Soccer has overtaken baseball as the “absolute favorite sport” in the United States for the first time, according to the data Ampere Analysis, which he published The Economistwhich confirms that the American sports market is changing at the level of habits, and not only at the level of hype.
In the survey for the fourth quarter of 2024, about 10 percent of respondents list football as their number one sport, which puts it narrowly ahead of baseball (about nine percent). American football remains convincingly the first choice with about 36 percent, while basketball is second with approximately 17 percent.
Unlike measuring “interest” or casual following, the “favorite sport” metric captures a deeper emotion and a higher likelihood of spending, paying subscriptions, buying tickets and merchandise, and long-term loyalty. This is one of the reasons why this shift is being closely monitored by media houses, streaming platforms and among sponsors.
Ampere has been warning for a long time that football in the USA is particularly attractive to broadcasters and streamers due to the profile of the audience and consumer habits. “Understanding the consumption habits of American football (soccer) fans is critical for broadcasters looking to design and build engaging content,” he said. Sam Nursallresearch analyst at Ampere, in a comment on an earlier market report.
Lionel Messi’s arrival in MLS accounted for a significant portion of the growth/Depositphotos
The change comes at a time when the American market is further globalized through the constant availability of European leagues on digital platforms, the growth of the value of football franchises and the approach of the World Cup in 2026, which will be the biggest stress-test for the thesis that football has become a mainstream product and not just an event trend.
It is particularly important that the USA has become the largest international market for the four biggest European leagues. At the previous World Cup, in 2022, the Americas were the single most valuable territory, with a 15 percent share of total TV rights spending.
