FOOTBALL!!! *go cowboys*

I think it is close betwwen soccer and cricket. As cricket has a huge following in asian countries with huge populations (india, pakistan, sri lanka, australia and new zealand and huge followings in south africa, england, the west indies, bangladesh, I would say cricket.

football in the USA and soccer everywhere else

Football. The version of the sport that deserves the name as you use your foot to control the ball, NOT the version that should be called "Rugby with padding". Also, it should be pointed out that the Olympics is the one event that is watched by the most people in the world (including the Football World Cup).

NCAA men's and women's basketball games. On some Saturdays, there must be 25 or 30 games listed in the TV Guide.

Baseball

Boxing:HBO&Showtime on every week. (ding ding)

Soccer. Of course the olympics gets a large audience as well. Another game which has not been mentioned is Golf. Golf is played throughout the world. Also noteworthy is Formula 1 racing. Shown throughout the world as well.

Football - in-particular the world cup (not American football)

Football - Soccer. A cumulative total of 30 billion viewers tuned into the FIFA World Cup 2002, of which one billion watched the Brazil-Germany final alone." Here's a list of popular events from a few years ago: 1 Football: Euro 2004 final Portugal v Greece 153 million 2 Olympic Games: opening ceremony 127 million 3 Olympic Games: closing ceremony 96 million 4 American football: Super Bowl 95 million 5 Olympic Games: men's 100m metres 87 million 6 Olympic Games: men's 200m freestyle swimming 66 million 7 Formula one: Monaco grand prix 59 million 8 Football: Champions League final Porto v Monaco 56 million 9 Basketball: NBA finals 25 million 10= Tennis: Wimbledon women's singles final 21 million 10= Tennis: Wimbledon men's singles final 21 million 12 Cycling: Tour de France final stage 16 million 13= Football: FA Cup final Millwall v Man Utd 9 million 13= Horseracing: Grand National 9 million 15 Rowing: University Boat Race 5 million Initiative collected data from 57 major TV markets, accounting for over 90% of TV households globally. And another list, more recent events: 1. 2006 World Cup Final (300 million viewers) 2. Euro 2004 Soccer Final (153 million viewers) 3. 2004 Olympic Games: opening ceremony (127 million viewers) 4. 2004 Olympic Games: closing ceremony (96 million viewers) 5. 2004 Super Bowl (95 million viewers) 6. 2004 Olympic Games: men's 100m metres (87 million viewers) 7. 2003 Champions League (67 million viewers) 8. 2004 Olympic Games: men's 200m freestyle swimming (66 million viewers) 9. 2004 Formula One: Monaco Grand Prix (59 million viewers) 10. 2004 Basketball: NBA finals (25 million viewers)