“It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up.”
This inspirational quote by Vince Lombardi has many people getting up, pulling themselves together and aiming for their goal another time. Vince Lombardi said this in context of sport and it is, undeniably, one of the best motivational quotes when it comes to sports. Sports play an integral part in everyone’s lives. They keep you fit, healthy, fresh and they are easily the cheapest and the best stress-busters out there. Over time now, the whole stigma that sports are only for boys has been broken and today, both, boys and girls take interest in sports alike. Thanks to the ever-growing technology like the television, radio, transistors, internet etc, watching sports or listening to live commentary has become very easy, thus increasing the number of people who have access to the concept of sports. Now, we know that everyone has their own likes and dislikes in everything, including sports but there are some sports which are truly famous and loved throughout the world. Here is a list of the top 10 most loved sports around the world-
1. Football
The king of all sports that is loved by all. Two teams of 11 players have to tackle the opponents and score a score a goal by kicking the ball into the opponent’s goal post. It all seems very easy but the skills and the energy required by this sport is truly taxing. The players have to do their best to stay fit and keep in shape as the game requires them to be running around the field for 90 minutes. It is played by almost all the countries today and is promoted by FIFA. The sport has a fan base of 3.5 billion fans making it the most loved sport in the world and we couldn’t agree more. So get out there and it’s game on!
2. Cricket
Even though today cricket as a sport is played only by some odd 15 countries of the world, it is one of the most popular sports. Two teams consisting of 11 players each take chances to bat and field. The team which makes more runs or which dismisses the opponents quicker is the winner. There are many forms of cricket such a test cricket, ODIs, Twenty20. In countries such as India, Pakistan, Australia etc cricket is more than just a sport and has a huge fan following of around 3 billion people around the world.
3. Field Hockey
Number 3 on our list of the most loved and watched sports is field hockey. In this sport, there are two teams whose players try to tackle and maneuver the ball or the puck into the opponent’s goal post. There a lot of complex rules in this game. This sport is played in many countries but their style may be different as hockey is a broader concept of the sport. For eg- Canada plays ice hockey instead of field hockey. The Asian countries are especially good at this sport and hockey is the national sport of both India and Pakistan. It has a fan following of around 2 billion people.
4. Tennis
Tennis is another game that has crosses all the national boundaries and has become a sport that is well-watched and loved in countries across continents. In tennis, there are two or four players pitched against one another. They play on clay court, grass court, concrete court etc. The players have racquets and they are supposed to hit a ball over the net into the opponent’s area. This game is played in almost all the countries today and it is one of the most difficult sports as you need to have immense presence of mind. It gathers a fan base of a whopping 1 billion around the globe.
5. Volleyball
A surprise in the list of the top 10 most loved sports around the world is volleyball. This sport may be famous because it is played extensively not only men, but also women. It is a team sport consisting of two teams and a net which separates the teams. Both the teams have to hit the ball with their hands and try to ground the ball in the area of the opponent’s team. The rules are much more complex than this. This sport is played worldwide and it is famously played on beaches. It is also an Olympic sport with a fan base of around 900 million.
6. Table Tennis
The sixth most loved sport in the world is surprisingly an indoor sport! The sport that requires quick reflex, a lot of energy and even more focus is the sport of table tennis. It is also known as ping-pong in some countries. Table tennis is basically like tennis, as the name suggests, but it is played on a wooden table with a light weight ball and a net in between. The Chinese, especially, are really good at table tennis and its popularity is on the rise ever since it was introduced as an Olympic sport. Today, it has a following of about 900 million fans from all around the globe.
7. Baseball
A game that is again played mostly only in the United States of America is baseball. Today, it is played in Japan, Cuba, and Dominican Republic etc too. This is a bat and ball game where in there are two teams, people taking turns to bat and field. The batting side score runs by hitting the ball and running to the bases and returning to the home plate before the fielders catch the ball and throw it at the keeper. The famous home-run is when the batsman runs across all the bases and back to the home plate, completing a kind of circle. This game has around 500 million fans around the world.
8. American Football
We all that America always likes to do things differently in their own manner. So when the rest of the world plays football in one way, America goes the other way around. American football is where two teams of eleven players each are faced against one another and the players have to tackle and score the goals by running across the field without losing the ball. This sport is not very famous in any other country except the United States of America and Fiji. Many people opine that this game is a happy mix of football and rugby. This sport has a fan base of 410 million people.
9. Basketball
The hugely popular American sport of basketball is a sport made for the huge people. This sport contains two teams who are pitched against one another. The players of both the teams have to tackle and shoot the ball into the loop. The team with the maximum shoots in the loop scores the maximum points and wins. The players of football are very tall and energetic as the loop is placed high above the ground. This too, is a rich man’s sport and that is why, it is hardly played in any of the third world countries. Like golf, basketball has around 400 million fans around the world.
10. Golf
The world’s most expensive sport is one of the most famous and loved sports in the world. It is a precision club and ball sport wherein the golfer uses various numbers of strikes and styles to hit the ball which should land into a series of holes in the ground. The golfer who hits the maximum amounts of balls in the holes with minimum shots is declared as the winner. This game needs a lot of precision and practice and it is not at all an easy game. The lawns need a lot of work as well, making this game more of luxury that can be afforded only by a select few. But the game is played internationally today and attracts a lot of crowd, around 400 million fans, making it one of the most famous sports.
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