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Super Bowl Can’t Hold the Candle to the Biggest Game in Soccer

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Source: Statista

While Americans are getting ready for what they consider the biggest sporting event of the year, the 54th Super Bowl, the rest of the world couldn’t care less. Well that may be a bit harsh, but from an American perspective it’s easy to overestimate the global appeal of the biggest game in (American) football.

Speaking of football, soccer, i.e. the proper kind of football from a European perspective, far exceeds the Super Bowl in terms of global interest. The FIFA World Cup Final, played every four years to culminate a month-long tournament of 32 nations, really is the biggest game in the world, regularly reaching more than a billion people across the globe.

According to FIFA, last year’s World Cup final between France and Croatia reached an average live audience of 517 million viewers, with more than than 1.1 billion people tuning in over its 90 minutes. The 2019 Super Bowl pales in comparison, having had an average viewership of 98 million in the U.S. plus an estimated 50 to 65 million around the world.

Best NBA Debuts Since 2000

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Source: Statista

In the most anticipated NBA debut since LeBron James in 2003, New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson put up 22 points on 73 percent shooting in his first game, including an outstanding 17 points in the fourth quarter alone.

The Pelicans eventually fell to the San Antonio Spurs, but the talk of the night was all about Williamson as he shined in his first NBA game.

Williamson, a highly touted prospect drafted first overall from Duke University, has spent the last couple of months sitting on the sidelines recovering from a knee injury suffered during preseason play in October. Listed at 6’6”, 285 pounds, many have questioned whether Williamson’s weight will contribute to lingering injuries throughout his career.

The star rookie played only 18 minutes Wednesday night due to a minutes restriction from his injury, however it only took him one quarter to highlight his dynamic playstyle. After starting off slowly in the first half, Williamson exploded for 17 points in the fourth quarter and made four 3-pointers in a three-minute span before being taken out of the game. After the game, Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told reporters they will evaluate Williamson’s minutes restriction on a game-by-game basis, as the rookie told reporters he felt comfortable playing longer.

With 22 points in only 18 minutes, Williamson’s NBA debut performance ranks him near the top in the last 20 years. Other players, including LeBron James and Damian Lillard, put up more impressive overall statistics in their first NBA games but played over twice the amount of minutes. Blake Griffin also suffered a knee injury before his rookie season and sat out his entire first year before returning in 2010, going on to have one of the best debut seasons ever.