Globally, soccer is the most popular sport, but here in the United States of America, we love our football. However, television ratings are dramatically down from a season ago.
Based on the NFL’s television ratings — down by 19 percent for “Sunday Night Football,” 24 percent for ESPN’s Monday Night Football and 18 percent for Thursday night games through the first seven weeks of the season compared to 2015, according to the Washington Post
LeBron James, who is a big Dallas Cowboys fan, was at the Cowboys game against the Browns in Cleveland yesterday. When asked to explain the drop in ratings, the four-time MVP and three-time NBA champion had the following to say.
“I’ve heard some of the comments from some of the players, as far as the game, the fun part of it is kind of being taken away. And I know when I played football, I played it for that reason,” James said after Cavs practice Monday. “For the competition, one, and for the fun of it … I’ve seen a couple of the main guys talk about how the game is not as fun. It’s all political, things of that nature, at this point. You definitely don’t want to take the fun away from the game. That’s why we all fell in love with sports in general is because you have fun with it at the beginning.
“But I’m not the commish. I’m not on the board. I don’t know what [the explanation is]. Football is such a great sport, but I don’t have the answer for why fewer people are watching.”
Taking away the fun of the game is definitely a major reason for the dropoff in ratings. Sure, these athletes are super competitive and want to win every game, but at the end of the day, it’s entertainment for the fans. It’s supposed to be a three-hour escape from the real world.