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Make_the_music_stop t1_j9auyfv wrote

Reply to comment by Minneapolis_W in Average Attendance for North American Sports Leagues [OC] by BoMcCready

Thanks. So it really is America's game.

"Why is baseball called America's pastime? This is because baseball is the sport that generations have grown up playing. From the Industrial Revolution to the Cold War to our present day, baseball has survived countless economic endeavors and national hardships. To say it very simply, baseball has survived the test of time"

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Psycho_Sentinal t1_j9bt1q1 wrote

Counterpoint: while MLB has the highest total it is no longer “The Sport” and the NFL has taken over in cultural significance.

For example the MLB World Series avg viewership for 2022 was about 12 million. The average viewership for a Regular Season NFL game is 17 million.

So more people watch NFL games that may or may not be competing for playoff seeding or have the best teams in the league/be in the best time slots or even broadcasted nationally. The World Series is a national broadcast and still falls short.

There is a reason why the tv rights for the NFL dominate every other league. More people care to spend their time watching games. And any game for the NFL when compared to the playoffs or championship of other sports.

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ZarafFaraz t1_j9bomw5 wrote

It's funny how it's also Japan's national sport.

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RelativeAssistant923 t1_j9br476 wrote

No, it is not "America's game". It is third in TV viewership, third in self identified fan interest, and second in overall revenue. It's also declining: only 25% of sports fans under the age of 25 say they follow it (https://www.statista.com/chart/15869/favrotie-sports-league/) and attendance is down 14% since 2007 (https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2387447)

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Spaticles t1_j9c8zoe wrote

But how does that compare to previous generations? People who were 25 in 1960 may have also had 25% interest, but by the time that generation was 50, they could have gone up in interest. It's an old man's game.

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RelativeAssistant923 t1_j9cs6p3 wrote

I dont know that that data exists, but its far from the only evidence of baseball's decline.

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social_media_suxs t1_j9dyfj8 wrote

The big issue with viewership are RSN contracts requiring cable subscriptions at a time when people are ditching cable. It's a huge problem MLB is now looking to fix.

Recent example being Dodgers games having a multi-year blackout in their own home market. https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/dodgers-tv-blackout-is-finally-over-for-some-fans-in-southern-california/

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RelativeAssistant923 t1_j9exk09 wrote

I mean, yes, this is a problem with sports generally (although the NBA is doing better than others). But in terms of whether it's "America's game", MLB has never had the viewership revenue that the NFL has right now.

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fatamSC2 t1_j9cg14u wrote

NFL is more popular these days. If you went back a few decades there's more of an argument for the MLB and even the NBA in the Jordan era but these days NFL is king and its not even all that close anymore.

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el_basopsid t1_j9cz2sj wrote

The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball.

America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It's been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt, and erased again. But baseball has marked the time.

This field, this game-it's a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and it could be again.

Ohhhhhhhh, people will come, Ray. People will most definitely come.

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