The Green Bay Packers have been named the best pro franchise among the four major leagues in North America in the ninth annual ranking conducted by ESPN The Magazine.

The magazine announced Green Bay the winner in a news release on Wednesday.

The Packers, who won Super Bowl XLV, finished first among 122 teams in the NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB. In the ranking previous to this one, the Packers were ninth. In 2003, when the magazine started ranking the pro teams, the Packers also finished first.

In this year's ranking, the Brewers finished 30th, up one spot from last year, when they were 31st. The Bucks ranked 93rd this year, compared to 69th last year.

The best franchises in sports are determined by a team's performance in a variety of categories. Votes by fans online are included in the ranking process.

Finishing second was the Tampa Bay Lightning of the NHL, followed by the New Orleans Saints of the NFL, the Los Angeles Angels of MLB and the San Antonio Spurs of the NBA.

The Packers were the top-scoring team in two of eight categories - tops in stadium experience and tied for the tops in "title track," championships won or expected to be won. The Packers ranked fourth overall in "bang for the buck" and fifth overall in the coaching and ownership categories.

The worst franchise ranking went to the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL (122), followed by the Washington Redskins of the NFL (121), Toronto Maple Leafs of the NHL (120), Sacramento Kings of the NBA (119) and Minnesota Timberwolves of the NBA (118).

The initial press release did not provide a list of or a link to the entire 122-team ranking.

In a category called "Ultimate Swag," referring to the best giveaways, the Brewers finished second behind the Los Angeles Angels. This category was voted on by fans. What may have put the Angels ahead of the Brewers was a May 10 promotion when they gave out Angels' wrestling masks. On Aug. 23 the Angels are planning to give away rally monkey Chia Pets.

The top ten in the magazine's best franchises in sports are: