The number of people who love playing hockey is growing. Many NHL (National Hockey League) games are being played in the summer which is great for the growth of the game. Also, more and more people are taking up the sport which is great because there are now a lot of people available to play with.
How many people like hockey? The short answer is a lot. The long answer is very a lot. To prove just how much we love the game, the NHL teamed up with Numbeo.com to find out just how many people around the world enjoy playing hockey. The result is interesting.
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The Stats Reveal Much
According to the NHL and Numbeo, here are the worldwide stats for playing hockey.
The Most Popular Sport
Hockey undoubtedly takes the cake when it comes to popularity with 1.7 million people playing the game worldwide. The next closest competitor is cricket with 1.3 million people liking the game. Baseball is a distant third with 930,000 people playing the game. If you compare these figures to 2012 where 1.3 million people played hockey compared to 1.2 million who played cricket, this figure is up by 20% globally.
The fact that hockey is popular everywhere is great. This proves that the game is not solely designed for cold weather climates like Canada and the United States. If you check out the map, you will see that the world is a big place and there are people playing hockey in every country on the globe. This means that anyone can become a hockey player and enjoy the game whether you live in Canada or India. It also means that anyone can join a hockey club and play with people from all over the world. What a concept!
The Game Is Global
One of the great things about the NHL is that it is a truly international game. The fans travel the world and follow the teams regardless of where they play. This is great for the game because it allows people from all over the world to connect and find common ground through the sport. The fans from different countries find that the game is easy to understand and can be fun to follow. This is different from other professional sports because there is a lot more to it than people playing a game.
What will be truly exciting is if we see an all-star game where countries vs. countries match up to see who is the best at the sport. It will be a competition between Australia vs. Argentina vs. Brazil vs. Canada vs. the United States. Hopefully, one day we will see this kind of thing happen.
The United States of America have dominated the competition with a lot of the top spots going to teams from the country. The U.S. is currently led by the Pittsburgh Penguins with three first-place votes. The other teams with multiple first-place votes are the Nashville Predators (2), Dallas Stars (2), and St. Louis Blues (1).
If you want to see just how much the U.S. dominates the competition, here is a chart showing just how many people in each country played hockey in 2015.
The second-largest country in terms of population is Canada with 3.82 million people. It is led by the Calgary Flames with two first-place votes. The other teams with multiple first-place votes are the Edmonton Oilers (2), Winnipeg Jets (2), and Vancouver Canucks (1).
One of the interesting things about the growth of hockey in North America over the past few years is the number of people taking up the sport. According to the NHL and Numbeo, the game is growing by 9% in North America as of 2015 for a total of 1.32 million people playing the game compared to 1.2 million in 2012. If you compare this to the rest of the world, this is only the beginning.
Worldwide, It’s A Mix
The rest of the world isn’t just waiting for the opportunity to play hockey. A lot of these countries are also taking up the sport with the greatest nation in the world, China, leading the way. It is currently the second-largest country in terms of population.
As of 2015, there are 5.4 million people playing hockey in China compared to 500,000 in 2012. The country is led by the Beijing Ducks with two first-place votes. The other teams with multiple first-place votes are the Shanghai Dragon (1), Tianjin Gold Lions (1), and the Chongqing Brave (1).
The Philippines is the third-largest country in the world in terms of population and is led by the Chunichi Dragons with one first-place vote. The other teams with multiple first-place votes are the Hiroshima Toyo Carps (1) and the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (1).
If you want to compare how many people like hockey on a per capita basis, here are the top 20 countries.
The 20 Most Popular Countries
Denmark, Finland, and Sweden rank near the top of the list thanks to their world-class hockey programs and rich history. The United States come in at number three thanks to the large population and the fact that it is a popular sport for both men and women.
Here is a map showing the 20 most popular countries.
Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico are known for their strong soccer teams and it shows in the popularity of the sport. Australia, Canada, and New Zealand are also popular due to the popularity of their national teams.
The list is a mix of high-scoring and physical sports like hockey and soccer with lots of population. It would be interesting to see which countries have the highest number of professional teams in the world.
The Most Liked Sport
According to the NHL and Numbeo, here are the worldwide stats for people’s favorite sport.
Hockey
It is no surprise that hockey takes the cake when it comes to people liking the game. This is probably because of the great action that is on display in every game and how easy it is to follow. Many people also like the fact that it is a game that you can enjoy with your family and friends.
The other sports on this list are also very popular. One of the reasons behind the popularity of soccer is that it is a global game and many people get to follow their favorite teams regardless of where they live. This allows for lots of passion and excitement in the game. The same can be said about tennis and rugby. The only other competitive sport on this list is basketball. It is currently the third-most popular sport worldwide with 2.16 million people playing the game compared to 1.81 million who play hockey and 1.62 million who play soccer. If you are curious, the next closest competitor is American football with 1.48 million people playing the game.
Soccer
It’s not just about following your favorite team. A lot of people play soccer not for the sport itself but because they enjoy being part of a community. This is why we see lots of young people playing the game and why it is so popular in Europe. It takes a lot of players to form a team and keep matches interesting, which is why it is such a popular game.
The other sports on this list are also popular because people like participating in group activities. It’s a game for everyone!
The United States dominated the competition again with a lot of the top spots going to teams from the country. The next closest competitors are Argentina and Mexico with two first-place votes each and Brazil and Chile with one first-place vote each. A lot of these teams are led by a lot of talent and have lots of world-class players. This is great for the game because it means there are often high-profile international matches between these teams. It also means that these teams will always be challenging to play against.