Mainly clear. Low 44F. Winds light and variable..
Mainly clear. Low 44F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: October 5, 2022 @ 10:53 pm
The American love of sport is a prominent part of the national culture. From tailgates and sports bars to watching games with friends and playing in rec leagues, Americans enjoy sports and the culture surrounding them. Going to games in person has gotten more expensive over the years, but thankfully there are more ways than ever to watch games on tv or online. Here are some of the USA’s favorite sports to watch.
Football is arguably the most popular sport in the USA. Both the NFL and college football have massive followings. Football is also the top betting sport in the United States, and the Super Bowl is the biggest betting event of the entire year. Now that online betting is legal in many states, it is easier to access NFL picks and place bets.
Whether you bet or not, watching football is a great activity. Football has enough downtime between plays that there is always enough time to socialize without worrying that you’ve missed something. Even non-fans can enjoy the games and the food that comes with them! Big game days are when folks break out all of the tastiest, easy-to-eat party foods.
For Fantasy Football managers, who need to watch every game to stay on top of what is happening with all of the players on their teams, it would be overwhelming if it wasn’t so much fun.
Americans love watching football so much that we also enjoy watching football movies. Movies like Varsity Blues (1999), Friday Night Lights (2004), and Remember the Titans (2000) use high school football to tell meaningful stories about who we are as a country.
If you enjoy having at least one game to watch nearly every day during the season, baseball is the perfect sport for you. Each team plays 162 games over the course of the MLB season. Baseball is an actual summer sport that is part of the appeal – we associate it with warm weather and relaxation. It’s even slower-paced than the other sports on our list, perfect for those lazy summer afternoons and evenings.
The main reason that baseball comes in second on our list is that college baseball has never been able to attract the same level of devotion as college football has. There has historically been less funding for college baseball teams, which certainly hasn’t helped. Thankfully, things are starting to change, and colleges across the country are improving their baseball programs.
Like football, baseball has foods that everyone associates with it. There are, of course, the ‘peanuts and crackerjacks’ that were immortalized in Gene Kelly’s classic song “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” But hotdogs hold pride in place with baseball fans. There are few more American pleasures than eating a hotdog in the stands while watching the home team (hopefully) score a few runs.
Basketball is an intense, high-energy sport with many devoted fans across the United States. Both college and professional basketball capture substantial viewership numbers, especially during their respective playoff seasons. March Madness is the college playoff season, and one of the reasons that it is so popular with viewers is the practice of creating brackets. The friendly competition in creating brackets brings people closer together, and the fact that you don’t need any in-depth knowledge of the sport makes it an excellent way for people to get involved and start watching.
The appeal of basketball is that it’s easy for kids to watch their favorite teams and then go out and shoot a few hoops with friends. It doesn’t require much space or equipment, just a ball and a small court or even just a hoop nailed over the garage door. That shared experience contributes to its lasting popularity.
The NHL has always been the underdog of the four major leagues. That’s all starting to change as the league expands and more Americans realize how exciting and enjoyable a sport hockey is to watch. Hockey viewership has been growing in recent years, and that trend looks to continue.
In most of the world, soccer is the most popular sport. Many Americans see the low scores at the ends of the games and assume that it must be a boring game if only a few goals are being scored. Fans know that that is as far from reality as possible. The MLS has always had loyal fans, but more people have begun to appreciate soccer and watch the games in the last two decades.
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