As an American who lives in the Northeast, I find it highly amusing that anyone would think they could offend an American by calling them a Yankee or Yank. As noted, the Yankees are the most prestigious/richest team in North American sports; there is a song called "Yankee Doodle" that was originally sung by British troops to mock the ragtag Colonials, but we've adopted it proudly as a patriotic anthem.
The only context in which I could see the term "Yankee" as being even mildly offensive is if a Southern American referred to a "Damn Yankee" in a bar or something; then you would know they have hostile intentions.
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