Let’s not forget how emotional and excited we were as one big global community for Lionel Messi to win the FIFA world cup in 2022. If you are not in the stadium watching your favourite sport, then you sure are catching up with it on TV or one of the streaming platforms. Watching with your friends and family, planning an evening around the finals or your favourite series is one of the most known ways to build a likeminded community and memorable moments. This phenomenon of cultural and emotional connect with sports has been long utilized by sports brands around the world to build community networks, social and fan engagements. Sports tournaments are one big way of engaging with fans.
Here are some of the most watched sports tournaments of the world:
ICC Cricket World Cup
What started in 1975, England, today is one of the most watched sports globally. Today close to 100 countries are a part of the International Cricket Council (ICC). Some of the most cricket-frenzy nations would be India, Australia, England, New Zealand amongst others.
Latest Viewership:
6.58 billion video views across ICC platforms for their T20 format of World Cup 2022
Major Sponsors:
Nissan, Coca-Cola, DP World, Bira, Oppo amongst others are their latest sponsors
Players:
Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Brian Lara, Shane Watson are some of the legend players
Winner:
England holds the last 2019 ICC world cup championships title and Australia won the Women’s Cricket World Cup in 2022.
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FIFA World Cup
Started in 1930 with 13 teams in Uruguay, is now at 211 men’s football teams affiliated with FIFA. The global craze of this sport needs no mention, its palpable and evident. Southern American countries to European nations are known for their passion and emotional connect with the sport.
Latest Viewership:
1.5 billion viewership as per FIFA website for their 2022 FIFA world cup final.
Major Sponsors:
Adidas, Byju’s, McDonalds, Hyundai, Qatar Airways are their latest sponsors.
Players:
Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham, Neymar are some of the legend players.
Winner:
Spain women team won the 2023 FIFA Women’s title while Argentina won the 2022 FIFA men’s title.
Online Game:
FIFA series by EA Sports
UEFA Champions League
Known as the European cup that started in 1955-56 with 16 sides taking part in the tournament, today the Champions League has 78 clubs as per 2022/23 to play for one of the most prestigious football tournaments and club competition in European football. Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Liverpool, Bayern Munich are some names of the famous clubs in the league.
Latest Viewership:
Approximately 400 million viewers for their 2021 finals (as per AS – online sports news website and channel)
Major Sponsors:
FedEx, Mastercard, PepsiCo, Turkish Airlines, Oppo, Heineken amongst others are some of their past sponsors.
Players:
Kylian Mbappe, Harry Kane, Neymar are some famous players in the league
Winner:
Manchester City FC won the 2022-23 title.
Online Game:
Pro Evolution Soccer (PES) series
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Super Bowl
Started in 1967, Super bowl is one of the most popular sporting events of the year in US that gains international attention. With 32 competing teams, latest, the tournament decides the annual champion for the National Football League. The top two NFL teams compete for the coveted and famous Super Bowl championship.
Latest Viewership:
113.06 million people for the finals game as per the Nielsen website.
Major Sponsors:
Pepsi, Doritos, M&Ms, Weather Tech, Remy Marting amongst others are some of their past sponsors.
Players:
Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers are some famous players in the league.
Winner:
Kansas City Chiefs won the 2023 NFL game.
Online Game:
Madden NFL series by EA sports.
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The Masters
Established in 1934, The Masters is one of the prominent professional golf tournaments. It is played on the same golf course each year, unlike the other older golf tournaments, which makes it unique and classic tournament in the game of Golf.
Latest Viewership:
12.058 million was the number of viewership that saw the final round of the Masters, making it the most watched gold telecast in 5 years. (as per -TheAthletic reports)
Major Sponsors:
Mercedes-Benz, AT&T, IBM amongst others are some of their past sponsors.
Players:
Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele are some famous players in the league
Winner:
Jon Rahm won the last Masters title.
Online Game:
WGT Golf
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Tour de France
Oldest of the three grand tours and considered the most prestigious and most difficult men’s bicycle race in the world, Tour de France started in 1903 as an annual men’s multiple-stage bicycle race. Cyclists race across the most scenic parts of France and Europe to win the prestigious title. Approximately 20 professional teams partake in the tournament with 9 riders each to cover close to 3600 kms mainly in France with sometimes short and sweet scenic route across EU countries like Spain, Belgium, Germany, and Italy
Latest Viewership:
A 42.5 million viewership was noted for the domestic public service broadcaster, France Televisions in 2023 Tour De France.
Major Sponsors:
AG2R La Mondiale, Citroën, Soudal, QuickStep amongst others are some of their past sponsors.
Players:
Some well-known Cyclists are – Eddy Merckx, Lance Armstrong, Chris Froome.
Latest Winner:
Jonas Vingegaard from Denmark
Online Game:
Tour de France series by Cyanide Studio
Other most watched and loved sport tournaments include the US open, Roland Garros (French Open) and Wimbledon for Tennis, T20 World Cup for Cricket, Olympic Games, Asian Games, Pro Kabaddi League for Kabaddi amongst others. All these tournaments are iconic events that have been able to transcend borders, cultures, and languages to unite and connect people. The legacy of these tournaments continues to connect the global audience to a common thread of hope and support and shape the world of sports.
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