What Are The Top 4 Sports?

There are hundreds of sports, but only a handful of them have mass fan following running into millions

Determining the top 4 sports in the world can be a bit tricky, as multiple factors are involved. The most important determining factors include the overall viewership and the revenue generation potential associated with a particular sport. That is exactly what we will focus on in this blog.

What are the Top 4 sports ranked by viewership?

Soccer (Football) – With soccer being played in more than 200 countries, it is the most widely played sport in the world. It is thus natural that soccer also has the highest viewership in the world. Some of the most watched soccer events in the world include the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championship. For the 2022 FIFA World Cup held in Qatar, the global viewership is estimated to be around 5 billion people.

Cricket – Known to have originated in England, the game of cricket is hugely popular in countries like India, Pakistan, Australia, England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. For major events like the ICC World Cup, overall viewership is estimated to be around 2.5 billion. The interactions are a lot more if we consider match highlights and social media conversations.

American football – This is one of the most watched sports in the United States. The top championship is the Super Bowl that attracted around 123.4 million viewers in 2024. Baseball used to be on top earlier, but American football has taken a lead in present times in terms of viewership.

Basketball – In the 2023 NBA (National Basketball Association) Finals, the average viewership was recorded at around 11.6 million people per game. Earlier, it was baseball that used to get higher viewership than basketball. But that has changed in recent years. Average viewership in 2023 MLB (Major League Basketball) World Series was around 9 million per game. That is lower than NBA viewership. One also has to consider the fact that basketball has a much larger global presence in comparison to baseball that is largely limited to the United States.

What are the Top 4 sports ranked by revenue?

Viewership has a direct link with the amount of revenue generated. However, since advertisement rates vary from country to country, the overall revenue linked to sports can vary.

American Football – Earnings during the 2022-23 National Football League (NFL) is estimated to be $11.5 billion. At the Super Bowl, the revenue was even higher at around $12 billion.

Soccer (Football) – In the 2022-23 season of UEFA Champions League, revenue generation was approximately $2.28 billion. In the English Premier League, the revenue generation was $7.19 billion. At the 2022 Qatar World Cup, FIFA earned around $7.5 billion. However, if we account for the global revenue associated with soccer, it is likely to be the most revenue generating sport in the world.

Basketball – At the 2022-23 season of National Basketball Association (NBA), the revenue generated was around $10.6 billion. Global revenue associated with basketball will be much higher.

Cricket – In the 2023 IPL (Indian Premier League), the revenue generated was around $7.4 billion. Considering other cricket events, the revenue associated with cricket will be much higher.