There is this article that came out in USA today I think about how football is the greatest thing on earth. Most of the comment are of it being the king of american sports but some of them are just weird and of total ignorance of soccer. "The NFL and TV grew up together. The NFL has the biggest TV contract in sports. The 10 most-watched programs of all time, based on worldwide viewers, are Super Bowls. If TV didn't have football, it would've invented it. And vice versa." Yep, the 10 most watched programs worlwide. I've always wanted to find this results since I really doubt that a superbowl game that is played while half the planet is asleep and half of the other planet doesn't care about it, is the worlwide ratings kings. Especially when there is something called the World Cup, that is 100 times bigger per day. "Danny Sheridan, USA TODAY analyst, estimates 40 million Americans bet an additional $6 billion illegally each week on football, from office pools to bets with bookmakers. ''That translates into humongous TV ratings,'' Sheridan says. ''The NFL is the most heavily bet sport in America and in the world, and coincidentally it has the biggest TV contract.''" Once again, I have my doubts especially since 40 million to me sounds small. Its definetely BS what they say about NFL being the most heavily bet sport in the world. That just stupid. See I don't mind all the pumping up of NFL but to try to back it up with the worlwide thing to me is ignorant of soccer and the rest of the world.
I don,t know, may be they are right about $6 billion bets a "week" on NFL world wide. Last year this guy from the office asked if I wanted to bet on superbowl,I put down $20 and the next day the guy told me we lost. That was the last time I spend my $$ on American football.
If not saying about the betting but to claim that the NFL is the most bet sport in the US and in the world. By separating it, it makes it out to be that its in both at the same time (the US and also in the world) when if it is the case it would be because of all the betting inside the US since there is no way in hell that in the rest of the world they bet more on the NFL than soccer.
I don't have figures to back this up, but I think that a lot of betting goes on around English football. Go to almost any English-run soccer site and you'll be overrun with ads from betting sponsors. However, UK population is only around 60 million, while the population here in the US is approaching five times that. Still, I think it's safe to assume that plenty of other people from countries out the UK bet on English soccer, probably much more so than non-US betting on the NFL. Whether the total amount rivals betting on NFL games or not, I have no idea. But it's food for thought.
No need for food for thought. Betting on European soccer is a phenom in Asia, South east Asia and China are the particular places that soccer betting is virtually an INDUSTRY, illegal that is.
Europe has a population more than twice the size of the U.S. Not every country in Europe however has the wherewithal to make futbol a big deal. South America has a population the size of the U.S. Africa bigger than the U.S. Asia is huge. But most of these countries are poor relative to the U.S. For this reason I would not be surprised if the NFL is the most bet sport in the world.
personally, i would've thought that the ncaa basketball tournament would be the most bet on sporting event in the world.
I always feel that it probably is more moneywise but there is definetely more than 40 million in betting in soccer and the fact that he separates it makes it seem as if he saying that NFL is not only the most bet sport in the US but in the world and not the fact that if its the most bet sports in the world its because of the amount bet in the US and not the rest of the world. As for the TV thing, that just BS.
Here is an article about two groups of parents at a NJ high school. One group is pro-hs-football, the other is not. It's a NJ hs, but the article is written by the LA Times, so it seems to have some national significance. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationw...ll2sep02005045.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Could anyone please enlighten me on these Superbowl viewing figures. The World Cup final is estimated to be watched by over 1 billion viewers, and FIFA claim the opening ceremony for this years tournament attracted a similar number.
If the implication is that American Football has more betting than any other sport in the world, including soccer, then I suspect that's hugely off the mark given the volume of betting in East Asia on soccer. If the claim is that the NFL has more betting than any other individual *league* then I could believe it although I suspect the English premiership pushes it close if not beats it, again due to Asian betting. As others have pointed out, the television claims are pure nonsense.
Reminds me of baseball's claim that an important home run in 1951 was "the shot heard 'round the world". Outside of the US except for US armed forces radio, did anyone care?