What Is the Most Popular Sport in India? Top Sports in 2026

India’s sporting life stretches from an improvised cricket game to a packed stadium, from a local wrestling training ground to an international badminton final. Different places and communities give different sports their meaning.

A single national answer is useful, but it cannot explain every local favourite. This guide starts with audience evidence, then explores eight sports through their history, competitions and ways to learn the game.

What Is the Most Popular Sport in India?

Cricket leads the cross-sport fandom evidence used in this guide. YouGov’s Indian cricket fandom report 2025 (PDF) reports that 55% of its urban-India audience followed cricket in 2024, ahead of the other sports shown.

The report draws on YouGov Profiles and Global Fan Profiles, with data extracted in January 2025. Its chart labels the target group “Nat Rep (N~30,000)” while describing the audience as urban Indians. We retain that urban scope and do not present it as a rural-inclusive census or a 2026 estimate.

What Sports Do People Follow and Play in India?

The table selects six sports from the same chart’s 2024 series. These percentages measure following, not the proportion who play each sport. People can follow several sports, so the figures should not be added together.

This guide does not have a recent, comparable national participation dataset for these eight sports. It therefore gives no numerical ranking of what Indians play. The profiles are an editorial selection, with numbering for navigation. Also explore field hockey and athletics.

1. Cricket

Cricket offers several ways into Indian sport: a short informal game, club and school competition, domestic teams and the national sides. A newcomer can follow the contest between bat and ball before learning the differences between Test, one-day and Twenty20 cricket.

The BCCI’s historical account dates the establishment of the Board of Control for Cricket in India to December 1928. That is an organisational milestone, rather than the moment cricket first arrived in India. The same account traces earlier clubs, tours and players who helped establish the game.

Men’s and women’s cricket belong in the picture. Understanding overs, wickets and the target makes a match easier to follow; learning a format’s length helps explain why the pace and tactics change.

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2. Football

Football’s Indian story includes community clubs, domestic competitions and national teams, as well as supporters who follow overseas leagues. Watching a European club does not necessarily mean following the Indian league or playing locally.

The All India Football Federation’s foundation-day history records its formation on 23 June 1937 at the Army Headquarters in Shimla, with representatives from six regional associations. Clubs and competitions already existed before the national body.

For a first match, start with the objective, fouls and offside. Club histories and rivalries then add context to what happens on the pitch.

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3. Kabaddi

Kabaddi centres on the confrontation between a raider and a defending team. A raid combines speed, touch, escape and tactical risk, while successful defence relies on timing and coordination. Understanding when a player is out or revived helps make the changing numbers on court easier to read.

The professional league is much younger than the game itself. Pro Kabaddi’s official champions archive records an inaugural 2014 season with eight teams, won by the Jaipur Pink Panthers. The league provides a clear entry point for viewers.

Different formats have their own playing conditions. Use the relevant competition’s rules when comparing a televised indoor match with another version of the game.

4. Badminton

Badminton connects a familiar racket-and-shuttle game with a demanding competitive sport. Singles and doubles reward different court coverage and partnerships, while indoor conditions allow the shuttle’s movement to become part of the tactical contest.

A landmark came in 2022, when India’s men won the Thomas Cup for the first time, defeating Indonesia in Bangkok. The Sports Ministry’s 2022 year-end review records that achievement and identifies it as a men’s team championship; it should not be confused with the women’s Uber Cup.

Learning the service courts and rally scoring gives a beginner a useful foundation for both playing and watching.

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5. Field Hockey

Hockey occupies a distinctive place in India’s sporting history. This is field hockey, played with sticks and a ball, rather than ice hockey. Passing combinations, movement into space and penalty corners offer useful starting points for a new viewer.

The International Hockey Federation’s Olympic history records eight Olympic gold medals for India’s men between 1928 and 1980. That record helps explain the sport’s historic standing.

Women’s hockey and local competition also form part of the game.

6. Wrestling

Wrestling brings a tradition of grappling into a regulated contest built around control, position and scoring. Different styles allow different techniques, so identifying the discipline is an essential first step before interpreting a result.

One modern milestone was Sushil Kumar’s 2010 world title. United World Wrestling’s historical review identifies him as the first Indian wrestler to win a world championship.

For beginners, a supervised club offers the right setting to learn the sport. Match viewers can begin with the scoring actions and the difference between a points win and a fall.

7. Tennis

Tennis combines club and recreational play with professional singles, doubles and national-team competition. It offers a different rhythm from the team sports above: each point is a small contest within a game, set and match.

The All India Tennis Association’s history dates the formation of the All India Lawn Tennis Association to March 1920 in Lahore, then part of British India. Naming that historical setting avoids presenting the location as being within India’s current borders.

Service order, the scoring sequence and the boundaries for singles or doubles are useful first lessons before moving on to tactics.

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8. Athletics

Athletics covers running, jumping, throwing and combined events. It is a family of disciplines rather than a single game, so a javelin result and a recreational running habit answer very different sporting questions.

At Tokyo 2020, held in 2021, Neeraj Chopra won the men’s javelin with 87.58 metres. World Athletics’ competition report records the performance as India’s first Olympic gold in athletics.

A first-time viewer can choose one event, learn how performances are measured and then explore the wider programme.

Other Sports and Activities

India’s sporting landscape also includes swimming, cycling, volleyball, basketball, table tennis, boxing, shooting and kho-kho. Chess has a distinct place in the country’s competitive culture too. Access to facilities, coaching and a suitable local group can matter more to an individual beginner than a national popularity list.

Browse the sports encyclopaedia or beginner guides to choose another sport to explore.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is hockey officially India’s national sport?

Hockey’s historic status is often confused with an official designation. A Sports Ministry answer published in December 2012 stated that no discipline had been given national-game status. This guide treats popularity, Olympic achievement and official designation as separate questions.

Does the table include rural India?

The source describes the audience as urban Indians, so these figures should not be extended to rural communities. They are also older than this guide’s publication date.

Which sport should a beginner try?

Start with a sport you enjoy and can access locally. Look for appropriate instruction and facilities, then use the linked guides to learn the basics. A follower percentage does not tell you which sport will suit you best.

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