Is the NHL back to being one of the "4 Major Sports" in the US

[pegcity]

Popularity in terms of TEAM sports, not individual ones so I will be excluding Racing, MMA, Tennis, Golf. And their current National trends.


In the US: (as someone mentionned above)

NFL: Popularity Highest it's ever been and strong growth.
College Football: Strong constant growth
MLB: Lowest it's ever been and still constant decline, Fan base oldest of all pro team sports.
College Basketball: Growing
NBA: Upward trend, down from the 90s and the Jordan era
NHL: Upward trend, down from the early 90s.
MLS: I don't have enough Data



In Canada:

NHL (And everything Hockey related, IIHF): Highest it's ever been and still very strong growth
NFL: Some growth, the Superbowl is a huge atraction. In general FAR behind hockey.
CFL: Strong growth, much more mediacised in recent years.
NBA: In general stagnant
MLB: Constant decline
MLS: Strong growth with new expansions coming to Vancouver and Montreal. Expect it to surpass MLB within 5-10 years.




North America in General:

NFL
MLB
NBA/NHL: Can surpass the MLB in the next 5-10 years if trends continue
MLS



Once again, this is based on the popularity, TV Ratings, Attendance of all these sports. NOT the Revenues alone they make off major TV Contracts.

The CFL gets higher rating then the NFL in Canada....and is subsequently more popular

NHL


CFL
NFL
NBA
MLB

 

[Rocko604]

The CFL gets higher rating then the NFL in Canada....and is subsequently more popular

This.

However, while the ratings are higher for the CFL, I have to question if the league is indeed more popular than the NFL. I know far too many people who'd rather watch an NFL game on TV then go see a live CFL game.

 

[pegcity]

This.

However, while the ratings are higher for the CFL, I have to question if the league is indeed more popular than the NFL. I know far too many people who'd rather watch an NFL game on TV then go see a live CFL game.

I think this really depends on where you live in Canada. In the prairies it's the CFL and by a country mile. In Manitoba and Saskatchewan the CFL is a head of the NHL in popularity. In Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver I'm sure it's the NFL, although a strong fart into the wind creates more buzz then either of the leagues in those three markets.

 

[Rocko604]

I think this really depends on where you live in Canada. In the prairies it's the CFL and by a country mile. In Manitoba and Saskatchewan the CFL is a head of the NHL in popularity. In Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver I'm sure it's the NFL, although a strong fart into the wind creates more buzz then either of the leagues in those three markets.

In recent years, the Lions have really turned it around in terms of popularity in the city. Nowhere near as popular as the Canucks, but on game days there's lots of orange throughout the city. It will be interesting to see what happens this summer with Whitecaps now playing in MLS, but in past years, throughout July, August and most of September, all the focus has been on the Lions.

The Als are very popular in Montreal as well from what I've seen and read. There games are always sold out.

 

[Melrose Munch]

This.

However, while the ratings are higher for the CFL, I have to question if the league is indeed more popular than the NFL. I know far too many people who'd rather watch an NFL game on TV then go see a live CFL game.

In recent years, the Lions have really turned it around in terms of popularity in the city. Nowhere near as popular as the Canucks, but on game days there's lots of orange throughout the city. It will be interesting to see what happens this summer with Whitecaps now playing in MLS, but in past years, throughout July, August and most of September, all the focus has been on the Lions.

The Als are very popular in Montreal as well from what I've seen and read. There games are always sold out.

The Als moved to a smaller stadium and win. Once that stops the support will be anemic just like before.

Same with BC, as you said.

 

[garbageteam]

Judging purely based on what people seem to be talking about/wearing/going to right now in Vancouver...

NHL (AINEC. If Canucks get eliminated tonight, the majority of people will still be paying attention to how the rest of the league is doing moreso than any other sport)
MLS (Whitecaps' inaugural season buzz seems to be generating good interest so far)
CFL (Outside of the '06 Grey Cup, I haven't heard of anyone following this. Probably fairly big outside of my network, lots of media coverage)
NBA (Good following with the large Asian population)
NFL/NCAA Basketball/Football (A few people here and there talk about it, but really no serious fans)
MMA (Really getting up there in its growth trajectory)

Have never heard anyone talk about the MLB or NASCAR at all, think it's a pretty thin market for that here.

 

[sctvman]

In our area, Charleston, SC:

College football (much higher than every other sport, the local media treats our two major teams, SC and Clemson like professional teams)
High school football (huge around here)
College basketball (a major sport around the Carolinas)

Big gap:

NFL (big following here like everywhere else)
College baseball (a niche sport in most of the country, but here they can draw 5,000 to games)
MLB (generally only local players and the Braves)
Other HS sports (very popular, basketball and baseball most often seen, but local paper even has HS tennis column)

Minor league baseball (Riverdogs have a good following)
Minor league soccer (Battery are only one league below MLS)
NBA/NHL (very little seen in local media, but NHL and NBA are basically tied here)
ECHL (only popular in certain parts of area, lucky to draw 1500-2000 to playoffs)

Other sports

 

[Big McLargehuge]

If we're going to talk about popularity in certain markets...


Pittsburgh
NFL - Will never be in competition for the top spot. The Steelers are Pittsburgh, for better or worse.
NHL - Hugely popular with the younger demographic, but not so much on the radar of the large elderly population.
*small gap*
MLB - Stronger than the NHL with the older population, but a distant third for the extreme majority of people under 50.
NCAAF - Pitt and Penn State split the support.
NCAAB - Hugely popular on the Pitt campus and growing in support...but most of the city couldn't care less about the sport of basketball or how well Pitt does...especially the split half above that root for Penn State, who's basketball program may as well not exist.

*Big Gap*

High School Football - 5,000 seat stadiums that are often filled up are common...nowhere near Texas or Florida levels of insanity, but it is popular, mostly because of the glut of Hall of Famers coming from the region (NFL HoF QB section reads like a list of WPIAL alumni).

The NBA is nowhere on the radar.


Meh, while I'm at it...Missoula, MT (and Montana in general)
NCAAF - The Grizzlies rule the roost here, and the Montana State Bobcats in Bozeman...the entire state basically shuts down when the two play each other)

That's about it. Nothing else really matters much in terms of team sports. The NFL is popular, but mostly with transplants from the mid-atlantic and midwest, same with the NHL to a smaller degree. In four years here I've never seen a single piece of NBA memorabilia.