now I know a few on here will be upset, but why is powerlifting not on this list of top 100 sports.
Just been watching the junior worlds in ice hockey. There are two teams of 5 going at it hammer and tongs. And the stadium is packed. So what makes ice hockey so popular? What makes football popular? What makes the 1500 m at the olympic games pack in a full stadium (100,00? 200,000? more?) while down the road, the air rifle has 100 audience members.
It's not money, because money just follows the popularity. I mean, the only reason the last big boxing match earned the pugilists so much was because of cash coming in from pay per view.
Digging down into the underbelly of sport, I think it's related to how easy the sport is empathised by the audience. If the audience can imagine themselves in a particular sport on the world stage, that makes the sport popular.
Why is Kim Karcashian so popular? Because females want to be popular, rich and famous. To be the centre of attention. You don't need any skill (beyond a sex tape, but thats another story) to be famous, so it's not like you need to have a science degree and be able to win the Olympics. You want to get into a females pants? All you need to do is make them feel desired.
Gemma in "Sons of Anarchy": Only men need to be loved, sweetheart. Women need to be wanted.
So, I'm pretty sure that answers the question. Swimming is popular because everyone does it, and can do it, and sees themselves as the athlete.
Powerlifting is far less popular as no one wants a near death experience for no fame, no gain and no money. Plus so very few people on this planet push themselves hard enough to be moderately good at it, less alone world class. It's also, despite thrashing the dead donkey of team awards, a solo sport, like surfing or pole vaulting. So there is very little empathy or fantasizing or desire to be in the athlete's shoes.
Football, tick. Everyone goes down the park to kick a ball, plus our media is saturated with it. Soccer, tick. Same same. Swimming, tick. Anyone can do it, and they do, plus it's part of most school programs.
So why is powerlifting not more popular? It's hard. It's damn hard. It beats the living shit out of you. It's not "media popular". It's not something that everyone does (humans are very susceptible to herd instinct. Fads like fashion, tattoos, social success markers and wanting to be "accepted" or popular is part of all that). It's kinda "strange" and uncommon. It hasn't broken through the media barrier to be widely known. No one has made a movie where a powerlifter is the average joe champion. Its often some skinny crossfit type flaggot like spiderman. Or Ironman. Even the Thors of the media are skinny phuks, compared to how they are presented in their comic form. Only freaks or bad guys are shown to be massively strong.
By the way, in north america, it's called hockey and field hockey. While in Australian/NZ it's hockey and ice hockey. No one calls it ice hockey where its popular, cos its mains stream, while playing on grass is for the losers who can't skate.