Gallup -- American football, under attack from critics in recent years, has lost some of its popularity but is still the champion of U.S. spectator sports -- picked by 37% of U.S. adults as their favorite sport to watch. The next-most-popular sports are basketball, favored by 11%, and baseball, favored by 9%. Americans' Favorite Spectator Sports, 1937-2017
The 9% of Americans who mention baseball as their favorite sport to watch is the lowest percentage for the sport since Gallup first asked the question in 1937. Americans named baseball as the most popular sport in 1948 and 1960, but football claimed the top spot in 1972 and has been the public's favorite ever since.
Soccer now nearly matches baseball's popularity. Seven percent say it is their favorite sport to watch, the highest that sport has registered to date. Only once before have at least 7% of Americans named a sport other than football, basketball or baseball as their favorite -- and that was auto racing in 1997. (Auto racing is now down to 2% of mentions.)
FOOTBALL AND THE RISE OF AMERICAN EMPIRE
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