Your Sports League Interests over Time

[ThorneStockton]

Curious to hear how you'd rank your interest levels in the various sports leagues and how they've changed over time. Choose whatever timeline you'd like. We all get older, interests change, responsibilities change and the sports/leagues themselves do too. For example in NCAAFB alone there's NIL, portal, conference expansions and playoffs. The NFL nearly suicided itself with kneeling. MLB has added pitching clocks. Golf had the LIV/PGA dispute, etc.


1. NFL - Don't really have a favorite team, but follow the league pretty close and watch NFL Redzone most of the day on Sundays. Interest has been pretty consistent over the last several years.

2. EPL - Follow the Wolves pretty closely, watch most every match. Although way less of a command on the rest of the league compared to NFL. Only started following closer around 2020 and have increased each year.

3. NCAA FB - Read about Iowa and watch most games. Will watch other big games if convenient. Keep tabs on who is at the top, but less familiar with the other programs than I used to. Interest level is down over the last several years.

4. MLB - Follow the White Sox - but they're so terrible I only went to a few games last year, and the new TV guy is poor. Follow the rest of the league a bit, but not really well. Interest is way down from a couple of years ago.

5. F1 - Will watch about 1/3 of the races and follow the stories. Got into with Drive to Survive and peaked during the Hamilton vs Verstappen battle, and have kind of waned during Red Bull's dominance. New season could change things.

Don't really follow much else sports wise. I guess the TDF in the Summer. If the Blackhawks were better, I'd give the NHL a better try, but will watch some of the playoffs - the Nations League thing was cool - don't really care for basketball. Used to watch some golf but haven't much at all lately, perhaps in part with the LIV/PGA.

 

[Formerly Rockymtnole]

NBA - Only sport I still watch with any regularity. I will watch every Nuggets game I can and will watch Western Conference games if I’m not doing something else.

Baseball - Used to live and breathe baseball. Haven’t watched a game in close to 20 years. Don’t care about it.

NFL - I’ll watch parts of Broncos games but nothing else and only if I’m not doing anything else. I think football is pretty boring tbh.

Hockey - some playoff hockey if the Avs are in it.

Golf - on and off. Never LIV and the LIV split hurt my viewing. Probably only will watch parts of the majors.

Soccer - not regularly but will watch Premier League on occasion and most USWNT games. World Cup is obviously must see TV.

NCAAB - hardly ever anymore.

NCAAF - really only watch parts of Noles games but last year was tough.

 

[Bonerfarts]

College Football
NFL
MLB
WNBA - 20 years ago I would’ve kicked my own ass over this
Men’s Bball
Women’s BBall

As a kid:
MLB
NFL
CFB
Men’s BBall

 

[Moral]

My sports watching has dropped sharply.

I watch Iowa exclusively in women's bball, men's bball, and football. I also watch the Indiana Fever.

 

[chosen.one]

Sports watching/ interest has dropped drastically over last 5+ years.

NFL - follow it and watch games when I can

MLB - was always my fav. Used to watch any game I could. Now I'll catch an inning or 2 and follow the box scores. Still enjoy going to games and try to do this 1-2 times a season.

NBA - loved the NBA. Haven't watched more than a few minutes per season. Do check bosc scores for Portland and Sac.

 

[Kinnick.At.Night]

1. College football- Iowa, of course. I also follow UNI and Wartburg pretty closely.
2. Wrestling- High school, college and freestyle
3. Women's college basketball- It's more fun to watch than men's. No one and done players.
4. MLB - I used to be a ton more into baseball, but I still keep up on standings and individual stats.
5. WNBA- Thanks for sparking my interest CC

 

[hawkeyetraveler]

When I was a young adult in 90’s it was in order of interest:

Hawkeye football
Hawkeye men’s and women’s bball
NBA (bulls fan but watched many non bulls games)
NFL (as many games as possible)
NHL (blackhawks)
Baseball (mostly cubs)

Now:
Hawkeye Football
Occasional Hawkeye women’s bball
Very occasionally Hawkeye mens bball
Maybe a bit of NFL if nothing else happening on Sunday
The golf major championships

I did not watch a single baseball game last year and so far no NBA or NHL games at all.

 

[Dauminator]

A combination of age, life, and what I see as a worsening of all sports have largely killed my interest. I hardly pay attention anymore.

CFB is still my main, despite how woeful things are nowadays. But I'm not the rabid consumer of everything CFB I was 20 years ago.

NFL was king as a kid. Declined a bit when college took preeminence, and now I only watch the Super Bowl. Even then I only really do that because it's the one annual gathering with that particular friend.

CBB is still Iowa and follow the tourney. Picking brackets is fun with the family regardless of anything else.

NHL - I enjoy hockey but just don't have time for it anymore.

NBA I've never liked.

MLB - baseball was fun to play but not really to watch or follow. I'd still go to a live game if given the chance but otherwise meh.

Soccer has really been up and down. I've had stretches where it hardly existed and stretches where it was second only to football. I still care about the USMNT but the club game is in about as bad a state as the NFL anymore.

F1 is an odd case. They have as much or more of the problems that plague other sports, but for some reason I don't mind. I've been watching every race the last few years. I will not be renewing F1TV this year, though, but that's due to life. I'll watch YT highlights to stay in touch and still tune into podcasts here and there. Good chance I'll be back when circumstances improve.

Boxing has been dead for years. Golf has been off radar for a long time. I can't think of any other sport that's caught my attention at any point.

The best form of sports is gaming/simulations. You can disable or ignore all the bad parts. It's in a lot of ways the purest form of sport you can get. And you can set up your team to not suck. Wins all around.

 

[EagleHawk]

Iowa FB/Men's BB/Women's BB - not quite appointment viewing, but pretty much. YouTube DVR set to record all of them.

WNBA - Fever games obviously. Watched a few other games last year to see some of the other teams.

NFL - Bandwagon fan of any team that has local interest. Followed the Rams for the Warner years, then the Colts. Now 49rs and Lions primarily but will watch any team with contributing Hawks.

NBA - Watched the Kings last year, maybe caught one quarter of a game this season.

MLB - switched to YouTube TV in 2020 and have only caught Cubs games if they play on ESPN or AppleTV. check standing about once a week.

NHL - Not a fan of any team, but will usually watch the playoffs for the excitement, especially if there is a game 7

NASCAR - will watch the bigger races if I'm around, but don't have a favorite driver. Mostly just hope to see certain drivers crash.

 

[3boysmom]

I watch basically anything Hawkeyes and the Indiana Fever. Over the past year I have not paid nearly as much attention to the Hawkeyes as I did in the past. I've finally learned that we can't have nice things so there is no reason to get invested.

 

[artradley]

Child through teen years: Rabid Cubs fan, Iowa basketball. Meh to other sports

20's and 30's: Strong fan of Cubs, Iowa Football, Iowa basketball, Bears. Meh to other sports

40's and up: Hawkeye Wrestling. Hawkeye Football. Meh to everything else.

 

[Hawkpunts]

Iowa fball- watch every game. Will move schedule around to see games.
Iowa mens and womens bball - watch if on TV. Okay missing if I have something going on.
College fball - like to still watch a lot.
US Soccer - will watch in major tournaments.
NFL- will watch here and there.
Fever- Background TV in summer.

Everything else is way down from when I was a kid.
MLB- used to watch every White Sox game and probably knew 100+ players in league. Haven’t watched a full game in years and probably know like 10 players now.
NBA- might watch during playoffs. Used to watch tons of Bulls games.
NHL- never really watched
Golf- used to watch some, now none.

 

[stanzithemanzi12]

1. College Football - Overall passion has decreased over last decade. This has been #1 for a long time now. Probably since freshman year of college, but prior to that, it was probably #2 while in high school and #3 when in elementary school.
2. Men's college basketball - Overall passion has decreased the last decade. This has been #2 since probably high school.
3. MLB - Limited passion that has decreased over the last 15 years. This was #5 on my list growing up. Probably didn't become #3 until after college.
4. NFL - Was #3 when I was a kid. Overtaken by college football while I was in college. Overtaken by MLB after college. It's currently catching up to MLB. Have had very limited interest for last 15 years but interest growing again.
5. Soccer - Has been growing on me for the last 15 years. I like World Cup time.
6. NBA - Was #1 growing up (Jordan era). Quickly fell off post Jordan era and has been in last place since end of Jordan era. Can't even really stand the NBA anymore.

 

[Greenway4Prez]

Iowa MBB; my first love. I remember my uncle taking me and my brothers to Carver to see BJ, Roy and Ed dismantle Texas Southern. I caught an elbow from Uncle Jim (Doc Murray for anyone with ties to Waverly) that gave me a horrible bloody nose, and the usher took pity on me and gave me a mini basketball. I was hooked. My ailing grandfather stayed with us for several month when I was 6 or 7, and my detailed reports about the previous night’s game was the most important job I’ll ever have. Now, I maybe watch 7-10 games a season

MLB- FAVORITE sport growing up, huge Twins fan. I was scanning box scores daily, have a large (yet worthless) collection of baseball cards, and was an avid fantasy baseballer for years. Now, I barely watch or follow it. I do enjoy Kernel’s games though

Golf- Probably the sport I’ve most consistently followed for the most years of my life. My time working in the industry gave me a glimpse “behind the scenes”, and I truly love the sport. Few things beat some cold brews and lounging for 3 hours on a Sunday as the final groups play the back 9.

Iowa FB- I was a fan only when they were good growing up, but didnt become a diehard fan until year 2 or 3 of Ferentz. My passion has waned a bit over the last 12-13 years, but they are still the single team I follow most closely and know the most about. Knowing that we will NEVER sniff a national championship has been freeing, but also depressing.

College FB- I spend an incredible amount of time digesting CFB content. I love the sport, hate the postseason. I bet the most on CFB by far, so I guess you could say I do a lot of market research. Overall, my favorite sport to watch but a lot of the great things about it are being taken away.

NFL- used to be a huge Bears fan, but betting has made me pay much more attention to the league overall, and I care less about how the Bears do. Limited teams and roster sizes make it, in my opinion, an easy sport to follow. Great postseason, the salary cap and roster management add an extra element of intrigue.

MCBB- fun sport to watch, love March Madness, there is crazy shit happening all the time, but between officiating, the portal, NIL…it’s a far cry from when it was amazing.

NBA- meh. I would watch some as a kid, but like many my age, the league became invisible after 1998.

So, if I had to rank them currently:

1. CFB/Iowa
2. Golf
3. NFL
4. MCBB/Iowa
5. MLB
74. NBA/NHL/Soccer/NASCAR/WNBA

 

[ATLNole1]

I have always regularly watched CFB and NFL. I still watch Braves baseball from time to time and get into MCBB only when FSU is relevant but my time spent watching both of these has decreased as I got older.
I completely stopped watching NBA years ago and have zero interest in ever watching again.

 

[onlyTheObvious]

I will always watch football.

Anything else my favorite teams need to be good or I don’t watch.

 

[BonzoFury]

Now:
College football
NFL
College basketball
---big drop off
MLB
NHL

Younger:
College football
NFL
College basketball/NBA
MLB

Only real change. I lost interest in the NBA and watch a little hockey now (living in a hockey market will do that to ya)

 

[ping72]

Other than Iowa wrestling and sometimes part of an Iowa football game, I’ve nearly stopped watching sports.

I watched a ton when I was younger, but now that I’m married with kids, I’d feel like a giant piece of shit sitting around watching sports in the evenings or for several hours on a weekend.

Maybe I’ll watch again after I’m an empty nester, but I’m not sure. The further away from it I get, the more silly it seems.

 

[B1GDeal]

As a kid through early 20s I watched sports non-stop. Watched everything all the time. Never really watched much regular tv shows… just sports.

Now as a middle aged guy… I watch NFL every chance I get, watch big CFB games as well as most Iowa and Arizona games. Same with hoops.. except I have only seen a few men’s games the past couple of years… mostly lady Hawks. Watch USMNT, but also pro leagues in Europe with Americans on roster and EPL. That’s about it…. Except Olympics and World Cups. Still watch plenty of sports, but way less than I used to. I find I watch less and less each year with NFL exception.

 

[bhawk24bob]

It's dropped off in general because I don't want to deal with how fractured the broadcast landscape is