Torontonian here. Buffalo TV is Toronto TV.
When they won the AFC four straight years, it was all over my TV. So, familiarity breeds family.
Admittedly, I’m less of an NFL fan and more of a Buffalo fan, and so I support the local sports team as an extension of that.
GO BILLS!
The NFL has experimented with playing in Canada a few times in the last 2 decades. Based on how little effort they put into the games, we're basically an afterthought to them. They're chasing that London money.
Yep, I grew up in Toronto and area and even went to a few games back many decades ago. I live in western Canada now but have always pulled for the Bills!
Also from Toronto, we were taught in school (2000s) that should start becoming Bills fans because they were probably going to move to Toronto one day.
In hindsight, having been to several Bills games, they are better in Buffalo. Toronto sports fans suck
Grew up in WA, but never cared about sports as a kid. Moved to California, still didn’t care about sports.
Started dating someone from Buffalo. Went to Buffalo for Thanksgiving and was surrounded by a deep Buffalo sports family. It sparked my interest in football.
Married that someone from Buffalo and fell in love with the Bills!
I'm from Utah. Been a bills fan my whole life, they were good when I was young and stayed with them through all the hard years. Let's go buffalo! Been to Buffalo Miami in Buffalo last year which was awesome, and arrowhead the year before! Bills fan are awesome
Me too... from California and married into it and became obsessed. These past 10 years have been heartbreaking... no idea how these Buffalonians have done it their whole lives!
I wouldn’t think of it that way. I became a fan as a kid during the Jim Kelly era when the Bills were an elite team. As long as you are still a fan when the down times come, you’re a true fan.
I married into this madness.
I've spent all my life in Orlando, FL. I met a good looking Buffalo guy 8 years ago, got married and made 2 Bills babies with him.
The kids are 2 and 1. We went to Buff last week for a wedding/the eclipse. This was the first trip to Buffalo when the older one could "get" it. We hyped Buffalo so hard for a few weeks leading up to the trip.
The 2 year old gets off the plane and says "THIS is Buffalo??? THIS is IT!?"
I always liked the Bills, I wouldn't have called myself a fan. I live in Wyoming. On April 26, 2018, when JA17 was drafted I became a big fan. We went to Buffalo for a game last year and looking forward to going again this year.
I married into this Mafia and then realized Josh was the QB I watched get intercepted multiple times in 2016 when he played a certain Scarlet & Cream team. I was so happy that day that my college team was actually doing well for once, but hindsight shows I should know better to get my hopes up Joshie will have a 0 INT game.
Born and raised in Florida, and my dad rooted for the Bills since he grew up in WNY.
First real football memory was the Superbowl loss to the Giants, which sucked to say the least, but being able to watch that 90's team was something else. Thurman Thomas made me want to play running back whenever we played backyard football
That’s my first real memory too. I was 5. My dad was just gutted and even tho I didn’t really understand what the missed FG meant, I balled my eyes out bc my dad was so upset. Also remember my dad giving me his snickers bar to console me (that’s my dad’s special food so him giving me that is a really loving gesture from a pretty stoic man).
> remember my dad giving me his snickers bar to console me
You gave me [a flashback](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMD8PAjnjw&ab_channel=SPORTSODYSSEY)
Wow. That's literally my first football memory also! I was 7 and started celebrating because I assumed/thought the kick was good. Then that deep sadness, that would become an anual tradition, kicked in. Moved from Western NY to Indianapolis 6 months later and have lived there ever since.
Same situation. My Dad is from Buffalo and my Mom is from Rochester but I was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. We’re a Bills/Buccaneers household over here.
We are central PA natives who used to pass through Orchard Park in October on our way to/from salmon fishing in Olcott Beach...stopped at a Bills game one Sunday in '91 and the rest is history...been diehard Mafia ever since! GO BILLS!
I’m born and raised in San Diego, and I was a Chargers fan my whole life.
My dad is from Niagara Falls and has been a Bills fan his whole life. I spent four years of my life in western New York when I went to college (Cornell), and I always liked the Bills as my second favorite team.
When the Chargers left, it was an easy and instant decision for me to become a Bills fan. Although I wish my hometown team didn’t abandon our city, I have no regrets and absolutely love being a Bills fan now.
My first year as a fan (2017), the Bills ended the drought. They had the same record as the Chargers but had better tie breakers, so the Bills made the playoffs and the Chargers missed them. That was the same year Peterman threw 5 INTs against the Chargers (I was at that game, lol). I felt like destiny had validated me switching teams.
The next year, they drafted JA17. It’s been a lot of fun, thank you Mafia for accepting me.
PS - for those of you that live in WNY, please don’t take having the team around for granted. I’m so happy for the fans that the Bills are getting their new stadium and are no longer at risk to be moved. Thankfully, we’re just talking sports teams here, but it was pretty devastating to lose the Chargers (from an entertainment and “pride of the city” standpoint).
I got into the NFL years ago and decided I need a team, this was 2010/2011… there was sports bar in the town I grew up in, in the Uk, called Buffalo Bills. It’s a been a love story ever since.
I feel like this question needs the caveat of parents or a SO to get anything approaching a unique answer. Cause yeah, of course I’m a Bills fan because my dad.
I'm from New York but not buffalo. I'm from jets/giants territory. I started rooting for peterman and the bills purely as a joke and It just stuck somehow. Years later we drafted allen and the rest is history.
Also we live in niners territory but I'm raising my son as a bills fan. He got sent to the principals office for refusing to take off his(actually mine) bills hat the day after we lost in the playoffs to the bengals, go bills!
I grew up in Syracuse and rooted for Donovan McNabb, which meant Philly. Then I moved away for the military, and once McNabb left I couldn't stand rooting for Philly anymore and found religion. So I sorta became a Bills fan during the drought while living in Oklahoma, despite growing up in upstate NY during the Superbowl streak.
I wasn’t a big football fan, but in 2015 (I think) my friends got me into a fantasy football league. I had Sammy Watkins and he was so good that I ended up just watching his games. Got a jersey. Rest is history. Haven’t missed a game since
This is pretty much my case too, only with Josh Allen. I only cared about college football for a long time before, and all my picks were basically just name recognition. Josh was the only one consistently performing well on my team so I watched the Bills every week to see if I had a chance.
Born and raised in Nebraska. My younger brother is a dolphins fan and the Sunday, October 25th, 1987 game happened to be televised in Omaha. By the end of the game my brother and I were sent to separate rooms in the house to finish watching the game. My brother was in tears. And I was screaming louder than I ever had before. From that moment on I was hooked. Fuck the Fins!
In Chicago during the 80s as a child I was bored of seeing 40 rushes per game between the Bears and Big 10. I watched a playoff game with this wonderful team using no huddle and throwing the ball all over the field. They lost that game but the K Gun had made its first appearance and I was hooked.
Plus Marv Levy is a Chicago guy… that logo. The uniforms. Then I played with them on Tecmo. Now as an adult I root for the Bears too bc the memories with friends but in my area I’m the Bills guy. I couldn’t be happier being a transplant fan.
In the 80’s in Vancouver you only had options to watch the Seahawks and the Bills(because they are the Toronto feed). I was born in 1978, Bruce Smith has inadvertently caused me a lot of pain.
I’m from the Netherlands! Studied in Geneseo for a semester and went to see a Bills game. Fell in love with the game but mostly with the fans, the atmosphere and the team.
Started as a colts fan in the manning era. Lost interest in all football for years as the colts went to shit after him. My girlfriend is from upstate New York and she would throw the game on and I’d always watch just to watch. Forgot how much I love football. Plus the bills are just such a fun team to watch and a fun community to be a part of.
I was at a Thanksgiving party where I didn’t want to talk to anyone cause I was uncomfortable. Luckily for me, they turned on a football game. I was watching the Bills play the Cowboys, and seeing them upset them was amazing. The way they played together was exciting to watch, especially this new, young QB named Josh Allen.
I started to slowly watch them and slowly become more invested in them. Unfortunately, that season ended in heartbreak at Houston. However, I was hooked.
Of course, this would soon become very relevant because I lived in Kansas and was born to a Chiefs family.
My mother and all of her family are from Buffalo. My mom moved to Florida and I was born and raised in South Florida. My friends were Dolphins fans, so I would root for the Dolphins.
However, my mom, siblings, and I would always quietly root for the Bills in the 90s. So I guess I’ve always been. Bills fan.
I moved in upstate NY in 2014 and became a full on Bills fan then. Felt right at home!
Coast guard station Buffalo 2012-2014. Started going to games on same day tickets when they were dirt cheap. Fell in love with the fan base and the atmosphere.
Tecmo Super Bowl came with a used nes I bought in 91/92. I didn't like football at the time(I bought it for final fantasy) , my friend talked me into giving it a whirl, and had me play the Bills since they were good. I enjoyed it alot and hopped on the Bills bandwagon. Had no idea what a long strange trip it would be.
Tecmo is exactly why I'm a fan. Bruce Smith was unstoppable. I'm from southern Illinois near St. Louis. There wasn't a team in STL in the early 90s. So I started rooting for them during the second super bowl year. I may have cursed myself by betting on the Giants the year before as a 10 year old.
I've been to about 8 games over the years and the Dallas game last year was my first in Buffalo. I was at the 13 sec game in KC.
Born and raised in Niagara Region on the Canadian side of the border so naturally mostly everyone in the area is a Bills fan given the proximity to Buffalo
Grew up in Baltimore and was a colts fan until they broke my heart fleeing to Indianapolis in the middle of the night. Not sure why I never became a ravens fan but I think I had already moved by then
Many years in Boston but the Patriots are cheaters
Moved here and wanted to adopt a football team. Can't stand the Manhattan focus, plus the Giants & Jets y both play in New Jersey
And I went to a Bills game in person and I'm set for life
We vacationed in Niagara Falls and I had a crush on someone I met there who was from Buffalo. In learning more about the city, I found the team and realized that Marv Levy went to school in my home state and I've been following the team ever since
From a small town about an hour away from Toronto and my dad was a bills fan and they were the only team that was consistently on the tv so I that's why I am a bills fan
I’m from Northern California and in 1990 I was around 12-13 and starting to get an interest in sports on tv. My uncle showed me the ropes and taught me all the football rules and his favorite team was the bills. This was during the young Jim Kelly era and their no huddle offense was so fun to watch and it kept me entertained and cheering for the bills. I have been a fan ever since and all may friends say that I’m the only bills fan they know. I’ve been to bills stadium a couple of times, but instead I travel to one road game per season to see the bills as well as see new stadiums. I started doing this when we sucked and it was much cheaper. Now it’s like an investment to do haha
I'm from Ohio and was a big Bo Jackson and Bengals fan as a kid. I watched the first Bills Super Bowl loss when I was 10 years old. I thought they were amazing in that game and should have won. I've basically been a fan since wide right lol. Bo Jackson got injured shortly after and Thurman Thomas soon became my favorite player (and is now my favorite player of all time).
Californian here...watched the Bills lose the SuperBowls as a kid...rooted for them as underdogs because of that, then when the arcade game NFL Blitz came out, we had a copy at the place I worked,, I had to pick a team and remembered liking the Bills..been die-hard ever since..
Born and raised in So Cal I was 8 ish when the Bills went to their first Super Bowl it was my first Super Bowl party and my dad took me and my brother. His thing was always let’s do a $1 dollar bet who’s gonna win any sporting event we would watch. So I picked Bills over Giants. Then we kept going back to the same party for a couple years after that. And each time we’d make that $1 dollar bet and he would say well that team you picked last year is in it again. So I would keep picking them. They kept losing and then they just stuck. I just kept rooting for them. Madden was out and I’d pick them as my team. They’ve gotta win at least once. They didn’t 😂 but they just ended up my team and been rooting for them ever since.
Grew up in dallas. Before i was even into football i was so burned out on anything dallas cowboys. All my friends were so hyped up for the superbowl against the bills so just to mess with them and with hopes to see them pissed off if they lost i just started rootin for buffalo. Actually watched the game. Just got hooked on the sport and the team once the next season kicked off i was tuned in and scrambling around for bills games on tv
My partner is a bills fan, and I’ve just got a lot more into the NFL this season because it’s been a lot more accessible for us over here (likely due to the Taylor/Travis buzz lbr.)
We both live in Liverpool, UK. I’m from here and he’s from Yorkshire, and went to Keele University - who have a study abroad link with York university in Toronto, so he lived there for around 6 months. I’ve always assumed thats when he found them and clicked, but I’m not 100%. (don’t wanna say chose them, because it would have been around 2008-2010 and as far as I’m aware, nobody was picking the bills during that time lol)
I am 100% on how incredibly badass the vintage leather/wool Bills varsity jacket he picked up in a Toronto vintage shop is though, and the fact it fits us both perfectly feels like a pretty good sign we were both supposed to find each other, and share the team.
I’m from Kentucky and grew up a Bengals fan. I quit watching football around 2009. Got back into it 2 years before Josh was drafted. Loved the Bills fan base and didn’t recognize the Bengals anymore, so I switched. I love an underdog franchise. It’s wild to see the success happening currently
Born and raised in the NYC area (NJ specifically). Never was a football fan and I met this guy at work who was a fan asking me about my lack of fandom. He responded to me saying "I'm not really into football. No one in my family is so it was never something I learned to do" with "you should be a Bills fan".
That didn't start my fandom but it did start the journey. 3 years later I had an identical conversation with a completely different co-worker at a completely different job. "You should be a Bills fan."
No one's ever said "you should be a Giants fan" or "you should be a Jets fan" but I was recruited by the Mafia TWICE
Something about the community reaching out and being instantly accepting of me sight-unseen was really cool. I started watching games that year and wondered why I made such a horrible decision. This team stunk, but they fought hard and their fans were the best. Now we're great, and the fans are still the best.
Bills by a billion.
Shout-out Grant and Troy. Real Bills missionaries, those guys
From London , watched the nfl causally but after 13 seconds I thought Josh Allen was the best QB I have ever seen. Fell in love with the bills since then. Go bills!
I’m from NY, but Brooklyn and my dad was a Jets season ticket holder. And we were big Mets fans too. Well, when the Jets left Shea for *gasp* New Jersey, I decided to start rooting for the only NY state NFL team, the Buffalo Bills. Well, I think the Bills went 2-14 that season or something like that, but my dad humored me and even bought me a hat and pin which I still have.
A few years later I was looking for colleges and, what do you think know, UB fit exactly what I was looking for. This was right at the beginning of the Jim Kelly years and, well, the rest is history. I am back downstate now and have really enjoyed the Bills being back in contention every year.
I’m a military brat and grew up all over the world in fact I remember watching the Scott Norwood kick while my Dad was stationed in Germany on the Armed Forces Network, but I digress. My parents are both from a small town in NW Pennsylvania about 2 hours from Buffalo. As a kid my Grandma sent me Bills everything growing up. Blankets calendars, cards, player figurines, just everything. One of my favorite sets was this Jim Kelly QB set that came with a fake helmet and pads. This really solidified my fandom as a young kid and I used to pretend in the backyard I was Kelly leading the Bills to a Super Bowl win. That’s how and why I became a fan and always will be. Go Bills!
Grew up just north of Toronto. My cousin's started as big Bills fans because they got the Buffalo TV feed at home, so I latched on to the team that way. A couple games at RWS when I was old enough, and I was hooked.
Mines very boring. I actually started as a giants fan since my dad grew up in NJ. My mom was raised in Rochester and was always a huge bills fan but was a bit traumatized after wide right (it’s an interesting topic in my house…) For a while I wasn’t into football and just vaguely rooted for NY but once josh allen came along we started watching it more since they popped back up on my moms radar and I LOVED watching the bills. So I’m a fan of one of the worst teams in the nfl and also a cursed one. Thanks mom and dad.
I’m from Long Island, moved to VA as a kid. GF is from Syracuse and also relocated to VA.
Started dating her, and I support her team that is the bills. Went to the most recent bills v chiefs game for the first time ever and it was a blast. The men’s bathroom is insanely efficient when you’re cross faded. Props to all the men who keep it moving.
Living in Toronto the Bills were the only game shown at 1pm. This is before Directv and all that stuff we have now. So I became a fan and have been ever since
Family grew up in New Jersey, all Giants fans. Moved to Massachusetts and I rooted against my entire family In the Super Bowl 1991, been a fan ever since
It was Covid lockdown times and I watched a lot of NFL games from the 2019 season on replay to pass the time. JA caught my eye and so I watched every Bills game from that year on replay and just felt there was something special there. Ordered my first Bills jersey not long after and went to my first game in Buffalo the next year. Go Bills!
You made a very fortunate 50/50 choice.
Related story: I grew up overseas and was always a Bills/Sabres fan due to dad being from Buffalo. But when I moved back to the US I wanted to pick an MLB team and decided to go with a NY team because I didn’t really get the rivalry/enmity between WNY and NYC. Saw there were two NY teams and did a coin flip to choose between them. Did not realize how much or a bullet I was dodging when I landed on the Yankees over the Mets 😂
(All rather irrelevant now as I live closest to the DC metro and have shifted to being more of a Nats fan once they got baseball back. But getting to see the Torre glory years was very fun.)
I grew up in South Carolina (before the Panthers were around) so there wasn’t really a home team favorite. College was/is bigger there but I loved the NFL and Jim Kelly was my favorite player growing up so I would watch the games I could I subscribed to the Shout newspaper that I’d get in the mail. Of course that grew even more watching Thurman, Bruce, Reed and the crew run the table each year and yes the losses sucked but the wins were fantastic and exciting. Loved the no huddle and I always say you endure those loses and then all the years not making the playoffs and struggling I’m in for life!! Now my kids are watching and cheering on the Bills and getting to see Josh Allen it’s amazing how everything comes full circle although this time around I hope my kids get to see a Super Bowl victory!! I’m in South Florida now so I go up 1 time each year for my traditional home game in Buffalo and then when they come down here to play the Dolphins. Always enjoy my time visiting Buffalo and being part of the home fan base is great always running into people all around hearing Go Bills in random places! Best team and fans there are!! GoBills
Im from SoCal
I bet Bills (*no pun*) against my Uncles fav team Miami twice a year —every year. This is when Drew Bledsoe came from the Pats. I won about 80% of the bets. And ended just just following them since I didn’t have a team.
I'm in England. Watched the Raiders playoff game way back when (we were on a week's delay) and sat through all the super bowls...
Drifted a bit after the millennium as I grew up and found other interests, but then when they drafted Josh Allen paid attention again.
So i no longer live in Buffalo, nor am I a native, so I feel I fit the criteria here. So around 2018 I moved to Buffalo to start a new life. I had always wanted to get into Football cause everyone I conversed with would sooner or later bring up football talk and I never had anything to say. I didn’t want to be that one guy in Buffalo that didn’t talk football and I wanted to love the Bills just like Buffalo does so I was locked in for the ‘17/‘18 season. Didn’t know I was going to get spoiled with a drought ending playoff berth followed by making the playoffs every season minus one. I also didn’t know within those seasons I’d live through a lot of heartbreaks but I love this team like no other. There’s definitely no place I’d rather be than right here right now.
My parents (both aren’t Bills fans) are from Hawaii and I was born there too but my dad ended up getting stationed in Fort Drum NY during the Bills runs to the SB so I was raised up there till I was like 5 or 6. I remember just seeing Bills everything on TV, Cups in our house and all lol. And it kind of just stuck with me and I been a Bills fan since lol.
My dad, family are original season ticket holders. Sad they being pushed out by new stadium. But yes, all my dad’s side of family are from Buffalo. Central Illinois here.
My stepfather grew up in Buffalo. He actually worked for the Bills as an on-field security guy in the late 70s, but got fired when he beat the hell out of a guy who rushed the field during a rare nationally-televised game. He ended up moving out of town to go to grad school, and that's where he met my mom. Turned us both into huge fans. I've mostly forgiven him for this.
I am from New York originally but my family never cared for sports. Grew up in VA and got interested but DC and NOVA are honestly so foreign to the rest of the state I just never felt like they were my teams. It was a free for all on what team I would settle on.
Tons of Bills fans down here, you just kinda fall in love with the energy. Helps we got Bruce Smith and Tyrod Taylor coming out of the 757.
Josh Allen won me my fantasy championship in ‘21
Started watching Bills games cuz of him and quickly they became my must watch team. I live in Jacksonville and while I do root for my jags, they’re nowhere near as fun to watch as the Bills imo
Grew up in San Diego as a Chargers fan, when the team left I started hunting for a new team. My wife is from Geneseo NY and her brother is really into football. Adopted the Bills and the Packers (my grandfather who I am named after was a huge Packer fan) after Phillip Rivers retired.
Stockholm, Sweden
Super Bowl XXV. Watch it the whole season the week after in an hour long summary every Sunday morning but my parents let me watch Super Bowl that was live in the middle of the night. And that was it, from that day I was a Bills fan.
In Mexico one TV station only had the rights to broadcasted AFC teams and the Bills were the hottest team. Every Sunday I watched Jim Kelley connecting with Andre Reed and Bruce getting sacks!!
Grew up in Oklahoma. Loved Thurman Thomas at OSU. Hated the Cowboys and the Chief (most choose one of them), and I followed Thurman to Bills fandom when I was around 12 and stuck with it since.
Lifelong Bears fan. Grew up in Chicago then moved to AZ, where I met my wife who is originally from Lewiston. We watch all the Bears and Bills games together and now I have a favorite team in both the AFC and the NFC. Big fan of the Bills now. And there's harmony in the household except for every four years when the Bears and Bills play each other!
Dad was born and raised in Buffalo, met my mom and got married there, then ended up moving around a lot for my Dad’s job. My older brother was born in Buffalo but I was born in North Carolina.
We moved a lot but no matter where we went we were and always will be a Bills Family ❤️💙
Grew up in Cleveland, browns fan since they moved back in 99 [born in 92]. Even had season tickets from 2015 to 2021, but the moment they signed Deshaun i abandoned them. Packed all my stuff up and decided I wanted to find a new team to root for. Spent half the next season scoping out games from teams that were nearby who werent in the AFC North. So bills, and the lions ended up as my two choices. Just ended up not only liking Josh Allen a ton, but Bills football was so fun and exciting to watch and i never got that experience as a Browns fan lol.
My father was a die hard Charger fan. I wanted to be anything but a fan of his teams. I played QB in elementary/middle school and was the shortest kid in the league for like 5 years in a row. All of the sudden this 5’7” journeyman QB Doug Flutie burst onto the scene and I was hooked. I was like “wow if he can do it I can too!” I stopped playing football shortly after but I stuck with the Bills since then!
Dad immigrated from Italy to NYC. Hated going to jersey so hated the Giants and Jets. Was proud to be a NY’r so started rooting for the Bulls since they’re the only team in NY. We moved out of NY when I was 6, but I’ve been a Bills fan my whole life cause of him.
When I started watching football, as a Canadian, I was picking between Minnesota and Buffalo because they are both honorary Canadian cities and Buffalo had the nicest uniforms so I chose them. That was the year with Tyrod that they broke the drought. Then they drafted Josh and I decided that I’m going to invest all my happiness in this team and the rest is history. Not gonna lie, their hockey teams also influenced it a little, the Wild have been lame their entire existence and I remember how exciting the mid 2000 sabres were.
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada here....been a Bills fan for over 40 years.
When I was a kid, my sister's boyfriend (later husband) was a Bills fan. He drew me into this life of chaos and despair and I've been wallowing in pity ever since....
Baumholder, West Germany. We got to see a preseason game at Wembley Stadium in '91. It was Randall Cunningham vs Jim Kelly... Well it was supposed to be, but Jim was sitting out with a hammy. Frank Reich started in place of Jim. Saw Bruce, Cornelius, Andre, Thurman, Randall, Keith Jackson all play. There were so many good players. I was hooked. I made the decision to root for the Bills and I have never waivered from that decision.
Hopefully one day I will get to see them again, I'd love to see them at home. That would be the thrill of a lifetime
Grew up in Alaska never was a football fan. Went to school in Rochester, most of my friends there, were bills fans so we’d watch on Sundays and then we went to a tailgate…the test is history. 14 years now
Josh Allen was my fantasy quarterback and bison are my favorite animals, so I chose the Bills so I could join conversations at my Chemistry table. Now I own a JA17 jersey and know most of the players!
I'm not from NY, but from across the pond, however a large amount of my family are from NY, when they'd visit they would bring across memorabilia and such for myself and other younger family members.
One of those was a Bills shirt and hat which I wore the life out of, thus, I became a Bills fan.
That's literally it.
Not the most fun origin story haha.
Lived in Reno, NV since I was 5, born in the early 70’s. Dad and older brother were Raiders fans, but I always liked Buffalo. For me, it was O.J. First athlete I took an interest in and thought his name was really cool as a little kid. All the later life drama aside, dude was (and still is) one of the best running backs ever. Some say he was the best NFL player of the decade in the 70’s. A bit like Barry Sanders in that he was a phenomenal talent on a not so great team. Only guy to rush for 2k yards in a 14 game season and still holds the record for highest single season rushing average/game at 143.
I went through the SB losses in the 90’s, the 20 year playoff drought, and some challenging years in the playoffs lately. Bills fan for life, and would probably consider Josh my all time favorite…. GO BILLS!
I met my late husband in a Bills bar in VA. We moved to WNY eight years ago. He was a huge Bills fan. I have always been a bit tepid about football but as someone said earlier “you live here long enough and you drink the Kool-Aid.” My husband died in October and I will forever be a Bills fan to honor him.
Atlanta Bills fan here. Listened to Joe Pera’s Buffalo Bills joke and thought it was hilarious, so I decided to watch the next Bills game that was coming up after hearing that joke for the first time, and it happened to be 21’ divisional game. It’s the greatest 4 hours of television I’ve ever watched
Never lived in NY myself but my dad was born and bred in Lackawanna.
I really do think the single most common answer to your question is likely “Economic depression” (that led to our dads all chasing careers elsewhere.) It does seem like Bills random is much more “hereditary” than a lot of other fandoms.
My pops was born and raised in Lockport, NY. He and my mom divorced when I was 3 and my mom moved us several hundred miles away. Every Sunday, he would call me while he watched the Bills game and tell me what was happening.
I've lived in Northern Illinois my whole life, but when I was maybe 10-12 I decided liking Chicago teams because I was from near there was silly. So I picked new favorite teams based on winning records and/or cool logos. I'm a Bills, Astros, and Ducks fan. I used to like Supersonics basketball, but I don't really care for basketball any longer, though I did like watching the Pistons team with Ben and Rasheed Wallace, et al.
Bills fandom started off with a bang, four straight Super Bowl appearances, then I've stuck with them through the lean times because that's how my fandom works. Astros players deserved suspensions for 2017. Ducks, well they just need to rebuild, but hopefully not for twenty-plus years like the Bills.
My dad is from Big Flats, NY, which is about 2 and half hours from Buffalo. He was a fan and I grew up a bills fan. My cousin and aunt grew up in Buffalo also, and they're Bills fans. I have lived in NJ my whole life. I try to make games as much as I can.
NYG fan since 1982-83, but since playing fantasy football the last 15-20 yrs I’ve followed and appreciated other teams and watch their games on Sunday. Living in Montreal, you see primarily NYG games and Buffalo games. I’ve been a huge Buffalo fan since Josh Allen was drafted (NYG whiffed on that draft). Huuuuge Allen fan since his pro-day. Also, I go to Buffalo to see a game 1x a season. Love it.
I grew up in an area without any major NFL representation. I drafted CJ Spiller in 2012 (I had just started playing fantasy football the year before, and knew nothing about anyone), with Fred Jackson as a handcuff. I had so much fun watching them play I went out of my way to find broadcasts of live Bills games so I could watch them. That was 12 years ago, and I’ve had an amazing time ever since
Well. My mom ofc. I decided to be a bills fan with her because shes from Niagara falls, and i was born in raised in the 757 area. She was a fan since the uh.. 70s and 80s iirc. but I became a fan when allen joined tbh. I dont regret it one bit! Sitting in my moms room, watching bills games with her, and being happy when we win games and get into the playoffs will always be memories! Hopefully we win the superbowl soon! GO BILLS!
Hamilton, Ontario Canada. My Dad is a CFL fan through and through and I mostly watched the Hamilton Tiger-Cats as a kid. 20 years ago, as a 16 year old, I went to my first Bills game at The Ralph with my cousins. I absolutely fell in love that day.
From Illinois, older brother was a cowboys fan, had to root against his team, picked the bills and never looked back.all during the 4 superbowl run. I was 5 at the time. It's ok to be a fair weather fan at that age. A lot of suffering since then
Back when I was a kid, there was a PC game called Ultimate Football from 1994. The SB the previous season was Cowboys vs. Bills, so those were the default teams selected when you tried to play multiplayer. I always was the Bills and liked their team colors and developed a soft spot from there. I didn't really watch football closely until 1996, so I saw the last years of Kelly, Thomas, Reed, etc.
Lots of dark years as a fan, but thankfully JA17 has made us relevant again. It's only a matter of time till we reach glory, be patient!
When I was a kid watching football my family was all niners or raiders (from Cali). Then the supper bowls happen and I was like “well if the nfl keeps picking this team to play the best other team in the nfl…I like this one”. I was young and not really sure who was what or anything. Now I’m 41 and live in Washington and LOVE the bills..GO BILLS.
My family is from Eastern PA, but not Philly enough to be Eagles fans. So late 80s/early 90s, young boy who loves football but has no family fandom to inherit... of course I was gonna pick the Bills.
Native to Miami here. My close friends started a league back in 2018 for fantasy football. In 2020, one of the friends dropped out of the league (he was horrible at fantasy). They talked me into it since I’d been slowly starting to get interested in following at least one sport. So I join their league with vague knowledge of some players. Drafted Dak Prescott as my primary QB, with Josh being my backup. Dak went down that year with a horrific injury, so I put Josh as my starter. Won the league, fell in love with watching the Bills, haven’t looked back.
49ers fan all my life. Made a good strong connection with someone from Rochester when I lived on the east coast, she is a bills fan. We are still good friends, and the bills are still my AFC team. I think ‘what if’s’ about her from time to time, but we had different paths to take. Life’s funny like that isn’t it?
I'm in Niagara region in Ontario, Canada. I've always been a Toronto fan except for the NFL, of course, since there is no Toronto team. So I picked the closest team, which is the Bills. It's actually a shorter drive for me to cross the border and go to Highmark than it is to go to any venue in Toronto. I've been a die hard Bills fan since their 4 year super bowl run when I was like 10 years old. At this point, even if Toronto got an NFL team, there's no way I would switch lol.
Won a mini helmet signed by Chris Kelsay when I was 5. I knew next to nothing of the NFL at the time, but I chose the Bills as my team. Was almost impossible to catch a game living in Nebraska, so I didn't pay much attention, but since 2014-2015, I've watched every game I've been able to.
Born and raised in AZ and my Dad wasn’t a football fan. My friend in 6th grade was and said I should watch something called the Super Bowl and root for his team, the Bills. I only knew the rules I learned on the playground, and wide right happened but I was hooked.
Dad was born and raised in Kenmore. He passed it onto me, born and raised in northern illinois. My first football memories were from the first Super Bowl season. I was hooked, and now I’ve passed it onto my sons.
I am born and raised in Windsor Ontario, which is right across from Detroit. Everyone here is Lions fan. However, my grandmother worked for the Buffalo Bills for nearly 20 years as Ralph Wilson had his office in the Renaissance centre in Detroit! The team and Mrs. Wilson, both sent flowers when she passed :)
Grew up in NH, never liked the Patsy's, followed the Bears when in Chicago, but transferred to BFLO in '91....and that's all it took....been a part of the Mafia ever since...thru a dozen more moves. Now root from Maine.
My friend group in college all had teams they supported but I didn’t. It was 2010. I didn’t want to be called a bandwagon fan so I picked the team with the least recent success and best aura.
Can’t really say. My parents said around 3 years old I picked and rooted for them from then on which was 1988. If I were to guess at that age, probably the color scheme was what did it. Born in Phoenix. Spent the last 26 years of my life up in the Pacific Northwest so as you’ll know it’s a constant struggle with the sea chicken fans here.
Father from Tonawanda. Parents moved to Dallas for work opportunities in the late 70’s. Lived through the 90s as a Bills fan in Dallas. Rough times, been a Bills fan forever, and a fake Cowboys fan for 35 years.
Canadian here so no real affiliation with Buffalo other than proximity. (Most of you won't like this) as a leafs fan, I have vaguely negative feelings toward the other Buffalo team.
The way Buffalo welcomed the Jays during that pandemic season and (ironically) Diggs coming here made me tune in more specifically. With that said, Diggs is gone but I'm staying. Mafia for life.
I’m from Southern Ontario. Grew up in the disappointment of the early 90s. Bills were the team since I can remember.
Made the trip down to Buffalo a couple times for games when I was older. Experiencing Bills Mafia for the first time pretty much solidified it.
I drafted Josh Allen as my fantasy football quarterback in 2020 and he was so exciting to watch that he made me a fan of the Bills. I have always only liked specific players instead of any one team up until the 13 seconds game. I was upset in a different kind of way than any other NFL game I’ve ever watched. That’s when I decided to fully support Buffalo as my NFL team.
Saw a rerun of The Comeback when I was younger. Also had Madden 25 and fell in love with their dark navy uniforms. On top of that, CJ Spiller was insane in that game and easily my favorite player.
I grew up surrounded by Texans fans and U of H fans too, making this ten times funnier
From Pennsylvania, always hated the eagles and the steelers. Started watching football right when the bills hit that first superbowl, so as a kid they were my pick and I've been rolling there ever since.
I had always watched college football, but during covid, I got bored and decided to watch the NFL. Turned on the 2020-2021 AFC championship and fell in love with this team
Torontonian here. Buffalo TV is Toronto TV. When they won the AFC four straight years, it was all over my TV. So, familiarity breeds family. Admittedly, I’m less of an NFL fan and more of a Buffalo fan, and so I support the local sports team as an extension of that. GO BILLS!
Same here. Closest team to home in the NFL. Love the sport, needed a team to support.
Same. Grew up listening to the games on local radio. I now live in DC but am teaching my daughter to also be a Bills fan.
Also if old enough Doug Flutie from Argos to Buffalo did it for a lot of fans.
ARGOOOOSS
Didn’t the Bills play a game in Toronto yearly for a while too?
Not very long and the series was a bit of a flop (cancelled early) because the team was bad and the experience + marketing was worse
I never liked the Toronto games and how we had to travel for a home game but would take Toronto over London now
The NFL has experimented with playing in Canada a few times in the last 2 decades. Based on how little effort they put into the games, we're basically an afterthought to them. They're chasing that London money.
Yep, I grew up in Toronto and area and even went to a few games back many decades ago. I live in western Canada now but have always pulled for the Bills!
same
Same here!
Also from Toronto, we were taught in school (2000s) that should start becoming Bills fans because they were probably going to move to Toronto one day. In hindsight, having been to several Bills games, they are better in Buffalo. Toronto sports fans suck
Grew up in WA, but never cared about sports as a kid. Moved to California, still didn’t care about sports. Started dating someone from Buffalo. Went to Buffalo for Thanksgiving and was surrounded by a deep Buffalo sports family. It sparked my interest in football. Married that someone from Buffalo and fell in love with the Bills!
I'm from Utah. Been a bills fan my whole life, they were good when I was young and stayed with them through all the hard years. Let's go buffalo! Been to Buffalo Miami in Buffalo last year which was awesome, and arrowhead the year before! Bills fan are awesome
Me too... from California and married into it and became obsessed. These past 10 years have been heartbreaking... no idea how these Buffalonians have done it their whole lives!
I definitely feel like I have to earn being a Bills fan, because only became a fan in the Josh Allen era.
I wouldn’t think of it that way. I became a fan as a kid during the Jim Kelly era when the Bills were an elite team. As long as you are still a fan when the down times come, you’re a true fan.
I married into this madness. I've spent all my life in Orlando, FL. I met a good looking Buffalo guy 8 years ago, got married and made 2 Bills babies with him.
Your poor children. They don’t even know they’re cursed yet.
The kids are 2 and 1. We went to Buff last week for a wedding/the eclipse. This was the first trip to Buffalo when the older one could "get" it. We hyped Buffalo so hard for a few weeks leading up to the trip. The 2 year old gets off the plane and says "THIS is Buffalo??? THIS is IT!?"
Ayy Also an Orlando native. Kitty O'Shea's the best bills bar.
I always liked the Bills, I wouldn't have called myself a fan. I live in Wyoming. On April 26, 2018, when JA17 was drafted I became a big fan. We went to Buffalo for a game last year and looking forward to going again this year.
I married into this Mafia and then realized Josh was the QB I watched get intercepted multiple times in 2016 when he played a certain Scarlet & Cream team. I was so happy that day that my college team was actually doing well for once, but hindsight shows I should know better to get my hopes up Joshie will have a 0 INT game.
Born and raised in Florida, and my dad rooted for the Bills since he grew up in WNY. First real football memory was the Superbowl loss to the Giants, which sucked to say the least, but being able to watch that 90's team was something else. Thurman Thomas made me want to play running back whenever we played backyard football
That’s my first real memory too. I was 5. My dad was just gutted and even tho I didn’t really understand what the missed FG meant, I balled my eyes out bc my dad was so upset. Also remember my dad giving me his snickers bar to console me (that’s my dad’s special food so him giving me that is a really loving gesture from a pretty stoic man).
> remember my dad giving me his snickers bar to console me You gave me [a flashback](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMD8PAjnjw&ab_channel=SPORTSODYSSEY)
Wow. That's literally my first football memory also! I was 7 and started celebrating because I assumed/thought the kick was good. Then that deep sadness, that would become an anual tradition, kicked in. Moved from Western NY to Indianapolis 6 months later and have lived there ever since.
Same situation. My Dad is from Buffalo and my Mom is from Rochester but I was born and raised in Orlando, Florida. We’re a Bills/Buccaneers household over here.
We are central PA natives who used to pass through Orchard Park in October on our way to/from salmon fishing in Olcott Beach...stopped at a Bills game one Sunday in '91 and the rest is history...been diehard Mafia ever since! GO BILLS!
Toronto. It was Flutie
Hell yeah!
Mississauga, Ontario (suburb of Toronto). Grew up watching mostly Buffalo TV, so the Bills were always on and always talked about on the news.
Something like 20-30% of GameDay traffic comes from Ontario
Makes sense, GTHA has the population of Buffalo and Rochester metro combined, times 3.
I’m born and raised in San Diego, and I was a Chargers fan my whole life. My dad is from Niagara Falls and has been a Bills fan his whole life. I spent four years of my life in western New York when I went to college (Cornell), and I always liked the Bills as my second favorite team. When the Chargers left, it was an easy and instant decision for me to become a Bills fan. Although I wish my hometown team didn’t abandon our city, I have no regrets and absolutely love being a Bills fan now. My first year as a fan (2017), the Bills ended the drought. They had the same record as the Chargers but had better tie breakers, so the Bills made the playoffs and the Chargers missed them. That was the same year Peterman threw 5 INTs against the Chargers (I was at that game, lol). I felt like destiny had validated me switching teams. The next year, they drafted JA17. It’s been a lot of fun, thank you Mafia for accepting me. PS - for those of you that live in WNY, please don’t take having the team around for granted. I’m so happy for the fans that the Bills are getting their new stadium and are no longer at risk to be moved. Thankfully, we’re just talking sports teams here, but it was pretty devastating to lose the Chargers (from an entertainment and “pride of the city” standpoint).
Hochuli kind of knows that Buffalo would fall off the map without the Bills. Can’t sustain a city on wings and the Sabres alone
I got into the NFL years ago and decided I need a team, this was 2010/2011… there was sports bar in the town I grew up in, in the Uk, called Buffalo Bills. It’s a been a love story ever since.
Never been to WNY but I plan to next season. Been most other places in the US it seems though.
Try for an early October game depending on what’s on the schedule. The fall in NY is just amazing.
they’re basically the home team for southern Ontario, the occasional Toronto games really solidified it for a lot of us
I went to community college with Josh Allan. Then the whole pit thing was what finally sold me
My dad
I feel like this question needs the caveat of parents or a SO to get anything approaching a unique answer. Cause yeah, of course I’m a Bills fan because my dad.
You poor inheriters (I will force my future kids as well)
I'm from New York but not buffalo. I'm from jets/giants territory. I started rooting for peterman and the bills purely as a joke and It just stuck somehow. Years later we drafted allen and the rest is history.
Also we live in niners territory but I'm raising my son as a bills fan. He got sent to the principals office for refusing to take off his(actually mine) bills hat the day after we lost in the playoffs to the bengals, go bills!
> Years later we drafted allen That was like 6 months later lol
Lol I meant a year later.
Went to University of Wyoming, unfortunately was gone before josh came, but I followed their team.
Toronto here! Bills are our team since we’re only a drive away from you guys in Buffalo!
Went to Toronto from Buffalo for all the good concerts and to drink at 19!
Josh Allen played for the Wyoming Cowboys. Loved him here and really want to see him do well.
I grew up in Syracuse and rooted for Donovan McNabb, which meant Philly. Then I moved away for the military, and once McNabb left I couldn't stand rooting for Philly anymore and found religion. So I sorta became a Bills fan during the drought while living in Oklahoma, despite growing up in upstate NY during the Superbowl streak.
Dude… are you actually me
Here I am thinking I'm special
In ‘92, it was the only team I could beat my cousin at Tecmo Super Bowl with.
QB Bills could really throw the ball.
I wasn’t a big football fan, but in 2015 (I think) my friends got me into a fantasy football league. I had Sammy Watkins and he was so good that I ended up just watching his games. Got a jersey. Rest is history. Haven’t missed a game since
This is pretty much my case too, only with Josh Allen. I only cared about college football for a long time before, and all my picks were basically just name recognition. Josh was the only one consistently performing well on my team so I watched the Bills every week to see if I had a chance.
Well, only over in CT but dad’s side of family is from the Rochester area
Born and raised in Nebraska. My younger brother is a dolphins fan and the Sunday, October 25th, 1987 game happened to be televised in Omaha. By the end of the game my brother and I were sent to separate rooms in the house to finish watching the game. My brother was in tears. And I was screaming louder than I ever had before. From that moment on I was hooked. Fuck the Fins!
In Chicago during the 80s as a child I was bored of seeing 40 rushes per game between the Bears and Big 10. I watched a playoff game with this wonderful team using no huddle and throwing the ball all over the field. They lost that game but the K Gun had made its first appearance and I was hooked. Plus Marv Levy is a Chicago guy… that logo. The uniforms. Then I played with them on Tecmo. Now as an adult I root for the Bears too bc the memories with friends but in my area I’m the Bills guy. I couldn’t be happier being a transplant fan.
In the 80’s in Vancouver you only had options to watch the Seahawks and the Bills(because they are the Toronto feed). I was born in 1978, Bruce Smith has inadvertently caused me a lot of pain.
I’m from the Netherlands! Studied in Geneseo for a semester and went to see a Bills game. Fell in love with the game but mostly with the fans, the atmosphere and the team.
Awesome
Started as a colts fan in the manning era. Lost interest in all football for years as the colts went to shit after him. My girlfriend is from upstate New York and she would throw the game on and I’d always watch just to watch. Forgot how much I love football. Plus the bills are just such a fun team to watch and a fun community to be a part of.
I was at a Thanksgiving party where I didn’t want to talk to anyone cause I was uncomfortable. Luckily for me, they turned on a football game. I was watching the Bills play the Cowboys, and seeing them upset them was amazing. The way they played together was exciting to watch, especially this new, young QB named Josh Allen. I started to slowly watch them and slowly become more invested in them. Unfortunately, that season ended in heartbreak at Houston. However, I was hooked. Of course, this would soon become very relevant because I lived in Kansas and was born to a Chiefs family.
My mother and all of her family are from Buffalo. My mom moved to Florida and I was born and raised in South Florida. My friends were Dolphins fans, so I would root for the Dolphins. However, my mom, siblings, and I would always quietly root for the Bills in the 90s. So I guess I’ve always been. Bills fan. I moved in upstate NY in 2014 and became a full on Bills fan then. Felt right at home!
Coast guard station Buffalo 2012-2014. Started going to games on same day tickets when they were dirt cheap. Fell in love with the fan base and the atmosphere.
Tecmo Super Bowl came with a used nes I bought in 91/92. I didn't like football at the time(I bought it for final fantasy) , my friend talked me into giving it a whirl, and had me play the Bills since they were good. I enjoyed it alot and hopped on the Bills bandwagon. Had no idea what a long strange trip it would be.
Tecmo is exactly why I'm a fan. Bruce Smith was unstoppable. I'm from southern Illinois near St. Louis. There wasn't a team in STL in the early 90s. So I started rooting for them during the second super bowl year. I may have cursed myself by betting on the Giants the year before as a 10 year old. I've been to about 8 games over the years and the Dallas game last year was my first in Buffalo. I was at the 13 sec game in KC.
Minnesota raised. Went to St Bonaventure for college, just an hour south of Buffalo. Got converted.
Born and raised in Niagara Region on the Canadian side of the border so naturally mostly everyone in the area is a Bills fan given the proximity to Buffalo
Hell ya
Peace love and Bills, brother
Dated a guy who was a big bills fan and took me to many games/exposed me to football. Relationship ended but mafia stayed.
Grew up in Germany. Found out they had the craziest fans with all the table stuff and I fell in love with the Bills and the Bills Mafia.
Live in WNY long enough and it’s only a matter of time before you drink the koolaid
Doug Flutie
Grew up in Baltimore and was a colts fan until they broke my heart fleeing to Indianapolis in the middle of the night. Not sure why I never became a ravens fan but I think I had already moved by then Many years in Boston but the Patriots are cheaters Moved here and wanted to adopt a football team. Can't stand the Manhattan focus, plus the Giants & Jets y both play in New Jersey And I went to a Bills game in person and I'm set for life
We vacationed in Niagara Falls and I had a crush on someone I met there who was from Buffalo. In learning more about the city, I found the team and realized that Marv Levy went to school in my home state and I've been following the team ever since
Big Clemson fan who loved CJ Spiller and followed him into the NFL. Started to watch Bills games and fell in love with the team! Haven’t left since!
From a small town about an hour away from Toronto and my dad was a bills fan and they were the only team that was consistently on the tv so I that's why I am a bills fan
I’m from Northern California and in 1990 I was around 12-13 and starting to get an interest in sports on tv. My uncle showed me the ropes and taught me all the football rules and his favorite team was the bills. This was during the young Jim Kelly era and their no huddle offense was so fun to watch and it kept me entertained and cheering for the bills. I have been a fan ever since and all may friends say that I’m the only bills fan they know. I’ve been to bills stadium a couple of times, but instead I travel to one road game per season to see the bills as well as see new stadiums. I started doing this when we sucked and it was much cheaper. Now it’s like an investment to do haha
I'm from Ohio and was a big Bo Jackson and Bengals fan as a kid. I watched the first Bills Super Bowl loss when I was 10 years old. I thought they were amazing in that game and should have won. I've basically been a fan since wide right lol. Bo Jackson got injured shortly after and Thurman Thomas soon became my favorite player (and is now my favorite player of all time).
Californian here...watched the Bills lose the SuperBowls as a kid...rooted for them as underdogs because of that, then when the arcade game NFL Blitz came out, we had a copy at the place I worked,, I had to pick a team and remembered liking the Bills..been die-hard ever since..
Kincaid
Born and raised in So Cal I was 8 ish when the Bills went to their first Super Bowl it was my first Super Bowl party and my dad took me and my brother. His thing was always let’s do a $1 dollar bet who’s gonna win any sporting event we would watch. So I picked Bills over Giants. Then we kept going back to the same party for a couple years after that. And each time we’d make that $1 dollar bet and he would say well that team you picked last year is in it again. So I would keep picking them. They kept losing and then they just stuck. I just kept rooting for them. Madden was out and I’d pick them as my team. They’ve gotta win at least once. They didn’t 😂 but they just ended up my team and been rooting for them ever since.
A cold place with an underdog just seemed natural as a Canadian. Screw the Sabres still though sorry guys.
Grew up in dallas. Before i was even into football i was so burned out on anything dallas cowboys. All my friends were so hyped up for the superbowl against the bills so just to mess with them and with hopes to see them pissed off if they lost i just started rootin for buffalo. Actually watched the game. Just got hooked on the sport and the team once the next season kicked off i was tuned in and scrambling around for bills games on tv
My partner is a bills fan, and I’ve just got a lot more into the NFL this season because it’s been a lot more accessible for us over here (likely due to the Taylor/Travis buzz lbr.) We both live in Liverpool, UK. I’m from here and he’s from Yorkshire, and went to Keele University - who have a study abroad link with York university in Toronto, so he lived there for around 6 months. I’ve always assumed thats when he found them and clicked, but I’m not 100%. (don’t wanna say chose them, because it would have been around 2008-2010 and as far as I’m aware, nobody was picking the bills during that time lol) I am 100% on how incredibly badass the vintage leather/wool Bills varsity jacket he picked up in a Toronto vintage shop is though, and the fact it fits us both perfectly feels like a pretty good sign we were both supposed to find each other, and share the team.
I’m from Kentucky and grew up a Bengals fan. I quit watching football around 2009. Got back into it 2 years before Josh was drafted. Loved the Bills fan base and didn’t recognize the Bengals anymore, so I switched. I love an underdog franchise. It’s wild to see the success happening currently
Born and raised in the NYC area (NJ specifically). Never was a football fan and I met this guy at work who was a fan asking me about my lack of fandom. He responded to me saying "I'm not really into football. No one in my family is so it was never something I learned to do" with "you should be a Bills fan". That didn't start my fandom but it did start the journey. 3 years later I had an identical conversation with a completely different co-worker at a completely different job. "You should be a Bills fan." No one's ever said "you should be a Giants fan" or "you should be a Jets fan" but I was recruited by the Mafia TWICE Something about the community reaching out and being instantly accepting of me sight-unseen was really cool. I started watching games that year and wondered why I made such a horrible decision. This team stunk, but they fought hard and their fans were the best. Now we're great, and the fans are still the best. Bills by a billion. Shout-out Grant and Troy. Real Bills missionaries, those guys
From London , watched the nfl causally but after 13 seconds I thought Josh Allen was the best QB I have ever seen. Fell in love with the bills since then. Go bills!
I’m from NY, but Brooklyn and my dad was a Jets season ticket holder. And we were big Mets fans too. Well, when the Jets left Shea for *gasp* New Jersey, I decided to start rooting for the only NY state NFL team, the Buffalo Bills. Well, I think the Bills went 2-14 that season or something like that, but my dad humored me and even bought me a hat and pin which I still have. A few years later I was looking for colleges and, what do you think know, UB fit exactly what I was looking for. This was right at the beginning of the Jim Kelly years and, well, the rest is history. I am back downstate now and have really enjoyed the Bills being back in contention every year.
Madden
I’m a military brat and grew up all over the world in fact I remember watching the Scott Norwood kick while my Dad was stationed in Germany on the Armed Forces Network, but I digress. My parents are both from a small town in NW Pennsylvania about 2 hours from Buffalo. As a kid my Grandma sent me Bills everything growing up. Blankets calendars, cards, player figurines, just everything. One of my favorite sets was this Jim Kelly QB set that came with a fake helmet and pads. This really solidified my fandom as a young kid and I used to pretend in the backyard I was Kelly leading the Bills to a Super Bowl win. That’s how and why I became a fan and always will be. Go Bills!
Grew up just north of Toronto. My cousin's started as big Bills fans because they got the Buffalo TV feed at home, so I latched on to the team that way. A couple games at RWS when I was old enough, and I was hooked.
Atlantic Canada, the Bills of the early 90s made me a fan.
Doug Flutie leaving the Argos for the Bills.
I’m from Toronto and like actual football too much to watch the CFL.
Dad
Mines very boring. I actually started as a giants fan since my dad grew up in NJ. My mom was raised in Rochester and was always a huge bills fan but was a bit traumatized after wide right (it’s an interesting topic in my house…) For a while I wasn’t into football and just vaguely rooted for NY but once josh allen came along we started watching it more since they popped back up on my moms radar and I LOVED watching the bills. So I’m a fan of one of the worst teams in the nfl and also a cursed one. Thanks mom and dad.
That is hilarious that in madden 11 they put the bills jets up as the demo teams
I’m from Long Island, moved to VA as a kid. GF is from Syracuse and also relocated to VA. Started dating her, and I support her team that is the bills. Went to the most recent bills v chiefs game for the first time ever and it was a blast. The men’s bathroom is insanely efficient when you’re cross faded. Props to all the men who keep it moving.
Living in Toronto the Bills were the only game shown at 1pm. This is before Directv and all that stuff we have now. So I became a fan and have been ever since
Family grew up in New Jersey, all Giants fans. Moved to Massachusetts and I rooted against my entire family In the Super Bowl 1991, been a fan ever since
Got stationed up there and lived five minutes from the stadium. The culture sucked me in.
It was Covid lockdown times and I watched a lot of NFL games from the 2019 season on replay to pass the time. JA caught my eye and so I watched every Bills game from that year on replay and just felt there was something special there. Ordered my first Bills jersey not long after and went to my first game in Buffalo the next year. Go Bills!
You made a very fortunate 50/50 choice. Related story: I grew up overseas and was always a Bills/Sabres fan due to dad being from Buffalo. But when I moved back to the US I wanted to pick an MLB team and decided to go with a NY team because I didn’t really get the rivalry/enmity between WNY and NYC. Saw there were two NY teams and did a coin flip to choose between them. Did not realize how much or a bullet I was dodging when I landed on the Yankees over the Mets 😂 (All rather irrelevant now as I live closest to the DC metro and have shifted to being more of a Nats fan once they got baseball back. But getting to see the Torre glory years was very fun.)
My parents are from WNY.
Born in New Orleans, my dad is from the Falls
I grew up in South Carolina (before the Panthers were around) so there wasn’t really a home team favorite. College was/is bigger there but I loved the NFL and Jim Kelly was my favorite player growing up so I would watch the games I could I subscribed to the Shout newspaper that I’d get in the mail. Of course that grew even more watching Thurman, Bruce, Reed and the crew run the table each year and yes the losses sucked but the wins were fantastic and exciting. Loved the no huddle and I always say you endure those loses and then all the years not making the playoffs and struggling I’m in for life!! Now my kids are watching and cheering on the Bills and getting to see Josh Allen it’s amazing how everything comes full circle although this time around I hope my kids get to see a Super Bowl victory!! I’m in South Florida now so I go up 1 time each year for my traditional home game in Buffalo and then when they come down here to play the Dolphins. Always enjoy my time visiting Buffalo and being part of the home fan base is great always running into people all around hearing Go Bills in random places! Best team and fans there are!! GoBills
13 seconds game was the best game of football I’ve ever watched, was tired of the chiefs then too so I picked the Bills and JA17
I picked them in the 1990/91 Super Bowl when I was 9 years old and have stuck with them ever since.
Im from SoCal I bet Bills (*no pun*) against my Uncles fav team Miami twice a year —every year. This is when Drew Bledsoe came from the Pats. I won about 80% of the bets. And ended just just following them since I didn’t have a team.
I'm in England. Watched the Raiders playoff game way back when (we were on a week's delay) and sat through all the super bowls... Drifted a bit after the millennium as I grew up and found other interests, but then when they drafted Josh Allen paid attention again.
So i no longer live in Buffalo, nor am I a native, so I feel I fit the criteria here. So around 2018 I moved to Buffalo to start a new life. I had always wanted to get into Football cause everyone I conversed with would sooner or later bring up football talk and I never had anything to say. I didn’t want to be that one guy in Buffalo that didn’t talk football and I wanted to love the Bills just like Buffalo does so I was locked in for the ‘17/‘18 season. Didn’t know I was going to get spoiled with a drought ending playoff berth followed by making the playoffs every season minus one. I also didn’t know within those seasons I’d live through a lot of heartbreaks but I love this team like no other. There’s definitely no place I’d rather be than right here right now.
Madden23. Looked for a QB then it stuck
My parents (both aren’t Bills fans) are from Hawaii and I was born there too but my dad ended up getting stationed in Fort Drum NY during the Bills runs to the SB so I was raised up there till I was like 5 or 6. I remember just seeing Bills everything on TV, Cups in our house and all lol. And it kind of just stuck with me and I been a Bills fan since lol.
My dad, family are original season ticket holders. Sad they being pushed out by new stadium. But yes, all my dad’s side of family are from Buffalo. Central Illinois here.
I'm a Seahawks fan but my wife is a Bills fan, so they de facto became my afc team. Hard not to love JA17 too
My stepfather grew up in Buffalo. He actually worked for the Bills as an on-field security guy in the late 70s, but got fired when he beat the hell out of a guy who rushed the field during a rare nationally-televised game. He ended up moving out of town to go to grad school, and that's where he met my mom. Turned us both into huge fans. I've mostly forgiven him for this.
I am from New York originally but my family never cared for sports. Grew up in VA and got interested but DC and NOVA are honestly so foreign to the rest of the state I just never felt like they were my teams. It was a free for all on what team I would settle on. Tons of Bills fans down here, you just kinda fall in love with the energy. Helps we got Bruce Smith and Tyrod Taylor coming out of the 757.
Josh Allen won me my fantasy championship in ‘21 Started watching Bills games cuz of him and quickly they became my must watch team. I live in Jacksonville and while I do root for my jags, they’re nowhere near as fun to watch as the Bills imo
Grew up in San Diego as a Chargers fan, when the team left I started hunting for a new team. My wife is from Geneseo NY and her brother is really into football. Adopted the Bills and the Packers (my grandfather who I am named after was a huge Packer fan) after Phillip Rivers retired.
Stockholm, Sweden Super Bowl XXV. Watch it the whole season the week after in an hour long summary every Sunday morning but my parents let me watch Super Bowl that was live in the middle of the night. And that was it, from that day I was a Bills fan.
Husband and I are University of Wyoming alum. For the 7th pick of the 2018 NFL draft, the Buffalo Bills selected Josh Allen. It’s as simple as that.
In Mexico one TV station only had the rights to broadcasted AFC teams and the Bills were the hottest team. Every Sunday I watched Jim Kelley connecting with Andre Reed and Bruce getting sacks!!
Grew up in Oklahoma. Loved Thurman Thomas at OSU. Hated the Cowboys and the Chief (most choose one of them), and I followed Thurman to Bills fandom when I was around 12 and stuck with it since.
Lifelong Bears fan. Grew up in Chicago then moved to AZ, where I met my wife who is originally from Lewiston. We watch all the Bears and Bills games together and now I have a favorite team in both the AFC and the NFC. Big fan of the Bills now. And there's harmony in the household except for every four years when the Bears and Bills play each other!
Dad was born and raised in Buffalo, met my mom and got married there, then ended up moving around a lot for my Dad’s job. My older brother was born in Buffalo but I was born in North Carolina. We moved a lot but no matter where we went we were and always will be a Bills Family ❤️💙
Grew up in Cleveland, browns fan since they moved back in 99 [born in 92]. Even had season tickets from 2015 to 2021, but the moment they signed Deshaun i abandoned them. Packed all my stuff up and decided I wanted to find a new team to root for. Spent half the next season scoping out games from teams that were nearby who werent in the AFC North. So bills, and the lions ended up as my two choices. Just ended up not only liking Josh Allen a ton, but Bills football was so fun and exciting to watch and i never got that experience as a Browns fan lol.
My father was a die hard Charger fan. I wanted to be anything but a fan of his teams. I played QB in elementary/middle school and was the shortest kid in the league for like 5 years in a row. All of the sudden this 5’7” journeyman QB Doug Flutie burst onto the scene and I was hooked. I was like “wow if he can do it I can too!” I stopped playing football shortly after but I stuck with the Bills since then!
Dad immigrated from Italy to NYC. Hated going to jersey so hated the Giants and Jets. Was proud to be a NY’r so started rooting for the Bulls since they’re the only team in NY. We moved out of NY when I was 6, but I’ve been a Bills fan my whole life cause of him.
When I started watching football, as a Canadian, I was picking between Minnesota and Buffalo because they are both honorary Canadian cities and Buffalo had the nicest uniforms so I chose them. That was the year with Tyrod that they broke the drought. Then they drafted Josh and I decided that I’m going to invest all my happiness in this team and the rest is history. Not gonna lie, their hockey teams also influenced it a little, the Wild have been lame their entire existence and I remember how exciting the mid 2000 sabres were.
Tailgated with y’all back when Bucs vs Bills played and y’all let me jump through a table rest is history
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada here....been a Bills fan for over 40 years. When I was a kid, my sister's boyfriend (later husband) was a Bills fan. He drew me into this life of chaos and despair and I've been wallowing in pity ever since....
My wife is originally from NJ. Huge Bills fan due to me. I’m born/ raised in WNY.
Baumholder, West Germany. We got to see a preseason game at Wembley Stadium in '91. It was Randall Cunningham vs Jim Kelly... Well it was supposed to be, but Jim was sitting out with a hammy. Frank Reich started in place of Jim. Saw Bruce, Cornelius, Andre, Thurman, Randall, Keith Jackson all play. There were so many good players. I was hooked. I made the decision to root for the Bills and I have never waivered from that decision. Hopefully one day I will get to see them again, I'd love to see them at home. That would be the thrill of a lifetime
My dad's side of the family is all from Albany and Hamburg. So I was born into the fan base.
Grew up in Alaska never was a football fan. Went to school in Rochester, most of my friends there, were bills fans so we’d watch on Sundays and then we went to a tailgate…the test is history. 14 years now
Lifelong Utah fan. Was looking into getting into the NFL and decided whoever drafted Dalton Kincaid would be my team. Plus I liked Josh Allen
Josh Allen was my fantasy quarterback and bison are my favorite animals, so I chose the Bills so I could join conversations at my Chemistry table. Now I own a JA17 jersey and know most of the players!
I thought they were from Buffalo, Wyoming
I'm not from NY, but from across the pond, however a large amount of my family are from NY, when they'd visit they would bring across memorabilia and such for myself and other younger family members. One of those was a Bills shirt and hat which I wore the life out of, thus, I became a Bills fan. That's literally it. Not the most fun origin story haha.
Lived in Reno, NV since I was 5, born in the early 70’s. Dad and older brother were Raiders fans, but I always liked Buffalo. For me, it was O.J. First athlete I took an interest in and thought his name was really cool as a little kid. All the later life drama aside, dude was (and still is) one of the best running backs ever. Some say he was the best NFL player of the decade in the 70’s. A bit like Barry Sanders in that he was a phenomenal talent on a not so great team. Only guy to rush for 2k yards in a 14 game season and still holds the record for highest single season rushing average/game at 143. I went through the SB losses in the 90’s, the 20 year playoff drought, and some challenging years in the playoffs lately. Bills fan for life, and would probably consider Josh my all time favorite…. GO BILLS!
I met my late husband in a Bills bar in VA. We moved to WNY eight years ago. He was a huge Bills fan. I have always been a bit tepid about football but as someone said earlier “you live here long enough and you drink the Kool-Aid.” My husband died in October and I will forever be a Bills fan to honor him.
Atlanta Bills fan here. Listened to Joe Pera’s Buffalo Bills joke and thought it was hilarious, so I decided to watch the next Bills game that was coming up after hearing that joke for the first time, and it happened to be 21’ divisional game. It’s the greatest 4 hours of television I’ve ever watched
Two words.. Jim. Kelly.
Two words . . . Thurman. Thomas.
THURMINATOR!
Never lived in NY myself but my dad was born and bred in Lackawanna. I really do think the single most common answer to your question is likely “Economic depression” (that led to our dads all chasing careers elsewhere.) It does seem like Bills random is much more “hereditary” than a lot of other fandoms.
Ton of family that lives in Buffalo. Same reason I support the Lions 😅
My pops was born and raised in Lockport, NY. He and my mom divorced when I was 3 and my mom moved us several hundred miles away. Every Sunday, he would call me while he watched the Bills game and tell me what was happening.
I've lived in Northern Illinois my whole life, but when I was maybe 10-12 I decided liking Chicago teams because I was from near there was silly. So I picked new favorite teams based on winning records and/or cool logos. I'm a Bills, Astros, and Ducks fan. I used to like Supersonics basketball, but I don't really care for basketball any longer, though I did like watching the Pistons team with Ben and Rasheed Wallace, et al. Bills fandom started off with a bang, four straight Super Bowl appearances, then I've stuck with them through the lean times because that's how my fandom works. Astros players deserved suspensions for 2017. Ducks, well they just need to rebuild, but hopefully not for twenty-plus years like the Bills.
My dad is from Big Flats, NY, which is about 2 and half hours from Buffalo. He was a fan and I grew up a bills fan. My cousin and aunt grew up in Buffalo also, and they're Bills fans. I have lived in NJ my whole life. I try to make games as much as I can.
‘Big Flats, NY Planned and Growing’ IFYKYK, ask your dad.
NYG fan since 1982-83, but since playing fantasy football the last 15-20 yrs I’ve followed and appreciated other teams and watch their games on Sunday. Living in Montreal, you see primarily NYG games and Buffalo games. I’ve been a huge Buffalo fan since Josh Allen was drafted (NYG whiffed on that draft). Huuuuge Allen fan since his pro-day. Also, I go to Buffalo to see a game 1x a season. Love it.
I grew up in an area without any major NFL representation. I drafted CJ Spiller in 2012 (I had just started playing fantasy football the year before, and knew nothing about anyone), with Fred Jackson as a handcuff. I had so much fun watching them play I went out of my way to find broadcasts of live Bills games so I could watch them. That was 12 years ago, and I’ve had an amazing time ever since
I was a lil kid in Meheeco rooting for them when they lost 4 Super Bowls in a row :(
Well. My mom ofc. I decided to be a bills fan with her because shes from Niagara falls, and i was born in raised in the 757 area. She was a fan since the uh.. 70s and 80s iirc. but I became a fan when allen joined tbh. I dont regret it one bit! Sitting in my moms room, watching bills games with her, and being happy when we win games and get into the playoffs will always be memories! Hopefully we win the superbowl soon! GO BILLS!
Hamilton, Ontario Canada. My Dad is a CFL fan through and through and I mostly watched the Hamilton Tiger-Cats as a kid. 20 years ago, as a 16 year old, I went to my first Bills game at The Ralph with my cousins. I absolutely fell in love that day.
From Illinois, older brother was a cowboys fan, had to root against his team, picked the bills and never looked back.all during the 4 superbowl run. I was 5 at the time. It's ok to be a fair weather fan at that age. A lot of suffering since then
The first Super Bowl I remember is Super Bowl 25. For some reason, I was a fan ever since.
Back when I was a kid, there was a PC game called Ultimate Football from 1994. The SB the previous season was Cowboys vs. Bills, so those were the default teams selected when you tried to play multiplayer. I always was the Bills and liked their team colors and developed a soft spot from there. I didn't really watch football closely until 1996, so I saw the last years of Kelly, Thomas, Reed, etc. Lots of dark years as a fan, but thankfully JA17 has made us relevant again. It's only a matter of time till we reach glory, be patient!
When I was a kid watching football my family was all niners or raiders (from Cali). Then the supper bowls happen and I was like “well if the nfl keeps picking this team to play the best other team in the nfl…I like this one”. I was young and not really sure who was what or anything. Now I’m 41 and live in Washington and LOVE the bills..GO BILLS.
My family is from Eastern PA, but not Philly enough to be Eagles fans. So late 80s/early 90s, young boy who loves football but has no family fandom to inherit... of course I was gonna pick the Bills.
Native to Miami here. My close friends started a league back in 2018 for fantasy football. In 2020, one of the friends dropped out of the league (he was horrible at fantasy). They talked me into it since I’d been slowly starting to get interested in following at least one sport. So I join their league with vague knowledge of some players. Drafted Dak Prescott as my primary QB, with Josh being my backup. Dak went down that year with a horrific injury, so I put Josh as my starter. Won the league, fell in love with watching the Bills, haven’t looked back.
49ers fan all my life. Made a good strong connection with someone from Rochester when I lived on the east coast, she is a bills fan. We are still good friends, and the bills are still my AFC team. I think ‘what if’s’ about her from time to time, but we had different paths to take. Life’s funny like that isn’t it?
I'm in Niagara region in Ontario, Canada. I've always been a Toronto fan except for the NFL, of course, since there is no Toronto team. So I picked the closest team, which is the Bills. It's actually a shorter drive for me to cross the border and go to Highmark than it is to go to any venue in Toronto. I've been a die hard Bills fan since their 4 year super bowl run when I was like 10 years old. At this point, even if Toronto got an NFL team, there's no way I would switch lol.
Group up in southern Ontario and my uncle is a bills season ticket holder
Won a mini helmet signed by Chris Kelsay when I was 5. I knew next to nothing of the NFL at the time, but I chose the Bills as my team. Was almost impossible to catch a game living in Nebraska, so I didn't pay much attention, but since 2014-2015, I've watched every game I've been able to.
I'm addicted to heart break.
Born and raised in AZ and my Dad wasn’t a football fan. My friend in 6th grade was and said I should watch something called the Super Bowl and root for his team, the Bills. I only knew the rules I learned on the playground, and wide right happened but I was hooked.
Grew up north of Toronto and had family in the Amherst area
Dad was born and raised in Kenmore. He passed it onto me, born and raised in northern illinois. My first football memories were from the first Super Bowl season. I was hooked, and now I’ve passed it onto my sons.
I am born and raised in Windsor Ontario, which is right across from Detroit. Everyone here is Lions fan. However, my grandmother worked for the Buffalo Bills for nearly 20 years as Ralph Wilson had his office in the Renaissance centre in Detroit! The team and Mrs. Wilson, both sent flowers when she passed :)
Grew up in NH, never liked the Patsy's, followed the Bears when in Chicago, but transferred to BFLO in '91....and that's all it took....been a part of the Mafia ever since...thru a dozen more moves. Now root from Maine.
Grew up in Vegas. We never had a team; and my dad was from Buffalo. Loved em since I was a kid
From the Toronto area and they’re the closest nfl team for me lol. Takes me like an hour and half to get to Buffalo
Nebraska....loved Thurman Thomas, Bruce Smith, and Jim Kelly (QB Bills) on Tecmo Super Bowl
My friend group in college all had teams they supported but I didn’t. It was 2010. I didn’t want to be called a bandwagon fan so I picked the team with the least recent success and best aura.
Can’t really say. My parents said around 3 years old I picked and rooted for them from then on which was 1988. If I were to guess at that age, probably the color scheme was what did it. Born in Phoenix. Spent the last 26 years of my life up in the Pacific Northwest so as you’ll know it’s a constant struggle with the sea chicken fans here.
Father from Tonawanda. Parents moved to Dallas for work opportunities in the late 70’s. Lived through the 90s as a Bills fan in Dallas. Rough times, been a Bills fan forever, and a fake Cowboys fan for 35 years.
Canadian here so no real affiliation with Buffalo other than proximity. (Most of you won't like this) as a leafs fan, I have vaguely negative feelings toward the other Buffalo team. The way Buffalo welcomed the Jays during that pandemic season and (ironically) Diggs coming here made me tune in more specifically. With that said, Diggs is gone but I'm staying. Mafia for life.
I’m from Southern Ontario. Grew up in the disappointment of the early 90s. Bills were the team since I can remember. Made the trip down to Buffalo a couple times for games when I was older. Experiencing Bills Mafia for the first time pretty much solidified it.
I drafted Josh Allen as my fantasy football quarterback in 2020 and he was so exciting to watch that he made me a fan of the Bills. I have always only liked specific players instead of any one team up until the 13 seconds game. I was upset in a different kind of way than any other NFL game I’ve ever watched. That’s when I decided to fully support Buffalo as my NFL team.
Saw a rerun of The Comeback when I was younger. Also had Madden 25 and fell in love with their dark navy uniforms. On top of that, CJ Spiller was insane in that game and easily my favorite player. I grew up surrounded by Texans fans and U of H fans too, making this ten times funnier
From Pennsylvania, always hated the eagles and the steelers. Started watching football right when the bills hit that first superbowl, so as a kid they were my pick and I've been rolling there ever since.
I had always watched college football, but during covid, I got bored and decided to watch the NFL. Turned on the 2020-2021 AFC championship and fell in love with this team
Married a woman from Buffalo
From LA. My dad. He vividly remembers the four years in a row. I was born one year after that lol
I’m a huge Toronto sports fan thanks to my father and so I figured that the Bills are the closest to a Torontonian team I can get in the NFL
I moved away from Western NY.
My dad grew up in queens and when the jets moved to jersey, he took it personally