metropolitan areas of California Sac Geography of the Central Valley (California) Sac Northern California