Countries Where Football is Popular (With the Exception of the US)

We all know that football is the most popular sport in the United States of America. The game is so huge in the country, that around the world it is referred to as American football. Not just so a distinction can be made between association football and the American variant. But also, because football is so intricately linked with the USA.

For a long time, the sport’s popularity has only been limited to the United States. However, in the past couple of years, American Football has been growing around the world. Quite a few countries have begun to embrace the game, and its popularity on sportsbooks, such as the ones found on Bet Station has undoubtedly grown around the world.

So, in this article, we would like to take a look at countries, with the exception of the United States, where football has caught on. Some of the listed ones will be obvious, others may surprise you. So, let’s take a look.

Canada

One of the obvious choices on this list, Canada’s culture and sports are very much linked to those of the United States. So, it should not surprise anyone to find out that Canadians love their neighbors’ football league. Canadian players have competed in the NFL for a while, and in the last season, over 20 players that participated in the NFL came from Canada.

Apart from that, the Canadian Football League is the second-biggest football league in the world. And though it incorporates different rules, the game is largely considered to be the same. So, understandably, Canada stands as one of the countries where football is most popular.

Great Britain

In the past decade, the popularity of the NFL has surged in England and Scotland. In 2007, the NFL International Series was first introduced as a ploy to increase the sport’s popularity worldwide. And though it received a mixed bag of success, it definitely took hold in Great Britain.

For those who don’t know, the NFL International Series is an initiative in which NFL games are played in Stadiums around Europe. Countries include Germany (where the game also took off), the United Kingdom, Mexico, etc.

In 2022, the United Kingdom’s National Football League remains an amateur league. However, the BAFF (British American Football Federation) has garnered 12.000 active members since 2007, placing Great Britain near the top of our list for countries where football is popular.

Japan

It might surprise some to learn that the sport is huge in Japan. In fact, it is one of the most popular sports played today. It was first introduced to the country in the 1930s. However, it was during the post-war era that it really hit it big.

Much like in the USA, in Japan football is played on the professional and university level. Though professional teams are limited in terms of players, as they can only include 3 Americans per team. Japan also has a successful national football team, having won two American Football World Cups.