Baseball is fundamentally a numbers game, and the data presented below reflects a reality that many in the sport would prefer to ignore. The stark truth is that a diminishing percentage of Americans are engaged with baseball now more than at any point in the last four decades—perhaps even longer. It’s not merely the case that viewership has sharply declined; this drop has occurred alongside a population increase of over 100 million in the United States.
Between 1973 and 2013, the U.S. population expanded by nearly 50%. However, the average audience for each World Series game has nosedived—plummeting from a peak of 44 million viewers in 1978 to just 12.5 million last year, with this year’s ratings showing similar dismal trends. In contrast, 115 million people tuned in for the latest Super Bowl. On the same note, a mere regular season NFL game between the Colts and Steelers attracted 23.8 million viewers on October 26, and 25 million viewers watched the U.S. compete against Portugal in the World Cup last summer.
How much lower must the percentage of Americans who watch baseball drop before it’s ludicrous to label it the national pastime? This is not merely an outdated term; baseball’s legal status is distinctive—it enjoys exemption from federal antitrust law based on the grounds that it’s classified as an exhibition rather than a business.
Decades ago, baseball was truly America’s game. During World War II, U.S. soldiers would pose questions like, “Who won the World Series last year?”—and every patriotic American man in 1944 would know the answer: The Cardinals triumphed over the Browns in an all-St. Louis series. In today’s world, hardly anyone would be able to answer that question. A more relevant query might pertain to the plot of a popular show like NCIS: New Orleans or even The Walking Dead, both of which outperformed the World Series in ratings this past year.
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In summary, the decline in baseball viewership should serve as a wake-up call for Major League Baseball. While the sport once reigned supreme as America’s pastime, its relevance is diminishing as audiences flock to other entertainment options.