Most Popular Sports In The World
We’re going to examine the popularity of the top ten sports in the world today. Before doing so. But, first you need to understand the value of sports and the criteria for ranking them.
Sports are significant in our lives. We took athletics in our early years. Later, we saw it as a pastime, a way to stay in shape, and sometimes even as a career. It is a sport that is fervently followed everywhere in the world.
Fans often form an emotional bond with their favorite athletes and teams. They see sports heroes as their role models. People’s favorite sports vary depending on where they live in the world. Because of this, ranking sports is an tough and demanding task. This is the reason it’s hard to determine the truth of the many sports lists.
It’s critical to understand what we mean when we refer to the most popular sports. The term “popular” can refer to the “most played,” “most watched,” or “most revenue-generating” sports. However, it would be unfair to rank the sports according to popularity using only one or two factors.
Top 10 Most Popular Sports 2024 Updated Table
| Rank | Sport | Estimated Fans | Regional Popularity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Soccer / Association Football | 3.5 Billion | Europe, Africa, Asia, America |
| 2. | Cricket | 2.5 Billion | Asia, Australia, UK |
| 3. | Basketball | 2.2 Billion | US, Canada, China, and the Philippines |
| 4. | Field Hockey | 2 Billion | Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia |
| 5. | Tennis | 1 Billion | Europe, Americas, and Asia |
| 6. | Volleyball | 900 Million | Asia, Europe, Americas, and Australia |
| 7. | Table Tennis | 850 Million | Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas |
| 8. | Baseball | 500 Million | US, Japan, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic |
| 9 | American Football / Rugby | 410 Million | USA mainly France, England, New Zealand, South Africa |
| 10 | Golf | 390 Million | Europe, Asia, America, Canada |
1. Soccer / Association Football – 3.5 Billion Followers
With 3.3–3.5 billion supporters worldwide, soccer is the most popular sport on the list.
Football is also known as association football or soccer. It is a team sport with two eleven-player teams that use a round ball. It is the most popular sport in the world, with 250 million players in more than 200 nations. Each end of the rectangular field where the game is played has a goal. The game aims to score by advancing the football to the opposition’s goal. Players must use any body part except the arms and hands.
Only goalkeepers can touch the ball with their hands or arms. And, they can only do so inside their penalty area. As of 2022, soccer currently ranks among the richest sports in the world. These are the rankings for soccer based on the various factors we used to order the sports.
2. Cricket – 2.5 Billion Followers
Two to three billion people worldwide support cricket. They are in India, the UK, Pakistan, Asia, Australia, etc. Cricket is the world’s second most popular sport.
You may already know that cricket is a bat-and-ball game. In it, two teams of eleven players compete on a field with a 22-yard-long, rectangular pitch. Each of the two opposing sides takes the bat to score runs. The opposing team fields while the other is hitting. Each turn refers to an inning.
There are three cricket formats: Twenty20, ODIs, and Tests. Since the establishment of the T20 format, cricket’s popularity has sharply risen. Cricket is popular in India, Pakistan, Australia, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Bangladesh, the West Indies, and Zimbabwe.
3. Basketball – 2.2 Billion Followers
Basketball is the 3rd most popular sport worldwide. It has about 2-3 billion fans in the US, Canada, China, and the Philippines.
Two teams of five players each compete in the sport of basketball on a rectangular court. The goal is to shoot a ball into a hoop. The hoop is 10 feet (3.0 meters) high and 18 inches (46 cm) in diameter. A backboard affixes it at each end. During regular play, a team can score a field goal by putting the ball through the hoop.
If a player touches the hoop or is closer to it than the three-point line, the shooting team earns two points. If the player is behind the three-point line, the shooting team scores three points. At the conclusion of the game, the team with the most points wins. In the world, basketball is the third most popular sport to play and watch.
Read More: Top 10 Best Finishers In Cricket 2024 Guide
4. Hockey – 2 Billion Followers
Hockey has 2-2.2 billion supporters. They are in Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia, and other regions. It is the third most popular sport on the planet.
It is a family of sports. In them, two teams compete by using a hockey stick to move a ball or puck into the opponent’s goal. One sport referred to as hockey in various places is field hockey or ice hockey. Hockey is a popular sport worldwide in both forms.
Field hockey is the national sport of India and Pakistan. Ice hockey is popular throughout Europe. It is especially so in Sweden, Latvia, Canada, and the United States. Above states the number of fans for both types of hockey.
5. Tennis – 1 Billion Followers
Almost a billion people across Europe, America, and Asia admire tennis. It is number five on this list.
Tennis is a sport. Players often compete alone (singles) or in teams of two (doubles). Each player uses a racket attached to a cord. They use it to strike a hollow rubber ball covered in felt over or around a net and into the opponent’s court. The aim of the game is to play the ball in a way that prevents the opposition from making a solid return.
6. Volleyball – 900 Million Followers
About 900 million fans follow volleyball in Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Australia. It is the sixth most popular sport in the world.
A net separates the two teams of six players in volleyball. Under set rules, each side attempts to score points by putting the ball on the court of the other team. Since 1964, volleyball has been part of the official Olympic Summer Games schedule.
7. Table Tennis – 850 Million Followers
About 850 million people play table tennis. They are across Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas. It ranks as the seventh most popular sport globally.
Table tennis, sometimes called ping pong, is a sport. Two or four people use table tennis rackets to hit a light ball back and forth. A net divides the intricate table where players engage in the game. Players must return a ball thrown toward them. It must bounce on the other side of the table after they let it bounce once on their side. This rule has one exception: the first serve.
8. Baseball – 500 Million Followers
It has 500 million supporters in the US, Japan, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic. Baseball is the eighth most popular sport in the world.
In baseball, two teams of nine players each alternate between batting and fielding. The game is bat-and-ball. Batters use a bat to hit a pitch made by the pitcher. They then run counterclockwise around first, second, third, and home plate. They do this to score more runs than the other team. When a runner rounds the bases and returns to home plate, they score a run.
9. Rugby – 410 Million Followers
This sport is the ninth most popular. It has about 390–410 million fans. Most are from France, England, New Zealand, and South Africa.
In France, rugby is popular. It has a rich history among the Basque, Occitan, and Catalan populations. They live near the Spanish-French border. English-speaking settlers introduced the game to South Africa in the 19th century. Since then, it has become trendy there.
British colonists also introduced the game to Australia and New Zealand. It is now famous there. It has since expanded throughout most of Polynesia. It has big fan bases in Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga.
10. American Football – 410 Million Followers
It is the 10th most popular sport. About 390–410 million people support it, in the US.
Two teams of eleven players compete in American football. It is also known as football in the US and gridiron elsewhere. Players play on a 120 by 53.3 yard rectangular field. It has goalposts at each end.
The offense tries to move the football, an oval ball, down the field using running or throwing. They must get another set of four downs to continue the drive. To do so, they must advance the ball at least 10 yards in four downs. If not, they turn the ball over to the other team.
11. Golf – 390 Million Followers
Among other sports, golf is the 11th most popular in the world. It has over 390 million fans in North America, Europe, and Canada.
In this exact sport, players use a variety of clubs. They hit balls into a course’s holes with the fewest strokes. The official golf rules define the game. It’s about hitting a ball with a club from the teeing ground into the hole. A stroke or successive strokes must do this.
Final Words
I hope this essay has given you valuable insight into the popularity of various sports. Remember to follow us on social media to see even more fascinating posts about the sports you love. Please feel free to discuss Popular Sports in the space provided below.