Top 10 Most Popular Sports Around the World

Sports have become one of the most televised events around the world and today I will discuss what I think are the top ten popular sports throughout the world. There are many variables in defining which sport is the most popular such as by number of spectators, availability of sport around the world and the number of countries the sport is popular in. I’ve based this list on which sport is most played as well as televised around the world and taking into context the variables as well.

1. Football/Soccer: Soccer has become the ruler of sports with the largest fan base. With approximately over 3.5 billion fans, soccer is irrefutably the most watched sport in the world and is followed passionately by nearly 100 countries. The football world cup is the largest sporting event in the world drawing millions of viewers in the finals alone. The last football world cup in 2010 had about 715.1 million people who watched the final and is the world’s most widely viewed sports event today.

2. Cricket: The gentleman’s game as referred by the English is the most popular sport in approximately 25 countries such as India, Pakistan ,Bangladesh, Nepal ,Sri Lanka, Australia, England ,South Africa, New Zealand and the Caribbean countries. The Cricket world cup in 2011 had 672,000 spectators in the stadiums alone and about 2.2 billion TV viewers throughout the tournament, with the matches being broadcast in 200 countries.

3. Basketball: Basketball is hugely popular in countries like USA and Philippines and becoming increasingly popular in China. Basketball has about 1.4 billion spectators worldwide, although most are in USA and Europe. The NBA is the most popular basketball event and probably one of the most popular professional leagues in the world. The NBA 2011 finals averaged 5.5 million and The NCCA drew a viewership of 14 million viewers.

4. Tennis: The game of tennis originated in the United Kingdom and spread among the English speaking population in the world and now is an Olympic sport, It may not be the most popular sport in any country but certainly holds second or third spot or amongst countries such as USA, ,Australia, India and several countries in Europe and some parts of Asia. Tennis has some major tournaments such as the Grand Slam, Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open which are widely watched. Wimbledon matches had about 2.2 million viewers per match, whereas the US Open having 10 million viewers per match.

5. Field Hockey: Modern field hockey is invented in England is the national sport in India and Pakistan. It is amongst the top 5 sports in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, Argentina, Holland, South Korea, Germany, Malaysia and some parts of Europe and Africa. The two biggest field hockey tournaments are the Olympic Games tournament and the Hockey World Cup which had approximately 8 million viewers per match.

6. Baseball: Baseball is the national pastime of the United States. It’s the most popular sport in in Japan, Korea, Cuba, Taiwan and amongst the most popular in USA. The World Series, the most prestigious tournament of Baseball in the United States and Canada, had a viewership of 19.1 million viewers throughout the playoffs.

7. Volleyball: It is very popular in USA and almost 100 countries play the game professionally. The game may not be most popular in any countries but certainly enjoys a popularity level in almost all nations. Considering the amount of people playing the game and considering a mass following of in excess of 200 million ranks it 7th.

8. Auto Racing: Auto racing is one of the most televised sports. Formula One is the most popular kind of single seat car racing tournament and involves an annual world championship for drivers and constructors. The Grand Prix is the largest Auto racing event and began in France in 1894 as an endurance test for the car and driver. Grand Prix evolved into formula racing and later Formula 1 and had approximately 14.1 million viewers throughout the last tournament.

9. RugbyFootball: Another English invention , Rugby union and Rugby league are very popular in Australia, South Africa ,England ,Wales, New Zealand ,French ,Madagascar and Fiji. It is the most popular sports in as many as six countries and has nearly 200 million observers.

10. Ice Hockey: The tenth spot was hard to choose between Golf, American football and ice hockey. Since being a ice Hockey fan and it becoming increasingly popular I had to choose Hockey. Hockey is the most popular sport across Canada, Finland, Latvia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The NHL is the most popular league in ice hockey and the Stanley cup finals drew 8.28 million last year.