{"id":7888,"date":"2023-10-17T13:54:46","date_gmt":"2023-10-17T18:54:46","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2025-04-23T23:59:36","modified_gmt":"2025-04-24T03:59:36","slug":"most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Americans don\u2019t closely follow professional or college sports"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-640-wide\"><img decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_feature-jpg.webp?w=640\" alt=\"A man reads a book during batting practice before a baseball game. (Otto Greule Jr\/Getty Images)\" class=\"wp-image-442623\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A man reads a book during batting practice before a baseball game. (Otto Greule Jr\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Roughly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/36920001\/super-bowl-lvii-was-most-watched-telecast-ever-according-updated-data\">115 million people<\/a> watched the Super Bowl in 2023, making it the most widely viewed U.S.-based telecast in history. Large numbers of Americans also watch or attend college sports. In August, for example, <a href=\"https:\/\/huskers.com\/news\/2023\/08\/31\/record-breaking-crowd-packs-memorial-stadium-for-volleyball-match\">more than 92,000 people<\/a> attended an outdoor women\u2019s volleyball match in Nebraska \u2013 breaking the attendance record for any women\u2019s sporting event in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yet for all the fanfare surrounding professional and college sports, most Americans do <em>not <\/em>closely follow or often talk about them, according to a new Pew Research Center survey.<\/p>\n\n\n<div style=\"border-width:1px;padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);padding-left:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-right:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);--block-gap: inherit\" class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible has-background has-ui-beige-very-light-background-color has-border-color has-ui-beige-dark-border-color\" id=\"how-we-did-this\" data-wp-interactive=\"{&quot;namespace&quot;:&quot;prc-block\\\/collapsible&quot;}\" data-wp-context=\"{&quot;collapsibleId&quot;:&quot;how-we-did-this&quot;,&quot;isOpen&quot;:false}\" data-wp-class--is-open=\"context.isOpen\" data-wp-init--scroll-into-view=\"callbacks.onInitScrollIntoView\"><div class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__title\" data-wp-on--click=\"actions.onClick\"><div>How we did this<\/div><button class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__icon\"><span data-wp-bind--hidden=\"context.isOpen\"><i class=\"icon icon-library__light icon__circle-plus\"><svg style=\"width: 1em; height: 1em;\"><use xlink:href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/plugins\/prc-icon-library\/build\/icons\/sprites\/light.svg#circle-plus\"><\/use><\/svg><\/i><\/span><span data-wp-bind--hidden=\"!context.isOpen\" hidden><i class=\"icon icon-library__light icon__circle-minus\"><svg style=\"width: 1em; height: 1em;\"><use xlink:href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/plugins\/prc-icon-library\/build\/icons\/sprites\/light.svg#circle-minus\"><\/use><\/svg><\/i><\/span><\/button><\/div><div class=\"wp-block-prc-block-collapsible__content\">\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Pew Research Center conducted this study to explore sports fandom in the United States and the reasons why Americans do or don\u2019t follow sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This analysis is based on a survey of 11,945 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 7-27, 2023. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center\u2019s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. Address-based sampling ensures that nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/methods\/u-s-survey-research\/american-trends-panel\/\">ATP\u2019s methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here are the <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_topline.pdf\">questions used for this analysis<\/a>, along with responses, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_methodology.pdf\">survey methodology<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">About six-in-ten Americans (62%) say they follow professional or college sports not too or not at all closely. Another 21% say they follow sports somewhat closely, while just 16% follow them extremely or very closely, according to the August survey of 11,945 U.S. adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sports also aren\u2019t an especially frequent topic of conversation for most Americans \u2013 whether that\u2019s in person, by text, online or some other way. Some 63% of U.S. adults say they talk about sports with other people a few times a month or less often. Another 26% say they talk about sports once a week or a few times a week, and 10% say they talk about sports once a day or several times a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adults under 50, women and people in lower-income households are among the demographic groups most likely to say they follow sports not too or not at all closely. Women and those in lower-income households are also among the groups most likely to talk about sports less often than once a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9268\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_1-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e7e9e8\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"1244\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?w=620\" alt=\"A bar chart showing that younger Americans, women and those with lower incomes are less likely to follow sports closely.\" class=\"wp-image-9268 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e7e9e8; width:310px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png 620w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=150,300 150w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=510,1024 510w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=202,405 202w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=200,401 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=260,522 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=310,622 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=420,843 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_1.png?resize=160,320 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among the other key takeaways from the survey:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>When asked how many sports they follow, the largest share of Americans (39%) say they don\u2019t follow any sports. Smaller shares say they follow one (18%), two (22%), three (11%), or four or more sports (9%).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>By a large margin (51% vs. 5%), Americans believe sports get too much attention in society today, rather than too little, while 43% say they get about the right amount of attention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9269\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_2-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e5e7e8\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" height=\"355\" width=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?w=640\" alt=\"A bar chart that shows far more Americans say sports get too much attention than say they get too little.\" class=\"wp-image-9269 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e5e7e8; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=300,166 300w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=768,426 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=730,405 730w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=200,111 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=260,144 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=310,172 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=420,233 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=640,355 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=740,411 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=160,89 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_2.png?resize=320,178 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"why-most-americans-don-t-closely-follow-sports\">Why most Americans don\u2019t closely follow sports<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9271\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_3-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e7e4dd\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" height=\"667\" width=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?w=640\" alt=\"A horizontal stacked bar chart showing that lack of interest is the top reason why Americans say they don\u2019t follow sports closely.\" class=\"wp-image-9271 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e7e4dd; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=288,300 288w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=768,801 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=388,405 388w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=200,209 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=260,271 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=310,323 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=420,438 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=640,667 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=740,772 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=160,167 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_3.png?resize=320,334 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When given a list of possible reasons why they don\u2019t follow sports, the most common one that people choose is lack of interest. About seven-in-ten adults who don\u2019t closely follow sports (69%) say this is a major reason why. Another 17% cite this as a minor reason, while 13% say it\u2019s not a reason.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next-most common major reasons for not following sports closely \u2013 each cited by 26% \u2013 are that sports are boring and that there\u2019s too much money involved in sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Just 13% of Americans who don\u2019t follow sports closely say a major reason why is that sports are too political. Though people in both political parties are equally likely not to follow sports, Republicans and those who lean toward the Republican Party are more likely than Democrats and Democratic leaners to say this is a major reason why (22% vs. 5%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Small shares also say that a major reason why they don\u2019t closely follow sports is that some sports are too violent (9%) or that they don\u2019t like the competitive nature of sports (4%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are some age differences in the reasons Americans cite for not following sports. Among those who don\u2019t closely follow sports, adults ages 18 to 29 are more likely than those 65 and older to say they\u2019re just not interested (76% vs. 65%) or that they find sports boring (35% vs. 21%). On the other hand, older adults who don\u2019t closely follow sports are more likely than younger adults to say there is too much money in sports (by 22 percentage points), sports are too political (9 points), or some sports are too violent (8 points).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"why-some-americans-closely-follow-sports\">Why some Americans closely follow sports<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9274\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_4-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e5e1d6\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" height=\"667\" width=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?w=640\" alt=\"A horizontal stacked bar chart showing that majorities of Americans who closely follow sports do so to cheer for specific teams or to be entertained.\" class=\"wp-image-9274 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e5e1d6; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=288,300 288w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=768,801 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=388,405 388w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=200,209 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=260,271 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=310,323 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=420,438 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=640,667 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=740,772 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=160,167 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_4.png?resize=320,334 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Among the smaller group of Americans who follow sports extremely, very or somewhat closely, 71% say a major reason why is to cheer for a specific team or teams. A similar share (69%) says a major reason is to be entertained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Much smaller shares say a major reason why they follow sports is to cheer for specific players (32%), because someone in their family follows sports (23%), or to be part of a community (13%). Just 4% say a major reason is because they bet on sports. A separate Center survey from 2022 <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2022\/09\/14\/as-more-states-legalize-the-practice-19-of-u-s-adults-say-they-have-bet-money-on-sports-in-the-past-year\/\">found that about one-in-five Americans had bet money on sports<\/a> in the previous 12 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Again, some age differences emerge in the reasons people give for following sports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Adults ages 18 to 29 are much more likely than those 65 and older to say a major reason they follow sports is because someone in their family does (38% vs. 16%). Younger adults are also 9 percentage points more likely than older adults to say they follow sports to cheer for specific <em>players<\/em>, but by the same margin, older adults are more likely than their younger counterparts to follow sports to cheer for specific <em>teams<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"who-are-sports-superfans\">Who are sports \u2018superfans\u2019?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9278\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_5-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"ebece9\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"750\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?w=400\" alt=\"A venn diagram showing who is considered a superfan.\" class=\"wp-image-9278 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #ebece9; width:200px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png 400w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=160,300 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=216,405 216w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=200,375 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=260,488 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=310,581 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_5.png?resize=320,600 320w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A small subset of Americans are what might be called \u201csuperfans.\u201d These fans say they follow sports extremely or very closely <em>and<\/em> talk about sports at least daily. Only 7% of U.S. adults fall into this category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Men are about three times as likely as women to be superfans (10% vs. 3%), but there are no differences by age, race or ethnicity, or education level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Superfans and more casual fans cite similar reasons for following sports. As is the case among more casual fans, the top two major reasons superfans cite for following sports are to cheer for a specific team or teams (84%) and to be entertained (84%). (Casual fans include those who follow sports at least somewhat closely but are not superfans.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-640-wide is-resized\"><a rel=\"attachment wp-att-9281\" href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/sr_23-10-17_sportsfans_6-png\/\"><img data-dominant-color=\"f2f2f1\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 420px) 100vw, 420px\" height=\"692\" width=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?w=640\" alt=\"A dot plot showing that 'superfans' are much more likely than casual fans to say they follow sports to cheer for a specific player.\" class=\"wp-image-9281 not-transparent\" style=\"--dominant-color: #f2f2f1; width:420px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png 840w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=278,300 278w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=768,830 768w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=375,405 375w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=200,216 200w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=260,281 260w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=310,335 310w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=420,454 420w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=640,692 640w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=740,800 740w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=160,173 160w, https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_6.png?resize=320,346 320w\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, superfans are more likely than casual fans to cite nearly every reason asked about in the survey. The reason that produces the largest gap between superfans and casual fans is cheering for a specific player or players: Half of superfans cite this as a major reason why they follow sports, compared with about three-in-ten more casual fans (29%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Note: Here are the <a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_topline.pdf\">questions used for this analysis<\/a>, along with responses, and the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_methodology.pdf\">survey methodology<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>About six-in-ten Americans (62%) say they follow professional or college sports not too or not at all closely.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":658,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","sub_headline":"","sub_title":"","_prc_public_revisions":[],"_ppp_expiration_hours":0,"_ppp_enabled":false,"ai_generated_summary":"","apple_news_api_created_at":"2023-10-17T17:54:52Z","apple_news_api_id":"1ea90ef7-e182-404c-a5f0-503462218f92","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2023-10-20T12:21:36Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAg==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AHqkO9-GCQEyl8FA0YiGPkg","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"relatedPosts":[],"_prc_fork_parent":0,"_prc_fork_status":"","_prc_active_fork":0,"datacite_doi":"","datacite_doi_citation":"","_prc_seo_qr_attachment_id":0,"spoken_article_player_enabled":true,"footnotes":""},"categories":[309,453,370],"bylines":[578,718],"collection":[],"datasets":[],"_post_visibility":[],"formats":[467],"_fund_pool":[],"languages":[],"regions-countries":[515],"research-teams":[],"class_list":["post-7888","short-read","type-short-read","status-publish","hentry","category-entertainment","category-leisure","category-time-use","bylines-jenn-hatfield","bylines-ted-van-green","formats-short-read","regions-countries-united-states"],"label":"Short Read","post_parent":0,"word_count":1133,"canonical_url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2023\/10\/17\/most-americans-dont-closely-follow-professional-or-college-sports\/","art_direction":{"A1":{"id":9283,"rawUrl":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_feature-jpg.webp","url":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/20\/2023\/10\/SR_23.10.17_SportsFans_feature-jpg.webp?w=564&h=317&crop=1","width":564,"height":317,"caption":"A man reads a book during batting practice. 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