Recreation and Sports

Rise in Overall Sports Viewership in America

Although Americans enjoy sports, the method they watch their favorite events is changing due to developments in streaming and digital TV. A recent study by Reviews.org found that more than 36% of viewers continue to select cable as their primary sports source.

However, more and more spectators are opting to watch sports via streaming services. According to recent statistics, 29% of viewers watch sports through streaming services like Amazon Prime, while the viewership of TV streaming services like Hulu has increased to 22%.

Eight percent of viewers still prefer traditional viewing methods like the TV air antenna, and five percent prefer to watch at a public place like a bar or gym.

In general, live athletic events continue to draw record numbers of spectators. Over 57 million people watched digital live sports at least once a month in 2021. According to Statista, this is projected to increase to 90 million by 2025.

As the American face and culture evolve away from classic favorites like baseball and hockey and toward soccer and e-sports, the types of shows viewers are choosing to watch are evolving. With an estimated 3.5 billion fans worldwide, soccer is the most watched sport, followed by basketball, hockey, tennis, and volleyball.

sporting goods store According to Play Today, almost 54 million people watched the 2023 NFL Draft. Women’s soccer, meanwhile, had a 10% decline in viewership. It is thought that this is because many of the well-known women’s soccer competitions take place in different time zones throughout the world.

More than 300 million people will watch e-sports content in 2023, according to Play Today, with China having the highest viewership at 40%.

According to experts, the popularity of celebrity promoters of digital sports events will continue to grow in the future.

What They are Watching

Whether it be their favorite sports, their most beloved athletes or the most hated athletes, Americans are tuning into sports. And there is simply no reason not to anymore. With streamers like Hulu, Fubo, Youtube TV, as well as all the major networks that have their own apps, watching almost any sports is just a few taps away.

Where They are Watching

Given that roughly 70% of Americans watch live sports, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that cable bundles include regional sports networks and live sports channels like ESPN.

  • 36% of Americans still use a cable or satellite subscription with Xfinity, Spectrum, DIRECTV, or Dish to watch sports.
  • NFL RedZone is a part of the packages from Dish, Xfinity, and DIRECTV, whereas Spectrum only provides it as an add-on.
  • Only 29% use services like Amazon Prime Video, ESPN+, Peacock, and Paramount+ to stream all of their live sports content.

In the meantime, more Americans are using live TV streaming services, with 22% of them using Sling, fuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, YouTube TV, Xfinity Stream, and DIRECTV stream.

(Some of these providers have sports game exclusivity deals, such as YouTube TV and NFL Sunday Ticket.)

Surprisingly, 8% of Americans still watch live sports via an over-the-air antenna.

Finally, 5% of people watch their live sports in the neighborhood in a bar, restaurant, or gym—basically, anywhere that isn’t their house.

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