What Does "49ers" Mean at Long Beach State (CSULB)?
At California State University, Long Beach (CSULB), "49ers" is the athletic nickname for the university's sports teams — not a reference to the San Francisco 49ers NFL franchise. If you searched "49ers" and landed on CSULB's site, you're looking at Long Beach State athletics. The name ties to the university's founding era: CSULB was established in 1949, and "49ers" reflects that origin year, the same way the NFL team's name references the 1849 Gold Rush. Same word, two completely different institutions.
CSULB 49ers vs. San Francisco 49ers
The overlap in name causes real confusion, especially in search results. Here's how to tell them apart:
| CSULB 49ers | San Francisco 49ers | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | University athletic program | Professional NFL franchise |
| Location | Long Beach, California | Santa Clara / San Francisco Bay Area |
| Level | NCAA collegiate sports | Professional football |
| Colors/context | Long Beach State campus teams | NFL league play |
| Official home | CSULB athletics site | NFL / team site |
If you're looking for game schedules, tickets, or news about college teams, you want CSULB. If you want NFL football, you want the San Francisco 49ers.
Which teams use the 49ers name?
"49ers" is the umbrella nickname for CSULB's intercollegiate athletics. It covers the university's varsity sports programs as a whole, so any reference to "the 49ers" in a Long Beach State context means the school's teams collectively. Note that CSULB also uses "Dirtbags" as a separate nickname — that one is specific to the baseball program, not the whole athletic department. So you may see both names on the same site; they aren't interchangeable.
Where to find schedules, tickets, and news
For current game schedules, tickets, and team news, go to CSULB's official athletics resources rather than the main university homepage. The main CSULB site (csulb.edu) covers academics, admissions, campus life, and events — it lists things like campus events and university news, but athletics schedules and ticketing live with the athletic department. When you need a specific game date, roster, or ticket link, start from the athletics site and confirm details there, since schedules change by season.
Who this matters for
- Prospective students and families checking out school spirit, teams, or game-day culture.
- Fans and locals searching "49ers" who need to know whether a result is about the college or the NFL team.
- Anyone verifying a school name who sees "49ers" next to Long Beach State and wants to confirm it's the same institution as CSULB.
The short version: at CSULB, "49ers" means Long Beach State's own athletic teams, named for the university's 1949 founding — and it has nothing to do with the San Francisco 49ers.