Warm Up
What sports do you like?
What sports do you not like?
How many hours a week do you watch sports on TV?
Reading
Most Americans Don't Follow or Talk About Sports
The US is home to some of the world's most famous professional sports teams. Over 100 Million Americans of watch the Super Bowl. millions watch the NBA basketball finals and World Series every year. Tens of thousands of people also go to watch college teams play: more than 92,000 people went to watch a women's volleyball game in Nebraska in 2023. But according to a recent survey, most Americans aren't actually very interested in professional or college sports.
A Pew's survey of almost 12,000 adults found that 16% of Americans follow sports "extremely closely" or "very closely." The most common reasons people gave for following sports were to cheer for their favorite team, and for entertainment.
But the survey also found that 62% of Americans say they follow professional or college sports "not too closely" or "not closely at all." Most people said they don't tend to talk about sports either, whether in person, by text or online. More than six out of 10 people said they only talk about sports with others a few times a month, or less.
Pew found that adults under the age of 50, women and people with lower incomes are most likely not to follow sports closely. And more than half of the people who took part in the survey said that sports get too much attention in society.
Reading Comprehension
How many Americans watch the Super Bowl?
What percentage of Americans don't follow sports closely?
What were the most common reasons people gave for following sports?
Discussion Questions
What are your thoughts on Pew's findings?
Do you find it surprising that only 16% of Americans follow sports closely?
Do you follow any sports? When did you get into them?
Do any of your friends or family follow sports very closely?
Do you think sports gets too much attention in society?
What are some of the most watched sports events in your country?
What are some of your country's most famous sports teams?
Are American sports popular where you live?
Have you been to any sports events? Were they exciting?
Did you play any sports growing up? Do you still play them?
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