The World’s 25 Most Popular Sports (Ranked by 13 Factors)

[MissBarbara]

I found this list to be fascinating, chiefly because U.S. sports rank fairly far down this list. I mean, I thought NFL football would be close to the top, when it's #12 -- behind sports like volleyball, cricket, rugby, and Formula 1 (and I didn't even know that was a thing).

And the criteria they used to define "popularity" seems accurate to me:

http://www.totalsportek.com/most-popular-sports/

[watcher1]

Somehow I thought "athletics" encompassed all athletic activities but was surprised to see it defined as more of a track and field type of sport.
Most of the sports listed above U.S. football are played internationally whereas I think the type of football played in the US may be found in a few countries but it has not been readily accepted for whatever reasons unlike basketball is.

[MintJulie]

I just discovered soccer.  I never really watched it before last year.   My friend had a son on a high school team that went to the h.s. state championship last year.    It was exciting.    I've been to 4 contests this fall.

I know that Football is popular in the US, my beef with it is all the down time.   When someone is tackled and the clock keeps running, I don't understand that.  I forget where I read it, but in a 60 minute competition, there is actually 22 minutes of the ball in play.

Golf, omg, how can people enjoy that.   My dad and sister would do it.   So boring.   Maybe relaxing, but not my cup of tea.

I was surprised to see Volleyball.   Love watching that.

Thank you MissBarb for the list.   Interesting stuff.

[MissBarbara]

Somehow I thought "athletics" encompassed all athletic activities but was surprised to see it defined as more of a track and field type of sport.

Most of the sports listed above U.S. football are played internationally whereas I think the type of football played in the US may be found in a few countries but it has not been readily accepted for whatever reasons unlike basketball is.

Yes, I didn't know the specific meaning of "athletics," either. And you're right: "American football," though hugely dominant in the U.S., is played virtually nowhere outside the U.S.

The main reason I posted this was my complete surprise at the results, which likely speaks to my insularity more than anything else.

[MissBarbara]

I just discovered soccer.  I never really watched it before last year.   My friend had a son on a high school team that went to the h.s. state championship last year.    It was exciting.    I've been to 4 contests this fall.

Soccer fans refer to it as "the beautiful game," and they're right. Soccer is akin to fine bourbon: Not everyone can appreciate it, but for those who do, it's simply wonderful.

There's a distinct anti-soccer bias in the U.S., and it likely will never be overcome, especially among die-hard sports fans. And that's fine with me. They feel compelled to constant denigrate the sport, which is both puzzling and counter-intuitive. But that doesn't bother me in the least.

If you're interested in following soccer a bit more, I suggest you watch matches in the UEFA Champions League. It features the best players in the world playing on the best teams in the world, all playing against each other. Pound for pound, it's the best soccer in the world. The World Cup is always fun and exciting (and I watched several of the World Cup qualifying matches over the past few days, and I'll watch more over the weekend), but while the World Cup includes national teams whose players play elsewhere and who only come together to play international matches, the Champions League features teams that play together nine months out of the year, and it shows.

I was surprised to see Volleyball.   Love watching that.

Me, too. I "discovered" volleyball at the last Olympics, and I spent hours and hours watching both men's and women's matches. It's a fascinating sport!

[MintJulie]

Soccer fans refer to it as "the beautiful game," and they're right. Soccer is akin to fine bourbon: Not everyone can appreciate it, but for those who do, it's simply wonderful.

Well I LOVE bourbon.   I'll be sure to look into the UEFA shedule.

I was surprised to see Volleyball.   Love watching that.

Me, too. I "discovered" volleyball at the last Olympics, and I spent hours and hours watching both men's and women's matches. It's a fascinating sport!

My brother-in-law and two friends used to play in 2 man tournaments in the sand.   I never got to go see them.
The thing I get into is the 8 players, and yes, Olympics also.   My gosh, how high they jump, and the sets, the spikes.   The diving saves.    The women teams too.     They're a little bit better than me, who at the company picnic broke two nails and got an earring caught in the net.    Yes, that really happened.

[MissBarbara]

Soccer fans refer to it as "the beautiful game," and they're right. Soccer is akin to fine bourbon: Not everyone can appreciate it, but for those who do, it's simply wonderful.

Well I LOVE bourbon.   I'll be sure to look into the UEFA shedule.

I know, that's why I used that analogy...   

[watcher1]

I was surprised to see Volleyball.   Love watching that.

Thank you MissBarb for the list.   Interesting stuff.

Especially women's beach volleyball. The tanned bodies. Skimpy bikinis. 

Golf, like tennis, can still be enjoyed in one's senior years, unlike many of the sports mentioned.

[JBRG]

I was quite happy to see "ice" hockey listed in the top 10. Being Canadian, I snicker every time I see reference to the game with the word ice in front of hockey. I know, I know. It's to differentiate it from field hockey. And to attest to the global popularity of the game I know as hockey, here is a haka from 2015 prior to a game between New Zealand and South Africa. I cannot believe they do this on ice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWdvBlx3Twk

As for American/Canadian football, Jules, the 22 minutes in play must have been a Canadian Football League game. I've seen research that says the average amount of time the ball is in play during an NFL game is 11 actual minutes. I've maintained for many years that the NFL game would be improved by adopting one CFL rule -- a 20 second play clock instead of the 40 second clock used in the NFL. This would result in twice as many plays.

[Levorotatory]

Soccer fans refer to it as "the beautiful game," and they're right. Soccer is akin to fine bourbon: Not everyone can appreciate it, but for those who do, it's simply wonderful.

There's a distinct anti-soccer bias in the U.S., and it likely will never be overcome, especially among die-hard sports fans. And that's fine with me. They feel compelled to constant denigrate the sport, which is both puzzling and counter-intuitive. But that doesn't bother me in the least.

Soccer has always seemed really slow to me.  That's probably because is bears a superficial similarity to hockey, but a soccer pitch is twice the length of hockey rink, running is slower than skating, and a big, air-filled ball moves slower than a rubber puck.  The nets are far larger than a goalkeeper can possibly hope to defend except by maintaining a perfect angle, yet the game tends to be low scoring.

[MissBarbara]

The nets are far larger than a goalkeeper can possibly hope to defend except by maintaining a perfect angle, yet the game tends to be low scoring.

You're right, and that's one of the things I find most fascinating about soccer. The goals are huge (24 feet wide and 8 feet high), yet scoring is low -- certainly lower than hockey. Part of it is goalkeepers maintaining the perfect angle, part of it is the fact that there are at least four defenders. But the beauty is when all the obstacles are overcome and a goal is scored.

I can't speak to hockey (ignorance), but the other beautiful thing about soccer is that you can watch the play develop and attacks begin and proceed. And it's the "slowness" of soccer that makes this possible.

[_priapism]

I think it is a generational thing in America.  We grew up with football, pee wee, Pop Warner, Friday Night Lights, college and the Pros, NFL, AFL, USFL... but with head injuries, a declining white male demographic, and the rise of youth soccer, I will not be surprised at all if football (soccer) replaces American rules football in the next 40 years as the king of the hill.