Indiana has a rich basketball heritage that reaches back to the formative years of the sport itself. Although Canadian educator and inventor James Naismith developed basketball in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1891, Indiana is where high school basketball was born. In 1925, Naismith visited an Indiana basketball state finals game along with 15,000 screaming fans and later wrote "Basketball really had its origin in Indiana, which remains the center of the sport." The 1986 film Hoosiers is inspired by the story of the 1954 Indiana state champions Milan High School.
As of 2013[update] Indiana has produced more National Basketball Association (NBA) players per capita than any other state. Muncie has produced the most per capita of any American city, with two other Indiana cities in the top ten.[1] Professional basketball player Larry Bird was born in West Baden Springs and was raised in French Lick. He went on to lead the Boston Celtics to the NBA championship in 1981, 1984, and 1986.[2]
Indianapolis is home to the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference. The Colts have roots back to 1913 as the Dayton Triangles. They became an official team after moving to Baltimore, MD, in 1953. In 1984, the Coltsrelocated to Indianapolis, leading to an eventual rivalry with the Baltimore Ravens. After calling the RCA Dome home for 25 years, the Colts currently play their home games at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. While in Baltimore, the Colts won the 1970 Super Bowl. In Indianapolis, the Colts won Super Bowl XLI, bringing the franchise total to two. In recent years the Colts have regularly competed in the NFL playoffs.
^Inherited the athletic program of the former Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), which was dissolved in 2024 and replaced by separate institutions affiliated with the Indiana University and Purdue University systems.
^Mailing address; the campus is outside the city limits in Perry Township.
^Inherited the athletic program of the former Indiana University–Purdue University Columbus (IUPUC), which had been administered by IUPUI. Upon IUPUI's dissolution, almost all of IUPUC's academic programs fell under the administration of the Indiana University system, and more specifically the new IU Indianapolis.
The United States Auto Club is headquartered next to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and sanctions the Indiana Midget Week in June and the Indiana Sprint Week in July. Notable short ovals in Indiana include Indianapolis Raceway Park (NASCAR Trucks and USAC Silver Crown), Anderson Speedway (Little 500 and ARCA/CRA Redbud 400), Salem Speedway (ARCA, USAC Silver Crown), Terre Haute Action Track (USAC Silver Crown Sumar Classic, Hut Hundred, Hulman Classic), and Winchester Speedway (USAC Silver Crown and ARCA/CRA Winchester 400). The Indiana State Fairgrounds used to host the USAC Silver Crown Hoosier Hundred from 1953 to 2020.
Pari-mutuel betting was legalized in 1989. Hoosier Park opened in Anderson in 1994, and off-track betting parlors opened in the state in 1995. Indiana Downs opened in Shelbyville in 2002. Hoosier Park became a racino on 2008 and Indiana Downs did the same in 2009.
