American sports culture includes costumed folks who help inspire cheers and drive engagement on game days. In Michigan, that includes longstanding college mascots such as Michigan Stateās Sparty and professional sports counterparts including Al the Octopus with the Detroit Red Wings.
When people attend games or watch them on TV, sometimes they want to know more about team mascots. With National Mascot Day coming on June 17, we wondered which mascots Michiganders are looking up. So BetMichigan.com paused reviewing Michigan sportsbook apps for a bit and used Google Trends to seek search volume for the term āmascotā over a 12-month span (June 2023 to June 2024) to find the most searched mascots in Michigan.
Most Searched Mascots In Michigan
Mascot | Team | Search Interest vs. Other Topics |
Roary (Lions) | Detroit Lions | 15 |
Sparty (Spartan Warrior) | Michigan State Spartans | 12 |
Big Al (Elephant) | Alabama Crimson Tide | 7 |
Al the Octopus | Detroit Red Wings | 5 |
Paws (Tiger) | Detroit Tigers | 5 |
Which MI Mascots Are Most Popular?
When it comes to search interest on the web over a year-long period, Detroit Lions mascot Roary the Lion is Michiganās most popular. Whatās also quite popular ā and a long time in coming ā is the thought of realistic Detroit Lions Super Bowl odds, which you can track with us all season.
Roary has been roaming sidelines and representing the Lions for 14 years, drawing a search interest score of 15. That beat out MSUās Sparty, which had a search interest score of 12 based on our measurements.
A non-local option finished third on our list, the University of Alabamaās Big Al the elephant (search interest score of seven). Interest in Alabama might have peaked statewide in January, when the Michigan Wolverines defeated the Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff semifinals. This yearās expanded, 12-team CFP will no doubt draw huge Michigan sports betting interest.
Two mascots representing local pro teams round out our top five. Al the Octopus and Paws of the Detroit Tigers tied at No. 4 with a search interest score of five points each.
While none of the five drew huge amounts of search interest online, thereās no denying that Michigan residents love their local mascots. Three of the stateās major sports franchises found their way onto the statewide top five in 2024 (sorry, Pistons, your Hooper mascot didnāt make the cut).
For more lifestyle stories and the top Michigan sports betting bonuses out there, stay with BetMichigan.com.
USA Today photo by Kirby Lee