The New England Patriots aren't Vermont's favorite NFL team, study says. Here's who is

You’d think Vermonters would root for the New England Patriots since they’re part of the region the team is named after.

A new report says that Vermont sports fans actually favor the New York Giants over the Patriots.

A report by the sports betting company BetMGM studying states’ most popular NFL teams found that both Connecticut and Vermont’s search data show that the Giants are more popular than the Patriots.

“For the most part, states show the strongest support for their home teams, but there are two notable exceptions where this isn’t the case. Ironically, the New England Patriots have some turncoats,” the report said.

BetMGM came to this conclusion by analyzing Google Trends data.

So, if the findings of this report are accurate, why would the Giants be more popular in Vermont and Connecticut than the Patriots?

Well, one reason may be geography. Vermont and Connecticut both border New York, so it makes sense that people in those states would gravitate toward a New York team.

But using that logic, Massachusetts could also favor the Giants because Massachusetts also borders New York.

While that it is true, the Patriots have Massachusetts roots, as they were originally named the Boston Patriots during its years in the American Football League. That changed in 1971 when they became an NFL team, moved into their Foxboro stadium and became the New England Patriots, according to ESPN.

Another reason why some Vermonters may cheer the Giants over the Patriots might be because the Giants used to train in Vermont.

The Giants trained at St. Michael’s College in Colchester during the summers from 1956 to 1960. They would stay in dormitories on the campus and practice on turf behind what are now the Alumni Hall and Lyons Hall dorm buildings.

That may explain the affection for the New York team.

Elizabeth Murray contributed to the reporting of this story.

Rin Velasco is a trending reporter. She can be reached at rvelasco@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Patriots aren’t Vermont’s favorite NFL team, study says. Here’s who is