Sports Teams in Asheville: How to Play and Watch

Living in Asheville, one of the big things that you simply won’t get here are major league sports – we’re not a town with an NFL, NBA, or MLB team, drawing tens of thousands to cheer. Those are games we’re going to watch on TV or drive to Charlotte or Atlanta to see live.

But you can be a sports fan or sports player anywhere, and if that happens to be you, I think there’s more to meet the eye in the sports in Asheville scene. From being a fan in the stands for various college athletics games at UNCA, to spending an iconic summer evening at the Asheville Tourists’ stadium, there are players with heart that need our cheers, and the tickets tend to be very affordable since they’re smaller-league situations. 

I personally recently spent a Saturday night watching an undefeated Asheville City SC take out the number 2 team in their league 2-1 on a beautiful mountain July evening. The atmosphere was so fun – hundreds of fans, the ultra-fan section bringing out the cheers and vuvuzelas and drums, and excellent vendors: I ate a scrumptious veggie burger and my companions were so excited for The Hop ice cream being served on site. For $15, I was able to spend a night outdoors, impressed with the skill of our players and with my appetite whetted for the playoffs.

Because I can’t be the only one who catches local sports fever and enjoys the bonding process, I put together this list of the available options for watching and playing sports in Asheville.

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Sports to Watch in Asheville

I’ll be honest – you’re not going to be seeing most of Asheville’s sporting events coming through on ESPN’s main channel, but the intrigue, fun, and excitement of watching sports extends well beyond the major leagues and the gigantic stadiums. For sports teams with heart and talent, you can absolutely find what you’re looking for right here in town. 

Bring the Blue House Down with the Asheville City SC Teams

2024 was a particularly good season for me to get excited about Asheville City Soccer Club. The men’s team was undefeated and took their skills to the playoffs, ultimately making it to (become south champions? The finals? Figure this out). There was a ton of skill on display on the field, and the chance to spend a summer evening outdoors with people who were both avid fans but not too serious was a great time.

There were lots of kids frolicking in the field behind me away from the soccer field, and there were cornhole games set up, so the atmosphere is very festive and fun (especially when we just keep winning games!). While you might prefer the casual fandom like me, there’s also the South Slope Blues – the most hardcore fans who are banging the drums, wearing the blue paint, and riling the crowd up with lots of good chants. Who knows? Maybe I’ll see you in their special spot soon.

Take me out to the Ball Game at the Asheville Tourists Stadium

I grew up near a different minor league stadium, and minor league baseball is one of my favorite ways to spend an evening. Between affordable ticket prices, fun themed nights, fireworks, and tasty ballpark treats, there’s something to entertain everyone at an Asheville Tourists game, and it’s a nice way to get a big group together. Many church groups, school groups, and other organizations opt to buy a bundle of tickets and have their gathering time while the players run the bases.

With a full season that includes 66 home games, you have a variety of dates to choose from. Just make sure you warm up your voice: get ready for that 7th inning stretch so you can sing your Take Me Out to the Ballgame with your friends and family.

Catch Top Teams at the Asheville Championship

While UNCA’s basketball team isn’t often a feature in the March Madness games, locals can buy tickets for the early-season Asheville Championship, an NCAA event that brings big teams in for a two-day series of games that brings excitement before the season gets really hot. They bring competitive top-tier teams so that the games are intense and fun to watch, and Harrah’s Cherokee Center offers a bigger crowd and excitement than UNCA’s Kimmel Arena.

Whether you’re coming into town just for some hardcore basketball fandom or live here and want an exciting weekend of sports, it’s nice when some of the big-name teams come to Asheville!

Cheer on the Home Team at the UNCA Basketball Games

UNCA basketball games are nothing to sneeze at – in various recent seasons, the UNCA team has brought their top game to the seasons and made Kimmel Arena an exciting place to cheer for the home team. As a Division 1 school, UNCA has other sports options throughout the year – if you’ve been looking to watch more tennis, swimming, volleyball, or baseball, check out these teams and become the Bulldogs cheering section! 

Sports to Play in Asheville

There’s a strong outdoorsy culture in Asheville, but many of the popular activities, like river kayaking, rock climbing, mountain biking, and hiking, don’t have a strong sports-team culture, either being more individual or less competitive. If you really just want to join a group and bond over the exercise and teamwork, sports teams in Asheville range from highly competitive to comfortably casual. You have a lot of options! 

Check Out the Options From Asheville Parks & Recreation

While they may have more front-and-center opportunities for children, the Asheville Parks and Recreation crew actually puts together a ton of fun outings for adults of all ages as well. They offer league play for a variety of sports: basketball, sand volleyball, softball, pickleball, and flag football, at the time of writing. Joining a team isn’t a super long commitment, usually just a month or two of practice and games, or just games.

Bond, Play, and Travel with Asheville Ultimate Frisbee Club

Asheville’s Ultimate Frisbee Club offers a variety of leagues, tournaments, and pickup games for adults, as well as a robust youth program for ages 10-17. As a sport that doesn’t require a lot of specialized equipment but works out your whole body, this sport has become popular as a way to stay in shape and build skills without investing heavily in equipment.

Volunteers and coaches help to make this a supportive community and a fun place to participate in sports; a friend of mine loves this club and has gotten to travel to regional and even national competitions with his team, making it a neat way to stay highly active in sports even into your adult years, whether you started out as a sports pro or not. 

Make Friends and Set PRs at Asheville Running Collective

 Having a great time as a team doesn’t always have to involve passing the ball or launching a disc – sometimes, you can just join each other in solidarity as you work on your running form, endurance, and speed! Asheville Running Collective is a group that gets together to run weekly as well as offering fun challenges like the Wedge 10k and the New Year’s Mile.

Joining this group can help you make running friends if you want to ever do long relay races, have someone to run alongside you for your first marathon, or do major trail-running or uphill running feats that are available to us here in Western NC. Running is definitely a race against yourself, but it’s nice to have a buddy by your side, one who has trained hard enough to know if this cramp is serious or not. Happy running!

Join a League or Tournament with Asheville Sport and Social Club

Not to be confused with Asheville Sports Club (a specific location in South Slope), Asheville Sport and Social Club was created to have a hub for adult (21+) sports leagues and games around Asheville. Their bread and butter are sports like kickball, dodgeball, volleyball, and bowling, where leagues exist for “just for fun” players and for more serious, competitive folks.

The Social aspect comes from when the club organizes tournament days and after parties, celebrating the hard work and the accomplishment of playing a sport well. Those aren’t the only sports you’ll find here, though: golf, soccer, flag football, and even axe throwing are coordinated through this organization, creating a great camaraderie and tons of variety.

Try a league and if you still long for another sport they don’t offer, talk with the coordinators – since this is such a group effort, you might be the one to bring a new sport to the club!

Asheville Sports Club brings the class to pick-up sports

Asheville Sports Club combines a lot of things that people in Asheville like – an ad-hoc approach, physical activity, and of course, a great bar. This spot in South Slope includes pickleball courts, basketball courts, and a fully-stocked outdoor bar that holds events like trivia and shows NFL games for those who don’t get them at home or want a social atmosphere.

It’s not a regular gym, but rather a spot to host your weekly game or an ad hoc spot to find others to play dodgeball, pickleball, or basketball with. If you’re not quite sold or don’t have enough for a team yet, go get a drink and enjoy their trivia night in order to start making friends and see which group needs another person. You might just find your new South Slope tradition while getting more active at the same time!

Final Tips for Sports in Asheville

While the United States is definitely known for its devotion to a wide variety of professional sports, I hope we’ve encouraged you to both seek out a way to get to know others while playing sports in Asheville, as well as reminded you that literally all sports teams need fans in the stands, not just the top professionals.

Whether you opt to be a great aunt or uncle by showing up for your niece or nephew’s sporting events (or agree to coach, which will make you a big hit among the parents!), or become of the Asheville City Soccer Club’s die-hard fans, you can make the sporting experience in Asheville your own. 

For those of you who just know that you’re never going to be a huge fan of organized competitive activities for teams, Asheville has plenty of ways to stay in shape and make new friends without having to keep score. From kayaking and rafting on the many local rivers, to a true smorgasbord of great hikes in and around Asheville, you can get your outdoor time while also getting in shape, even if you’re just not the Sporty Spice of your group.