When different World Scoop sports are competing for investment and advertising, it is interesting to see how they rank in terms of popularity. Various criteria have been used to measure popularity, such as TV audience, attendance figures, and revenue earner. So, which sport is the world’s favorite? The answer after an examination of all of the criteria is self-evident: soccer is king. But what is the world’s second favorite? That honor goes to Cricket, followed by basketball in third place.

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1) SOCCER

It has a giant fan following across the globe, varying from rich to poor and young to old. The game is Chinese in origin and was developed by the English. It is played in 208 nations with a fan following as the number 1 sport in 93 countries with a combined population of 2 billion. It is amongst the top 3 popular sports in 100 countries with 3 billion people. It is the world’s richest sport and can be played by rich and poor alike. European domestic leagues are valued at over $30 billion, and other clubs total another $10 billion.

The soccer World Cup can boost the host country’s economy by upwards of $10 billion (except in developing countries) (Bleacher Report- Most Popular Team Sports: Soccer & Cricket, Basketball & Baseball; by Amrit Dooley, May 7, 2009). There are different types of soccer, namely, futsal or indoor soccer and beach soccer, which help broaden its appeal. There is women’s soccer, which has expanded since the 1990s and also has World Cup competitions.

2) CRICKET

It is the second most popular sport in the world. It is the most popular sport in 20 countries with a combined population of 1.6 billion and is among the top 3 sports in 10 nations with a population above 200 million. The Cricket World Cup is the second-largest sporting event in the world, with a cumulative TV audience of 5 billion people. The Board of Control of Cricket in India is the wealthiest sporting organization in the world, valued at more than $2 billion. (Bleacher

Report – Most Popular Team Sports, etc.). Cricket comprises Twenty 20, the three-hours 20 over a side format, and One Day Internationals 50 over a side and Test matches (the traditional form) of up to 5 days. The game was invented in England sometime in the 17th century and exported to the colonies by the colonists in the 18th century.

The controllers of Cricket have a lot to be proud of. It ranks second even though (1) it is only played in the British Commonwealth countries, namely, West Indies, England, Australia, India, Pakistan, South Africa, and New Zealand, and (2) in some of these countries, some people were excluded from the game at various times for reasons of race and class.

Nevertheless, Cricket was still able to survive to become the second most popular sport. This is well illustrated by looking at the development of the game in some of these countries:-

(a) England

English Cricket has historically involved issues of class. Teams originally consisted of amateurs (gentlemen) from the upper and middle classes and professionals (players) from the working class. Cricket had progressed since the days when the gentlemen dominated the game. Innovations such as Twenty-20 cricket and programs to encourage Cricket in state schools like “Chance to Shine” and inner-city schemes have helped to broaden the game’s appeal. Nevertheless, Cricket in England is a middle-class sport (still called the “Gentleman’s game”).

Thousands of schoolchildren do not get to play Cricket, with lingering prejudices and preconceptions putting off much more. Cricket is played regularly in only 10% of English state schools and is only the sixth most popular sport. On the other hand, practically all private schools offer regular Cricket with excellent facilities and coaches. Up to the age of 16, about 93 % of children in the United Kingdom go to state schools, so it is clear that too many young people are missing out. This lack of opportunity has filtered through to the national team. Today, over ¾ of the Test squad is educated at independent schools (English Cricket and The Class Barrier, April 9, 2013, by Andrew Thorpe-Apps).

(b) West Indies

The English colonists introduced Cricket in the 17th century. They played the game amongst themselves, and the enslaved people were relegated to being mere spectators in the surrounding cane fields where they worked. If the ball were hit into the cane field, the enslaved people would retrieve it, and to impress their master, the enslaved person would try to throw it back as fast and accurately as possible. Sometimes, an enslaved person would catch the eye of the master, who would invite him to the field near the boundary line and retrieve balls that were hit to the boundary. After slavery was abolished in 1838, blacks were sometimes asked to play a limited role as fast bowlers to utilize their physical strength. This situation continued until the arrival of Learie Constantine (later Sir Learie Constantine) in the 1920s.

Learie Constantine was a pioneer because he was a black all-rounder who could bat, bowl, field, and have a deep knowledge of the game. He disproved the myth that blacks could only play with their physical strength and not with their heads. This paved the way for more blacks in the West Indies team and the appointment of Frank Worrell (later Sir Frank Worrell) in 1960 as the first black West Indian captain. The influx of blacks into West Indian cricket raised the fortune of the national team, which went on to become world champions in the 1980s and 1990s and enhanced the game’s attractiveness.

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