The Dallas Cowboys are the most popular NFL team in the US, according to recent data from The Nielsen Company.

Cowboys Earn Perfect Score
According to The Nielsen Sports Media Exposure Index, which measures media exposure on TV and online, the Cowboys were the most popular NFL team in America last season. The Cowboys earned a perfect score of 100 on the index, far surpassing the runner-up Pittsburgh Steelers, who finished with an index score of 81.

The Cowboys’ top ranking was boosted by first-place showings in two of the four categories tallied by Nielsen.

The other two categories, local team ratings and total buzz volume, were captured by the Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints and New York Giants, respectively.

Vikings Climb, Redskins Fall
The Cowboys have held the top spot in each of the last two years. The Steelers moved up from third to second, swapping places with the Giants. The Minnesota Vikings, likely aided by the addition of top-performing quarterback Brett Favre, climbed from 13th place in 2008 to a tie for fourth with the Green Bay Packers, a former team of Favre’s, in the 2009 regular season ranking. The Washington Redskins, meanwhile, dropped from fifth in 2008 to 11th in 2009.

NFC Captures America’s Hearts
The NFL is divided into two conferences: the National Football Conference (NFC) and American Football Conference (AFC). NFC teams dominated the 2009 rankings. Seven of the top 10 teams represented the NFC, while the Steelers, Indianapolis Colts (tied for eighth with the Saints) and New England Patriots (10th) were the only three AFC teams to crack the top third of the list.

Giants, Raiders Outperform Local Rivals
Some markets have more than one NFL team to choose from, the most prominent being New York and the Northern California Bay Area. Among the two New York teams, the Giants had the most media exposure, ranking 15 spots ahead of the Jets.

In the Bay Area, even despite drawing 38% lower local market ratings than their local rivals, the Oakland Raiders were the most popular national brand, ranking two spots ahead of the San Francisco 49ers (25th vs. 27th).

Who is your favorite professional team? How do they stack up?

Source:  The Nielsen Company