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Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:34 pm
by Duke4life831
Dirk wrote:
rapstarter wrote:
Dirk wrote:I really really doubt Messi is more popular than Mahomes.

How many people watch the Superbowl and NFL playoffs again?


NFL being much more popular than the NBA in the US never stopped guys like MJ, Kobe, LeBron and Curry from being the most popular athlete in the country. NFL is split into very strong local fanbases that will stick by their own players, as opposed to the NBA and other sports/leagues where the fans are more bandwagony in the US.


More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Ya I think this is the big question. What was asked in this poll?

What questioned is asked and how it is asked can definitely have massive differences on the outcome of the poll.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:35 pm
by Michael Jackson
As far as a futbol or soccer player in the US even retired, Beckham is more recognizable. Jordan is forever an icon like Babe Ruth or Ali.

That being said, my son would come home from grade school telling me arguments from grade school about Ronoldo and Messi. My wife who is younger than I wouldn't know who either are.

The above about Kelce and Mahomes makes a lot of sense. Jordan makes sense just because of Jordan Brand more than anything remaining popular.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:52 pm
by Xatticus
Dirk wrote:
rapstarter wrote:
Dirk wrote:I really really doubt Messi is more popular than Mahomes.

How many people watch the Superbowl and NFL playoffs again?


NFL being much more popular than the NBA in the US never stopped guys like MJ, Kobe, LeBron and Curry from being the most popular athlete in the country. NFL is split into very strong local fanbases that will stick by their own players, as opposed to the NBA and other sports/leagues where the fans are more bandwagony in the US.


More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Just read the damned article, man.

Or better yet...
https://ssrs.com/insights/the-impact-of-messis-arrival-on-us-soccer-fandom/

It should clear up your confusion. They have been doing this poll for 30 years. Nobody is questioning the validity of their results for the past 29 years, but now that the results aren't what you believe they should be, we need to question the methodology?

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:52 pm
by mrmsix6
You can achieve almost any poll result you want if you ask the right question.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:56 pm
by alebaba
bogus, those polls are useless. Majority of my friends dont even know who he is..

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 4:59 pm
by NZB2323
Lepramaniac wrote:I think the polling system has to be considered as well: people following Football, Basketball and Baseball will name a lot of different players, basically splitting votes, whereas almost all the soccer fans will name Messi, which gives him an edge. If the polling system would have been 'name your 5 favourite players' and then assign points based on the ranks, results would have been different.


I think this is it. Jordan fans won't name Lebron. Lebron fans won't name Jordan. Kobe fans name Kobe. Steph fans name Steph. Ja Morant I know for a while was the most popular NBA athlete by people who follow the NBA via TikTok highlights. A lot of people love Giannis's story and would name him. Jokic is incredible and just became the first player to have a 20-15-15 game without missing a shot, yet he's not even top 10 in jersey sales. :lol:

Whereas in the 90s, the vast majority of people would name Jordan over any other NBA player. In the 80s it would be Magic or Bird. In the 70s it would be Dr. J.

Also, the Chiefs and Warriors and Mahomes and Curry have faded in popularity. They both came up as the darlings everyone was rooting for but there's been a backlash against both. And I don't even know if Mahomes is the most popular player on his own team anymore with all the Swifties loving Kelce, but most die-hard NFL fans won't name Kelce so that vote is split.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:06 pm
by azcatz11
Duke4life831 wrote:
Dirk wrote:
rapstarter wrote:
NFL being much more popular than the NBA in the US never stopped guys like MJ, Kobe, LeBron and Curry from being the most popular athlete in the country. NFL is split into very strong local fanbases that will stick by their own players, as opposed to the NBA and other sports/leagues where the fans are more bandwagony in the US.


More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Ya I think this is the big question. What was asked in this poll?

What questioned is asked and how it is asked can definitely have massive differences on the outcome of the poll.


They have been saying soccer will be the next be thing the past 30 years...still hasn't happened.

I wouldn't consider Messi in the top 10 of famous athletes. He's probably top 20. Soccer is just a very boring sport

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:07 pm
by Dirk
Xatticus wrote:
Dirk wrote:
rapstarter wrote:
NFL being much more popular than the NBA in the US never stopped guys like MJ, Kobe, LeBron and Curry from being the most popular athlete in the country. NFL is split into very strong local fanbases that will stick by their own players, as opposed to the NBA and other sports/leagues where the fans are more bandwagony in the US.


More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Just read the damned article, man.

Or better yet...
https://ssrs.com/insights/the-impact-of-messis-arrival-on-us-soccer-fandom/

It should clear up your confusion. They have been doing this poll for 30 years. Nobody is questioning the validity of their results for the past 29 years, but now that the results aren't what you believe they should be, we need to question the methodology?


Hmm, can you quote the parameters and methodology?

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:10 pm
by Woodsanity
Dirk wrote:
rapstarter wrote:
Dirk wrote:I really really doubt Messi is more popular than Mahomes.

How many people watch the Superbowl and NFL playoffs again?


NFL being much more popular than the NBA in the US never stopped guys like MJ, Kobe, LeBron and Curry from being the most popular athlete in the country. NFL is split into very strong local fanbases that will stick by their own players, as opposed to the NBA and other sports/leagues where the fans are more bandwagony in the US.


More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


I am pretty sure they just asked who your favorite athlete was. 5% saying Messi wouldn't be too shocking even if soccer isnt big in the US.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:11 pm
by Sgt Major
There's nothing bigger than football on the planet.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:13 pm
by Woodsanity
azcatz11 wrote:
Duke4life831 wrote:
Dirk wrote:
More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Ya I think this is the big question. What was asked in this poll?

What questioned is asked and how it is asked can definitely have massive differences on the outcome of the poll.


They have been saying soccer will be the next be thing the past 30 years...still hasn't happened.

I wouldn't consider Messi in the top 10 of famous athletes. He's probably top 20. Soccer is just a very boring sport

Soccer is a lot more popular than American football globally.

I don't care for either sport and find then both boring personally as an American but its true.

And no one cares about Mahomes outside of America either. Messi is way more known than him.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:16 pm
by reddyplayerone
So many questions could have been answered by simply bothering to read a single paragraph.

Image

Why bother showing any reading comprehension skills when you can just make racist jokes about American immigration though, am I right?

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:17 pm
by Duke4life831
Woodsanity wrote:
azcatz11 wrote:
Duke4life831 wrote:
Ya I think this is the big question. What was asked in this poll?

What questioned is asked and how it is asked can definitely have massive differences on the outcome of the poll.


They have been saying soccer will be the next be thing the past 30 years...still hasn't happened.

I wouldn't consider Messi in the top 10 of famous athletes. He's probably top 20. Soccer is just a very boring sport

Soccer is a lot more popular than American football globally.

I don't care for either sport and find then both boring personally as an American but its true.

And no one cares about Mahomes outside of America either. Messi is way more known than him.


I dont think anyone is going to make the argument that Mahomes is more popular than Messi globally.

I just think some of the pushback on this is, this isnt a global poll. This is a poll for the US. I find it very hard to believe Messi is more popular than Travis Kelce right now in the US.

Now is the gap between Messi and any other soccer player, that drastically big compared to any other football (US) or NBA player compared to other players in their sport. I can definitely see that.

But just straight up popularity for the average person in the US, I just have a hard time seeing Messi as that person right now.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:19 pm
by Xatticus
Dirk wrote:
Xatticus wrote:
Dirk wrote:
More popular to me = better known.

I struggle to believe that Messi is better known than some guys.

You can't have games watched by dozens of millions not be better known than some guy that plays on apple tv in the MLS.

I think someone pointed out that this polls asks for a name for each sport or something. That would explain it. American fans probably would only know Messi and a couple of other soccer players.


Just read the damned article, man.

Or better yet...
https://ssrs.com/insights/the-impact-of-messis-arrival-on-us-soccer-fandom/

It should clear up your confusion. They have been doing this poll for 30 years. Nobody is questioning the validity of their results for the past 29 years, but now that the results aren't what you believe they should be, we need to question the methodology?


Hmm, can you quote the parameters and methodology?


Since 1994, Sports Poll has asked Americans to name their favorite pro athlete. We’ve asked this question every month for 30 years, but only seven athletes had ranked as the favorite for one quarter. It’s an exclusive list: Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Peyton Manning, Kobe Bryant, Steph Curry, LeBron James, and Tom Brady. In Q4 2023 (October-December), Messi surpassed Jordan and Brady to become the first soccer player to rank as the #1 favorite for a quarter. We’d been tracking his rise as favorite athlete for the past decade, but the combination of a World Cup win and the move to the US helped push him to the top for the first time.


That's all you need to know. You aren't questioning the previous 29+ years of results. The first time a soccer player shows up at the top of the list and people start crying foul.

This is a basketball forum, so I'm not at all surprised by the reactions here. I would expect as much.

Your experience is yours. It is not indicative of anyone else's or the population at large. Globally, Messi is much more popular than any of the guys that those State Farm commercials tell you are popular.

If you want some understanding as to why Messi got the most votes, then it probably has something to do with him garnering a much larger share of a subgroup within those that were polled. What this wasn't, is a poll that was designed to put a soccer player at the top of the list, because that has never happened before. They simply asked people who their favorite professional athlete was and more people responded "Messi" than any other name.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:19 pm
by life_saver
Messi is pretty popular in US but he definitely is not as popular as likes of MJ, Lebron, Kobe or even Mahomes

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:20 pm
by Woodsanity
Duke4life831 wrote:
Woodsanity wrote:
azcatz11 wrote:
They have been saying soccer will be the next be thing the past 30 years...still hasn't happened.

I wouldn't consider Messi in the top 10 of famous athletes. He's probably top 20. Soccer is just a very boring sport

Soccer is a lot more popular than American football globally.

I don't care for either sport and find then both boring personally as an American but its true.

And no one cares about Mahomes outside of America either. Messi is way more known than him.


I dont think anyone is going to make the argument that Mahomes is more popular than Messi globally.

I just think some of the pushback on this is, this isnt a global poll. This is a poll for the US. I find it very hard to believe Messi is more popular than Travis Kelce right now in the US.

Now is the gap between Messi and any other soccer player, that drastically big compared to any other football (US) or NBA player compared to other players in their sport. I can definitely see that.

But just straight up popularity for the average person in the US, I just have a hard time seeing Messi as that person right now.

I was actually right based on what someone posted above. It took a while before someone bothered to ready the article. :lol:

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:24 pm
by life_saver
Okay...the thread title and the article title is bit misleading..the question is not about who is the most popular athlete in US. It was about who was your favorite athlete and Messi was the highest at about 5%.This is not about how much % of people have heard about Messi or Jordan but rather about who is your favorite athlete. Even if Soccer fans are a small bunch, you usually see lot of them having Messi or Ronaldo or for USMNT fans, it would be someone like Pulisic. If it comes to NBA, NFL etc, it's lot more divided. Fan of each team would most likely choose their respective team's player their franchise QB, their team's NBA superstar etc.

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:25 pm
by life_saver
Duke4life831 wrote:
Woodsanity wrote:
azcatz11 wrote:
They have been saying soccer will be the next be thing the past 30 years...still hasn't happened.

I wouldn't consider Messi in the top 10 of famous athletes. He's probably top 20. Soccer is just a very boring sport

Soccer is a lot more popular than American football globally.

I don't care for either sport and find then both boring personally as an American but its true.

And no one cares about Mahomes outside of America either. Messi is way more known than him.


I dont think anyone is going to make the argument that Mahomes is more popular than Messi globally.

I just think some of the pushback on this is, this isnt a global poll. This is a poll for the US. I find it very hard to believe Messi is more popular than Travis Kelce right now in the US.

Now is the gap between Messi and any other soccer player, that drastically big compared to any other football (US) or NBA player compared to other players in their sport. I can definitely see that.

But just straight up popularity for the average person in the US, I just have a hard time seeing Messi as that person right now.

The threat title and poll title is pretty misleading imo. It's not about how much % of people know Messi/MJ...it's about who's their favorite athlete. If the poll is about how much % of people know Messi, Mahomes, MJ, Lebron etc, then pretty sure Messi won't come close to likes of MJ, Lebron, Kobe, Mahomes

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:27 pm
by life_saver
reddyplayerone wrote:So many questions could have been answered by simply bothering to read a single paragraph.

Image

Why bother showing any reading comprehension skills when you can just make racist jokes about American immigration though, am I right?

yep...exactly. Even if you are a soccer fan, if you are from US, then you'd definitely know that Messi is not as well known as other NBA, NFL superstars. I feel like lot of people who automatically thought this was true are people who are not from US

Re: Lionel Messi Replaces Michael Jordan As Most Popular Athlete in USA

Posted: Fri Feb 23, 2024 5:29 pm
by Woodsanity
Basically Lebron is obviously more well known than Messi in the USA but he is not necessarily more liked or not as many people have him as their favorite athlete specifically....