Which British Sports Will Become Popular Among Americans in Future Decades?

[Frodo]

The ones I have listed are the ones that either haven't taken off, or died out for some reason earlier in our history.

Here are the ones that made it here:

Netball (basketball)

Association Football (soccer)

Tennis

Badminton

Table Tennis

Squash

Rowing (Crew)

Ice Hockey

Boxing

Billiards

[Santander]

Rugby league is similar enough to American football, but I think that actually makes it less likely to succeed in America. Rugby union is more likely to become popular as an amateur sport, considering it is a respected sport in America and the US already has half-decent college rugby. Once a sport is popular as an amateur sport, you never know what'll happen to it as a pro sport. The level of rugby played in the US right now is slowly approaching the level of rugby played by the likes of Italy, Japan, or Argentina not too long ago, all of whom are non-Commonwealth countries that have professional rugby. Canada would also provide a half-decent pool of talent next door.

Cricket is too associated with the South Asian diaspora to be a mainstream sport in America. Hockey is only played by girls in the US, and I can't think of any country where both hockey and ice hockey are popular. Curling is already popular in Northern Minnesota and a few other places, but it's way too Scottish/Canadian to become mainstream in America.

[OSR stands with Israel]

I would say none of above

[Lechasseur]

Rugby league is similar enough to American football, but I think that actually makes it less likely to succeed in America. Rugby union is more likely to become popular as an amateur sport, considering it is a respected sport in America and the US already has half-decent college rugby. Once a sport is popular as an amateur sport, you never know what'll happen to it as a pro sport. The level of rugby played in the US right now is slowly approaching the level of rugby played by the likes of Italy, Japan, or Argentina not too long ago, all of whom are non-Commonwealth countries that have professional rugby. Canada would also provide a half-decent pool of talent next door.

Cricket is too associated with the South Asian diaspora to be a mainstream sport in America. Hockey is only played by girls in the US, and I can't think of any country where both hockey and ice hockey are popular. Curling is already popular in Northern Minnesota and a few other places, but it's way too Scottish/Canadian to become mainstream in America.

This. I totally agree

[Frodo]

The DC area looks like they may get a cricket stadium -I did not know we had a market big enough to qualify for one:

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[IceAgeComing]

wouldn't be shocked if that turned into a white elephant - Toronto was meant to get one and that never happened.  Besides; there's already a US Cricket ground in Florida; I don't know whether there'd be a market for another one in DC unless they had a way to quickly convert it for other sports to use temporarily, but how many American sports use a circular pitch.  Besides; stuff like American Football would be hard because you'd really need to protect the wickets and that's hard enough to do for more gentle sports.

[morgieb]

On paper you'd think that the significant South Asian and Carribean population in the US could give cricket a base, but the USCA is f**ked up enough that it'll never truly progress.

[Statilius the Epicurean]

It would be fantastic if cricket became big in the US.

[pikachu]

I'd be shocked if any of them could even get to the status of soccer during my lifetime. I can see rugby getting to the point where it's popular enough to be a lower-tier college sport, considering that it's already fairly popular as a club sport in a few schools, and there does seem to be a decent push internationally to make the game popular. I don't see a market for cricket since it's only popular among immigrants from the subcontinent and the Caribbean and that popularity hasn't even transferred to the second generation, let alone others. Field hockey is viewed as a girl's only sport and I get the impression that a lot of schools sponsor it for Title IX reasons as a balance to football (I've met a lot of people who are surprised that men play it in other countries.) Really doubt bowls has a future in the US.

Rugby is the only one of these I can see having a strong future. That and lacrosse (a sport that's as American as it gets) are the sports I can see having strong growth.

[vanguard96]

The ones I have listed are the ones that either haven't taken off, or died out for some reason earlier in our history.

Here are the ones that made it here:

Netball (basketball)

Basketball was invented 1 year before netball.

Netball has not taken off in the non-Commonwealth nations probably because it is a modified sport for women.

[vanguard96]

Perhaps cricket in pockets with high South Asian populations. The other areas of high immigration to the US - Latin America and East Asia are not big on the sport.

Rugby is definitely getting a lot more interest. Women's rugby also as another Title IX sport for the NCAA promises something. Still it is far off even Japan's second tier interest level with the sport complete with domestic company leagues of employees including overseas players hired to basically play rugby for say Kobe Steel, NEC, or some other big company. One of the issues that it is even more hegemonic than soccer in terms of which teams end up winning - basically the same 3 or 4 teams in rugby union. Rugby sevens perhaps which has given a better chance for smaller teams to succeed already may be a better route however there is not a wellspring of interest - as indicated by the parse, pay-per-view hard to access coverage of the last World Cup - even the US games were not on say Fox Sports 1&2, CBS Sports Net, NBCSN type level of network.

Field hockey in the US will predominantly remain a woman's sport. Yes South Asian men do play it but not to the same extent as cricket.

[vanguard96]

Hockey is only played by girls in the US, and I can't think of any country where both hockey and ice hockey are popular.

Germany can make a decent case for ice hockey and field hockey as a regular medalist in men's field hockey and a regular top 10 team in men's ice hockey at Olympics & World Championships - and there are 8 German born players who played in the NHL this past season including Islanders starting goalie Thomas Greiss and Oilers C Leon Draisaitl who was after McDavid one of the key engines in what should have been a conference finals appearance for the Oilers in the playoffs (77 pt regular season - 2nd on team, 16 pts in 13 playoff games - tops on the team). On the women's side they have earned medals in field hockey (Olympic Gold in 2006, Bronze 2016, Silvers in 84 and 92) and have made it to the Olympic tournament 3 of 6 times with a best of 5th at the 2006 Olympics in ice hockey. Perhaps that the Olympics are in S Korea - they have two Asian teams though I think they are better than Japan is and if the Olympics had not been in S Korea - the Germans would have qualified. Germany's domestic ice hockey league has the 2nd best average attendance in Europe behind the Swiss A League but ahead of Sweden's SHL & Russia's KHL with over 6,600 per game.

Soviet Union used to be decent in field hockey - top 6 in World Championships in 3 consecutive world cups and of course was top level in ice hockey. Since the breakup they have not had the same success of the 80's for both men (bronze 80 Olympics, 4th 86 WC, silver 83 Euro) and women (bronze 80 Olympics, bronze 81 WC, silver 84 Euro).

[RINO Tom]

On paper you'd think that the significant South Asian and Carribean population in the US could give cricket a base, but the USCA is f**ked up enough that it'll never truly progress.

Maybe we just don't like it?  Jeez.

[pikachu]

On paper you'd think that the significant South Asian and Carribean population in the US could give cricket a base, but the USCA is f**ked up enough that it'll never truly progress.

Maybe we just don't like it?  Jeez.

While true, the ICC doesn't do the best job when it comes to promoting the sport in new areas.

[RINO Tom]

On paper you'd think that the significant South Asian and Carribean population in the US could give cricket a base, but the USCA is f**ked up enough that it'll never truly progress.

Maybe we just don't like it?  Jeez.

While true, the ICC doesn't do the best job when it comes to promoting the sport in new areas.

Oh, this was totally my bad, haha ... read "USCA" as "USA."  Hahaha.