Football season is in full swing, with the Premier League, Bundesliga, Saudi Pro League and many others all beginning in August. It’s suggested that there are as many as 3.5 billion football fans worldwide[1], but to which country do the most diehard fans belong?
The footballing experts at Ticketgum have created an index study to determine which country is the most passionate about the game.
Fan attendance and buzz around the last men’s World Cup were analysed, as well as each country’s infrastructure and investment into broadcast rights, in order to reveal which country is most dedicated to football.
To see the full study with further results, please see here.
The ten countries most obsessed with football
| # | Country | Domestic broadcast deal value per season (£bill/million) | Total market value of top league (£bill/million) | % of people interested in World Cup | Average attendance per domestic league game | Number of stadiums | Football obsession score /10 |
| 1 | England | £1.632b | £10.42b | 65.0 | 40,236 | 90 | 8.37 |
| =2 | Spain | £850m | £4.69b | 63.8 | 29,584 | 66 | 7.83 |
| =2 | Germany | £926.5m | £4.01b | 50.1 | 42,992 | 61 | 7.83 |
| 4 | Brazil | £171m | £1.47b | 85.9 | 28,296 | 144 | 7.60 |
| 5 | Italy | £796.5m | £4.57b | 59.3 | 29,537 | 64 | 7.52 |
| 6 | Argentina | £36m | £805,18m | 82.3 | 40,768 | 54 | 7.17 |
| 7 | Mexico | £246.325m | £821m | 73.5 | 20,500 | 58 | 6.71 |
| 8 | United States | £205.5m | £1.25b | 30.7 | 21,981 | 127 | 6.71 |
| 9 | France | £500m | £3.56b | 40.6 | 23,708 | 61 | 6.63 |
| 10 | Saudi Arabia | £63.5m | £749,68m | 85.3 | 10,197 | 13 | 5.74 |
42 countries across the globe were analysed in order to create the ultimate football fan obsession index.
Ticketgum revealed that England is the most fanatic about football, scoring 8.37/10 on the index study. England has the third most stadiums within the top ten countries, and fans turn out to these stadiums in droves, with last season’s Premier League averaging 40,236 devotees at every match, almost double the amount attending soccer matches in the US (21,981). Far and away the biggest indicator of England’s obsession with the game is the immense amount of money spent on domestic broadcast rights, with the Premier League worth £1,632,000,000 in broadcast deals per season.
In second place is Spain, recent winners of the Women’s World Cup, scoring 7.83/10. La Liga is the second most valuable football league in the world, with its players totalling a market value of £4,690,000,000.
The domestic broadcast rights per season are similarly valuable, at £850,000,000. This is the third-highest broadcast deal in the world, highlighting the huge demand for televised coverage.
Germany is joint second in the index study. Broadcasting rights for the Bundesliga are the second most valuable in the world at £926,500,000. Bundesliga is also the most attended league in the world; averaging 42,992 attendees for each game.
Special mention should go to Saudi Arabia. Though the country comes in tenth position overall (5.74), there is a clear growing interest in football. 85.3% of the population was interested in the most recent World Cup, behind only Brazil, and the hosts, Qatar.
Although average attendance is currently at just 10,197 a game, when Neymar Junior was unveiled as a new addition to Al Hilal in August, there were 65,000 fans cheering him on. Saudi fans may soon become the biggest football fanatics across the globe.