Soccer has never been more popular in the United States, which is amazing when you think of where they were just two decades ago. More people are watching on television, more people are buying merchandise, and more people are passing it on to their kids to enjoy. The English Premier League, especially, is riding that wave.
Here’s how the EPL has gained a foothold and become more popular than ever.
American Players
There have been some great American players in the EPL throughout the years, but rarely has there been several at the same time. Not only that, but some of them are stars in their own right, leading their clubs and making an impact.
Christian Pulisic, in particular, is a star at Chelsea and the US national team. Tyler Adams is at Leeds United, and is the captain of the national team. There are others, like Tim Ream, Antonee Robinson, Chris Richards, Brendan Aaronson, and a few more.
Having players that fans can cheer for and recognize makes a big difference in drawing fans to the league and to the game.
Video Games
Believe it or not, video games are doing a lot of the work of driving the younger crowd toward the game.
The FIFA series of games are consistently among the highest selling, and not just among the sports game genre.
Currently, FIFA 2023 is the 7th best selling video game, and 2nd best sports game. Having a popular video game gets kids and adults interested, and they are more likely to put a game on TV or stop clicking the remote when they come across a game.
Gambling
Sports in the US has always been based around stats. How many points does a team or a player average? By how many points does a team usually win or lose?
Stats are an important part of the viewing experience, and therefore are prominent in the sports betting markets that are offered in the U.S.
Soccer doesn’t lend itself to too many stats because there are fewer goals. Therefore gamblers betting on soccer will usually bet on the win/lose, draw markets.
However, with sports betting becoming legal in more and more jurisdictions in the US, prominent international sportsbooks such as Bet365, which is legal in the U.S. states of New Jersey, Colorado, Ohio, and New York (and will probably be expanding to other US states), will surely start seeing a rise in action on betting markets which are more popular with the American crowd. Such betting markets as futures and player props.
And we are certain that US gambling sites will do whatever they can to offer more stats based markets to make betting on soccer leagues such as the EPL more attractive for American gamblers.
Streaming
To get really interested in a sport, you have to be able to watch it. In the past, you had to catch a game on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon on ESPN or another sports network. The choices were random, and you were lucky if you saw the same team twice. However, now your options for watching the EPL are endless. You have ESPN, Peacock, FuboTV, Dazn, and USA Network. You can watch all of the games of any team, and you can even catch them on demand. There is a wealth of EPL action for you to enjoy, and it’s never been easier.
MLS
Major League Soccer began operations in 1996. For the better part of a decade, it enjoyed modest success and modest exposure. However, in 2005 it underwent a rapid expansion, seeing the league grow from just 9 teams to 29, with the addition of St. Louis City SC for the coming season. That is a rapid expansion that also saw many players, including David Beckham, come across the pond to give the league some star power.
With soccer becoming more popular here at home, it’s no wonder that fans started to seek out the higher level of play in Europe. Since it’s based in a country where English is the most spoken language, it’s only natural that fans gravitated towards the EPL.
The great thing about the EPL, and soccer in general, is that more and more fans are finding it every day. With celebrities like Ryan Reynolds owning a team, and a popular series like Ted Lasso gaining massive views, the EPL can only gain more fans as a result.