Michael Jordan saved the NBA when it most needed a hero.
He became a worldwide icon, a guy everybody on Earth would recognize and want to take a picture with, and one of the guys that truly took the game to every single corner of Earth.
Throughout the years, we’ve seen countless international players taking the game overseas, and some of the biggest stars in the game have huge fan bases in other nations.
We saw Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady become a sensation in Asia, and Kobe Bryant became one of the most popular athletes in the history of the Chinese market.
Argentineans stood up late to watch Manu Ginobili win four rings with the San Antonio Spurs, and Spaniards woke up in the early morning to watch the Gasol brothers for over a decade.
Now, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, and Luka Doncic have made people turn their eyes to European basketball more than ever, while Joel Embiid and Pascal Siakam have become success histories from the NBA’s initiatives in Africa.
So, it’s not a surprise to see that the NBA is — by far — the most popular major sports league in the U.S. when it comes to international viewership, as reported by Basketball News and Joe Pompliano.
The NBA recently surpassed more than 75 million followers on Instagram, and 70% of those followers are located outside of the United States.
For context, the NBA has nearly 2x more followers than the NFL, MLB, NHL, and MLS…combined.
It's a global game 🚀
(h/t @basketbllnews) pic.twitter.com/wjvXyCQFA2
— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) January 30, 2023
Apparently, over 70% of the league’s 75 million followers on Instagram are located overseas.
Pompliano also pointed out that the NBA has nearly twice as many international followers as the NFL, NHL, and MLS.
It is — indeed — a global game, and it’s just getting started.
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