In Europe it's different, but in the US the college sports that get huge fan followings include football and basketball. Most of the top grade athletes are usually signed to pro teams while still in college, and most college students usually get full scholarships to play football or other sports for their colleges. This is a goldmine for super athletes, and college sports usually have a huge number of fans who watch history being made as great athletes are discovered.
One of the biggest college sporting events is what is called March Madness, this is an annual basketball tournament sponsored by the National Association of Intercollegiate athletics (NCAA) and the sport of choice here is basketball. This, as you can guess happens in March, and the term is used to capture the amount of excitement and a huge fan following that swirls around the tournament.
Basketball and football have the biggest fan following, but other sports such as baseball, soccer, and cricket are popular too. In this review, we look at some of these incredible sports with huge fan followings. You know when a sport has a major following, there is some serious action to be on the lookout for.
American Football
This is without a doubt the most popular sport in the US. It is played in high school and college as well and holds the number one spot among the 10 most popular college sports. It has the greatest number of fans and participants in all types of sports, and the NFL – National Football league is the pre-eminent league in the sport and has been for many decades. It has millions upon millions of viewers who fall it for months, and the high school games usually appear on Fridays and Saturdays, while college football is played on Saturdays only.
Fans and alums are usually extremely passionate about this game and their teams. Some communities, most especially those in the rural areas tend to emphasize local high schools particularly the Great Plains, and the southern US. This is because this game has the potential of moving you from a small town athlete and take you on an international podium.
Basketball
This is the second most popular sport in the US. According to the National Sporting Goods Association, it is in the number two spot of the 10 most popular sports in the US. There are more than 26 million Americans who participate in the sport. Basketball was invented in 1891 by a physical education teacher known as James Naismith.
The NBA is the league behind basketball and it holds all of the major professional games played in North America. It is extremely popular on college and high school levels, and every march, as we have mentioned above, there are usually 68 teams that compete in the tournament, where the NCAA decides the champions. Most of the teams usually have an intense fan following.
Soccer
You might be surprised to see soccer on this list, but it is counted as one of the most popular college sports in the US. There are many collegiate associations that govern soccer games such as the NCAA, The NCCAA, the NAIA, and the USCAA. There is also the Recreational Sports Associations and the National Intramural for high schools.
These associations host most college clubs, although they do not have any programs within them. During the college soccer drafter after the NCAA season, the professional US clubs usually draft the most talented college players to go pro, and join some of the top American clubs and become professional athletes.
Cricket
This is the fourth most popular sport in the US. You may think that the US doesn’t play much cricket as this is known as an Indian sport, but it is a great sport most US colleges support their students in it. Although it may not have as big a fan base as basketball and football, it is still in the list of the 10 most popular sports in the US. Historically, it was extremely popular in the 19th and 18th centuries.
The US vs. Canada match that was played in 1840 and had an attendance of 10,000 spectators. The United States Youth Cricket Association was formed to govern all things cricket, including college cricket games.
Baseball
This is the 5th most popular sport in College and has a huge fan base. Baseball and its variant sport Softball are extremely loved by fans and alums. Major League Baseball is the highest league that manages this sport, and the lowest levels of professional baseball serve the inexperienced aspects of the sport. The rookie leagues occupy the spring training while the major leagues occupy the squads.
Outside of the minor leagues, there are some collegiate summer baseball leagues that occupy the smaller towns. In the summer baseball leagues, amateur players usually play without any payment, in order to remain eligible for the college baseball matches in the spring.
College Sports With Huge Fan Followings Conclusion
Sports have many loyal fans, and these fans love college sports as much as they love the pro side. Watching the college sports gets you into the loop of the up and coming stars of the pro circuits. Since many of these athletes are playing to get signed, you get a different kind of hunger in the games that is truly awe-inspiring to watch.
