Sport

It's Just Not Cricket

The UK shares and absorbs so much popular culture from the United States - film, television, music - but there's one area where the Brits are still far from convinced. As a new release from the Statista Global Consumer Survey shows, a majority of 54 percent of UK sports fans do not follow any of the U.S. sports leagues.

The most popular is one with close connections to home, too - Major League Soccer attracts 22 percent of those interested in professional sports. It's down hill from there though, with the NHL inspiring just 4 percent of the respondents. The NFL, MLB and NBA also fail to crack the 20 percent mark. Outside of the States and the UK, these leagues, the biggest overseas following uncovered in the survey was in China, where an impressive 60 percent said they are fans of the NBA.

Description

This chart shows the share of UK sports fans that follow US sports in 2021, by league

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Level of interest in sports in the United Kingdom (UK) as of April 2021
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Level of interest in soccer in the United Kingdom (UK) as of April 2021
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Share of National Football League (NFL) fans following games in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2016, by method
Share of avid fans among leading professional sports leagues in the United States as of third quarter 2025
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Share of National Football League (NFL) fans interested in following matches in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2016, by factor
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Share of sports fans interested in sports betting in the United States in 2021, by professional sport

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