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Flashy-Log1219 t1_j5vkf2b wrote

Is field hockey really that popular?

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wikiot t1_j5voza0 wrote

Estimated 2 billion fans...I know it's big in India and probably to lesser extend other commonwealth nations and Europe

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Levi_MS OP t1_j5vs0mc wrote

Field field hockey is quite popular in Western Europe (e.g. Belgium, Netherlands, Germany), USA, Australasia (Australia and New Zealand), but also in South Asia with their large populations Pakistan (population: 231 million) and India (population: 1.4 billion).

Even if the popularity in India (8x gold, 1x silver Olympics from 1928-1980 and last bronze 2020) and Pakistan (3x gold, 3x silver 1960-1984) decreased due to lack of successes in the last 30 years, it is still after cricket a popular national sport in these countries.

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However, field field hockey is clearly behind ice hockey in terms of TV viewership.

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AZ_RBB t1_j5we0g7 wrote

Saying field hockey is quite popular in Australia is a big stretch. Outside of the Olympics every 4 years the sport gets no coverage at all here.

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Levi_MS OP t1_j5whlu3 wrote

I know what you mean. Compared to the other team sports in Australia like Australian Football, Cricket, Rugby (League+Union) and Football (Soccer), Field Hockey is rather far behind.

But it still enjoys a certain popularity, even if the TV coverage is indeed rather poor outside the Olympics, just like here in Europe.

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Flashy-Log1219 t1_j5vuvkq wrote

Thanks for the insight OP. It makes a whole lot more sense sense in my western pov now.

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MrPrul t1_j5yab7a wrote

No, that’s why we won so many gold medals. Go Holland! 😁

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