Why are sports preferences quite similar in India and Canada today
It is perhaps a little-known fact that Indians and Canadians have a similar love for sports. How did this come about, and why do Indians and Canadians have similar sports preferences today? Let’s find out.
Cricket, hockey, and football are followed and played in both countries with equal interest. Indeed, a popular sports betting site in Canada like Unibet that attracts thousands of sports-loving visitors, says that the three sports mentioned in this article are among its users’ most popular picks for wagering. Let’s begin with cricket which is a sport that enjoys a massive and loyal following across many countries.
Cricket is the national sport of India and has a long history here. It is played everywhere and is also an important part of community life, attracting thousands of players with its sophisticated simplicity. Similarly, Canadians are very interested in baseball, which is also one of the major sports in its neighboring US. Baseball is played at all levels of competition in Canada, and many Canadians play it on a recreational basis. Not only that, but the country even has a team—the Toronto Blue Jays, that competes in the most premier baseball league in the world—the MLB.
The hockey culture in Canada is perhaps unparalleled in any other place in the world, and ice hockey is as synonymous with the country as its distinguishable maple leaf flag. India too is quite fond of hockey, albeit in an alternative form. Naturally, the climate here isn’t favorable for ice rinks. Thankfully, a field hockey pitch does not need a specially built ice arena that can be quite inefficient and expensive to maintain in a place like India. It only takes a field and two teams of devoted players to make a game happen.
This list of hugely popular sports in India and Canada wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the most popular sports in the world—football or soccer as is known in some countries. While soccer is not the most popular sport in either country, easily surpassed in preference by hockey, cricket, and baseball, it still makes up a considerable fanbase in India and Canada. Of the three sports listed here, soccer is also the least pretentious to play anywhere. A ball and two improvised goals are all that is needed for any group of people to organize an impromptu game.
Given the information above, what is it that unites the sports preferences of Indians and Canadians? The first obvious parallel is that both countries are vast and socially and culturally rich. In both places, people place importance on building a strong communal life, and collective sports like those mentioned here are an ideal way to achieve that. The second apparent reason stems from the history of these two countries, which have been heavily influenced by Britain. Not coincidentally, cricket and football are the most popular sports on the Island as well, and also field hockey is hugely popular there. Lastly, Canada is home and preferred choice for a sizable portion of Indian immigrants, further building a bridge between the two geographically distant countries.
