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What are the most popular sports in the world?Your answer would differ widely depending on where you're located. If you're from Europe, you'd likely say 'football'; if you're from the Indian sub-continent, you would declare that it's cricket; meanwhile, a person from the Americas might answer basketball, baseball or American football.Is there a scientific way of finding a definitive answer to this? We think there might be. We assimilated figures and statistics from a number of different sources and ranked the sports in eight different lists according to those stats, before finally arriving at a consolidated list that took into account each yardstick. The various figures and analysis tables can be found here: Analysis of the most popular sports in the world.So on the basis of that analysis, here are the 15 most popular sports in the world
#15 Boxing
With a total score of 6 points, boxing finds itself in 15th place in this list. In its various forms - professional boxing, amateur boxing, the various weight categories - boxing has carved an important place for itself in the modern sporting world.
#14 Chess
At No. 14 is chess, with a score of 8 points. An intellectual pursuit, chess has long been dominated by the thinkers and the strategists of the world, but that hasn't made it any less popular among the common folk; it is one of the most commong indoor pastimes across the globe.
#13 Golf
With a score of 12 points, golf finds itself at No. 13 in the list. Traditionally considered to be a rich man's sport, golf has slowly started making its way to the masses too in recent times.
#12 Table tennis
In joint 11th place comes table tennis, with a score of 13 points. Wildly popular all over the world as a recreational activity, table tennis also holds plenty of spectator interest in Asia.
#11 Field Hockey
With a total score of 13 points, field hockey, or simply hockey, finds itself in joint 11th place. Hockey has for long been among the most significant sports in Asia, and has also gained wide popularity in Europe in recent times.
#10 Badminton
Badminton is the 10th most popular sport in the world, by virtue of its score of 17 points. In addition to its popularity as a spectator sport, especially in South-east Asia, badminton is also played extensively all over the world as a recreational game.
#9 Rugby
With a score of 20 points, Rugby Union, or rugby for short, falls at the No. 9 position. The sport is huge in Oceania and parts of Europe, and is often seen as a more physical version of football or soccer.
#8 Volleyball
Volleyball makes its way to No. 8 in the list, with a total score of 27 points. While this may not rank very high in terms of spectator interest, it is one of the most popular recreational games in the world.
#7 Ice hockey
With a total score of 28 points, ice hockey finds itself at the No. 7 position in the list. The sport is wildly popular in North America, specially in Canada, and is played in virtually every region on earth that receives snowfall.
#6 American Football
In 6th place on the list comes American Football, with a total score of 31 points. Arguably the most popular sport in the US, American football has a tremendous fan base in several pockets of the world.
#5 Tennis
With a total score of 36 points, tennis is the 5th most popular sport in the world, and the most popular among individual sports. Played sporadically in almost every corner of the earth, tennis has always had a niche but sizeable audience.
#4 Baseball
With a score of 43 points, baseball finds itself at No. 4 in the list. Among the most popular sports in North America, baseball has also recently spread to other areas of the globe like Asia and Europe.
#3 Cricket
Wildly popular in Asia and Europe, cricket misses the No. 2 spot by a whisker, falling instead at No. 3 with a total score of 57 points. Cricket stars in the Indian subcontinent are treated nothing less than demigods; Sachin Tendulkar probably has the most devoted fan following in the entire world.
#2 Basketball
It was a close thing, but basketball just edged cricket for the No. 2 spot, with a score of 58 points. Played extensively in America, Europe and Asia, basketball is extremely popular not only as a spectator sport but also as a recereational activity.
#1 Football / Soccer
Played almost all over the globe, football unsuprisingly finds itself at the No. 1 position in this list. With a total score of 75, football surpassed all other sports by a comfortable margin.
