Before we go into the list, do you know what is meant by spectator sports? Well, these are games that are not only fun to play but incredibly fun for the audience to watch, and at the end of the day, they have a thrilling experience. The entire stadium is filled with electricity from the crowd, and overall it’s something that can only be experienced first-hand and cannot explicitly be put into words. If you are a fan of online sports betting, then you must also know about the spectator sports in the world that are currently the rage as it will help you place your wagers on websites like BetMGM. In this article, we are going to have a look at the top 10 spectator sports in the world.
Soccer
Soccer has to be the leading one on the list when talking about spectator sports – it’s a game that the whole world is mad about. Just think about the number of people who tune in to watch the World Cup every year. To top it off, more than 250 million have said that they love playing soccer. Soccer is one such sport that knows no boundaries – it’s there in South America, Europe, Africa, and even Asia. Similar to baseball in one aspect, soccer fields do not have any fixed dimensions to follow. They do have maximums and minimums that they need to keep in mind, but that’s it. The length of the field has to remain between 100-130 yards whereas the width has to stay between 50-100 yards. But in the case of international games, the rules are a bit tighter. The game will continue for 90 minutes and stoppage time.
Cricket
The second one on this list is cricket. Even though the sport is not that popular in the U.S., you cannot deny its global popularity. When the Cricket World Cup is conducted, it amasses approximately more than 200 million viewers, and that’s pretty impressive. The countries that mainly dominate this field include India, Pakistan, and Australia. Some basics of cricket that you should know are – it’s a game that is played between two teams, and each team has eleven players. Each side will take turns batting and fielding.
Football
Now, let’s talk about football – it’s no secret that everybody loves a good game of football. This sport has some of the best teams worldwide, and the fans are quite passionate about the teams they support. If you ever witness a football match, you will be surprised to see the amount of energy displayed by fans at the stadiums. The time on the clock for a football game is for sixty minutes, but it is divided into two phases thirty minutes each and four quarters of fifteen minutes. At any given time, each time can have only eleven players on the field. More players than that would result in a penalty.
Basketball
Basketball is a pretty modern sport compared to cricket or soccer. It first came into existence in the latter half of the 19th century, but it became pretty influential pretty fast. However, the fanbase for this sport is concentrated mostly in the regions of the USA, Japan, Canada, and China. However, it has picked up pace over the last couple of years and is spreading to other parts of the world as well. The primary goal in a game of basketball, as you all probably know, is to shoot the ball through the hoop. When that is done, the team scores a point. There are usually twelve or more players on the roster for each team, but at a time, only five players from each time can be present on the court.
Tennis
Tennis is a very popular sport, and you have probably heard of Roger Federer, who is one of the highest-paid tennis players in the world. This sport is not really played with a team. Every player stands for themselves, other than in doubles matches. If you consider the viewership, then historically speaking, women’s tennis has a greater record than men’s tennis.
Hockey
There are two types of hockey – ice hockey and field hockey. Field hockey is more popularly witnessed in Pakistan and India, whereas you will find ice hockey in Canada and USA. Compared to the other sports on this list, hockey isn’t that big in terms of revenue, but it definitely brings about a considerable social presence.
Table Tennis
Table tennis is another spectator sport that people mostly watch during the Olympics. But did you know that most table tennis players are Chinese? Yes, they are really good at this sport. But the best thing about this sport is that anyone can play it as a hobby too.
Volleyball
Now we come to volleyball which has also spread across the world in terms of popularity even though it has not brought in huge revenue like soccer or cricket. There isn’t a country in the world that doesn’t watch at least a moderate amount of volleyball, and that’s what makes this sport so special – it resonates with almost all age groups.
Baseball
Baseball is extremely popular in the U.S., but outside the country, it is less popular except in Japan. Did you know that it’s said that fans eat approximately 25,500,000 hot dogs every year while watching baseball games? Yes, how amazing is that!
Boxing
Unlike other sports mentioned in this list, boxing is a combat sport, and yet it is very popular as a spectator sport. The players throw punches at each other, and the audience apparently loves to spectate that. Boxing also has its own World Championships.
Conclusion
So, this list must have given you a pretty good idea about the top 10 spectator sports in the world. Happy watching!
