Sports may define us, but it also divides us. As sports fans, approximately:
- 1 in 10 Americans are OBSESSED, saying they would bleed the colors of their favorite team if they could.
- 3 in 10 Americans are ACTIVELY ENGAGED, missing games only because they have to, not because they want to.
- 4 in 10 Americans are FAIR-WEATHER, feeling it’s fun to check in for the big games, but that’s about it.
- 2 in 10 Americans are COMPLETELY INACTIVE, asking what’s this Super Bowl you speak of?
Following type, men are more likely to classify themselves as “obsessed,” or even active, sports fans than women are. But also, those with children under 18, those making more than $35K per year, and those in the middle age brackets from 30-49 appear significantly more likely to paint their face and throw a toy brick at the TV than other demographic groups are.
That said, when it comes to the biggest issues ripping through the headlines these days, the ones that are most destroying sports – according to both fair-weather fans and sports zealots – are (in order of national percentages):
- Performance-enhancing drugs (58%)
- Ticket prices for professional sporting events (56%)
- Athletes acting as inappropriate role models (51%)
- Athletes’ enormous salaries (51%)
- Ineffective referees (48%)
- Concussions (43%)
- Violence (42%)
- Crime (41%)
- Kickbacks or payments to college athletes (40%)
- Intense media scrutiny of athletes’ lives (37%)
- Gambling (33%)
- Athletes dropping out of college or high school to play professionally (32%)
About 1 in 10 Americans do not believe that any of these issues have an impact on whether sports succeed or not. And, men are less likely than women to feel like any of these issues need to be urgently addressed.
Interestingly, the issues around money (like excessive salaries and exorbitant ticket prices) have much more significance to adults making more than $35K per year and to older adults ages 30+ (a group that typically has more household income than its younger counterpart).
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