Q07158

Is Soccer Really More Popular Than Other Sports?
　
All around the world, soccer is played, even on small islands whose name we haven’t really heard of. So, it is inevitable that soccer is known as the most popular, most played, most watched and, more importantly in today’s world, most revenue-generating sport today. It can be explained by the amount of money top clubs pay for players and the access of equipment.
Also, why is it more popular than other sports played around the globe?
　
The best thing about soccer is relatively easy set of rules. You’re not allowed to use your hands and you’ve got to kick the ball through the opposition and the opposite net. Except for a confusing offside rule, which can be learnt and completely understood after a single game of soccer, it is possibly the easiest sport played professionally worldwide.
Also, it has no real need for equipment. A ball and another person to play against is all that is really need. Boots aren’t actually needed and shin pads won’t be needed if you don’t have boots. However, if you want to play cricket or American football, you need to buy a lot of gear, most of which costs a lot. You also need a decent amount of people to play with you. In South America, most countries are playing soccer professionally, however, only a handful play cricket at club level, let alone professional.
　
Another major factor in people playing soccer is the amount of money and influential power major clubs has. The highest payed player in 2010 was David Beckham, who was on 40 million a year not including sponsorship deals, which included Adidas, Giorgi Armani and Motorola. He currently play’s for Los Angeles Galaxy in the US Major Soccer League. Christiano Ronaldo was payed 80 million to transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid. However, top player’s like David Beckham and Christiano Ronaldo spend thousand’s of hours practising their skill’s. The amount of money generated by clubs is because of their stadium’s. Some stadium’s have their front row seats just a few meter’s away from the sideline.
Manchester United is the most popular sports team and the biggest sport franchise on the planet. The club has over 450 million fan’s worldwide.
Its estimated value is 1.9 billion, which well exceed’s that of the Dallas Cowboys American football team and Real Madrid.
　
Soccer has been played for so long that it will most likely never be replaced as the number one sport in the world. Rugby Union and League are more popular in countrie’s such as Tonga and New Zealand because of the physical nature of rugby. In soccer, player’s are not allowed to tackle using their arm’s, instead having to try kick the ball away from the opponent. The non-physical nature of the game might be a contribution to the popularity of the game. You can play winter or summer soccer. You cannot play sport’s like cricket all year long because you need the pitch to be dry. Cricket stadium’s cannot have closed roofs like other sports could because a player may hit the ball into the roof, taking away his teams chance of scoring more run’s. Closed roofs might also take away any wind advantages that teams may have. The ball in soccer being kicked into the roof would be extremely rare, given the height of soccer stadiums.
Soccer is played on every surface available except for water. However, in ice hockey, you need an ice rink to play on. How many ice rinks are in African countrie’s?
　
It is very unlikely that soccer will have the rank of number one sport in the world taken away from it in the near future. Since it has been around for so long, clubs are more financially secure than other sport’s clubs.
The sport’s simple rules and easily accessed equipment will keep the world’s poorer countries playing the sport and will continue to produce high quality players for the future.