The Time Difference Although basketball isn’t popular in the UK, some people in Britain like to watch the sport, especially the NBA. However, only avid basketball fans tend to stay up until the early hours of the morning to watch America’s top league fixtures live. 05-May-2022 https://www.coachesdatabase.com/5-reasons-basketball-not-popular-united-kingdom/#:~:text=The%20Time%20Difference,America’s%20top%20league%20fixtures%20live.
Basketball is an American sport that has taken the UK scene by storm. It is the second most popular team sport in terms of participation in the UK, being especially popular in younger communities. 17-Jun-2022 https://www.freshered.com/why-is-basketball-popular-with-uk-students/#:~:text=Basketball%20is%20an%20American%20sport,especially%20popular%20in%20younger%20communities.
The British Basketball League (BBL) is a men’s professional basketball league in Great Britain and represents the highest level of play in the countries. The league is contested by 10 teams from England and Scotland. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Basketball_League#:~:text=The%20British%20Basketball%20League%20(BBL,teams%20from%20England%20and%20Scotland.
Basketball England has over 34,000 licenced members playing in 675 affiliated clubs across local and national leagues. Over 14,000 of Basketball England members are under the age of 16, and almost 500 members are over the age of 60. Over 6,500 of our members are female. https://www.basketballengland.co.uk/about/research/facts-and-figures/#:~:text=Basketball%20England%20has%20over%2034%2C000,of%20our%20members%20are%20female
According to Sports Virsa, the top 10 hardest sports in the world to play in 2022 are as follows: Boxing (hardest), American football, mixed martial arts, ice hockey, gymnastics, basketball, soccer, wrestling, rugby, and water polo. https://marathonhandbook.com/what-is-the-hardest-sport/#:~:text=According%20to%20Sports%20Virsa%2C%20the,%2C%20rugby%2C%20and%20water%20polo.
Basketball Basketball is the highest paid sport in the world, with the average annual salary in the NBA in 2023 being nearly $10.5 million. This is more than double the average salary in the NFL, which sits in second place at $4.5 million. https://www.wsn.com/blog/highest-paid-sport/#:~:text=Basketball%20is%20the%20highest%20paid,second%20place%20at%20%244.5%20million.
British colonies Cricket is popular in nations that were earlier colonies of Britain. It includes countries like India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, West Indies, New Zealand, Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. As the British did not colonize European regions, cricket did not gain popularity in European countries. 11-Feb-2023 https://newspatrolling.com/why-cricket-is-not-popular-in-europe/#:~:text=British%20colonies%20%E2%80%93%20Cricket%20is%20popular,gain%20popularity%20in%20European%20countries.
In 2006 it was estimated that 30,000 people in the United States play or watch cricket annually. By 2017, this figure had risen to 200,000 people playing cricket in 6,000 teams. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket_in_the_United_States#:~:text=In%202006%20it%20was%20estimated,playing%20cricket%20in%206%2C000%20teams.
Cricket is considered the most popular sport in Pakistan. After the partition of India in 1947 and the formation of Pakistan, Pakistan played its first official match in 1952 under the captaincy of Abdul Kardar against the republic of India in 1952 registering their first Test victory in Lucknow. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket_in_Pakistan#:~:text=Cricket%20is%20considered%20the%20most,first%20Test%20victory%20in%20Lucknow.
American football takes the crown when it comes to popularity, and this is the most-watched sport in the US. 29-Dec-2022 https://thesporting.blog/blog/the-10-most-popular-sports-in-the-us#:~:text=American%20football%20takes%20the%20crown,watched%20sport%20in%20the%20US.