Sports has been big part of our entertainment sectors. Different communities have their own preferred sports. Let's have a look at some of the popular sports.
Football
Football has been a wildly popular sport internationally for hundreds of years, and the origins of the sport go back even farther. What’s fascinating about football is that, even with all of its history, the sport is still developing and changing with the modern times.
The drive to understand all of the intricacies of the sport have led to things like xG, or expected goals. Even though xG is a relatively new addition to football, it has caused a lot of controversy and discourse in a short time. Every year brings new gameplay strategies, and new ideas into the football world, showing that no matter how long we participate in football, we will never get tired of it and never stop trying to master the game.
Cricket
Cricket has an enormous fanbase; reportedly over 2.5 billion people follow the sport. The biggest markets for cricket are in countries like Australia, Pakistan, India and New Zealand. It is possibly most popular in India, where there are many famous professional players. The Cricket World Cup in 2019 saw New Zealand versus England and was an event that was watched by almost 1.6 billion people worldwide, making it one of the most-watched sporting events ever.
Likely due to its ease of play and the limited equipment needed, basketball has quickly become one of the most popular sports in the world. While the United States is the primary market, there are also massive fan bases in the Philippines, China, and many countries across Europe. Basketball has a unique presence online with many professional players becoming just as famous for their social media as their skills on the court. The NBA is watched by millions of people every year, and there are many smaller leagues in different parts of the world.
Baseball
Baseball is a popular sport with deep roots in American culture. Aside from the US, it has also expanded to Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and most notably Japan, where it has become something of a cultural phenomenon. While it has lost some popularity in the US to NFL football, it is still a massive market, with huge sponsorships and television deals. The average baseball player’s salary is $4 million, an enticing figure when compared to some other sports.
Tennis
Tennis is a sport that requires extensive stamina to compete in it, making it an incredibly fast paced activity to watch. While many other sports have a divide in popularity between their male and female leagues, in tennis both are equally as popular. Both sides get large sponsorships and media attention, and the sport overall is beloved by male and female fans. Though it has a large following in Europe, tennis also has dedicated fans in the US and many Asian countries. The four grand slams, primarily Wimbledon, are massively popular tennis events watched by millions of people annually.
Volleyball
From the beaches to the indoor courts, volleyball has come a long way in terms of global appeal. Now considered one of the most popular sports in the world, volleyball had humble beginnings at the YMCA where it was created to be an aggressive team sport that incorporated “a strong athletic impulse, but no physical contact.” Around the world there are almost 1 billion fans of the sport, and it has become a favorite event in the Olympics.
Table Tennis
Table tennis, or ping pong, has grown to be a worldwide phenomenon. The fast paced and agile game attracts players from the US, Asia, Europe and elsewhere. While it may not be as well televised as other sports, it is gaining a big following online through streaming platforms and social media. The sport attracts some huge sponsors, and there have been several films and documentaries made about the different table tennis communities worldwide.
American Football
As the name suggests, American football is mostly concentrated in the USA, but there it is one of the most popular sports around, with over 400 million fans. The biggest league is the NFL, and it is pushing more every year to reach new fans in England, Canada and other countries. The business of American football is massive, with multi-billion dollar sponsorship deals and television broadcasting deals behind it. It is very different from sports like basketball or tennis as it employs a start and stop strategic type of gameplay as opposed to the constant motion of other sports.
Hockey
Hockey is the national sport of Canada, and has become a sensation in the USA as well through the NHL. It has also become very popular in colder Eastern European countries like Russia, Ukraine and others in the region. Overall, there are ice hockey federations in over 76 countries. Each country has their own national team that competes in the Winter Olympics.
How popular is cricket in contrast to other sports?
Rugby is wildly popular in Europe and Australia where there are professional leagues and many different smaller independent leagues for fans and amateur players. The 2019 Rugby World Cup received sponsorship from brands like MasterCard, Heineken, Toshiba and many more, showing that there is worldwide attention focused on this sport. Rugby has over 400 million fans around the world.
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