NBA vs. NFL: Which Lockout Will Affect America More?

Professional sports fans have never seen rainier days. Not only is in the 2011 NFL season in jeopardy, but now the NBA has officially begun its own lockout.

These are the two most popular sports in the United States. Who is going to experience the worst symptoms of sports withdrawal? Basketball fans or football fans?

This curious investigator decided to look into some statistics for you. Hopefully, these tidbits of information will reveal which fans you will not want to hang out with this year.

Average Attendance:

In 2010, the NFL played 256 regular-season games. That same year, the NBA played 1,230 regular-season contests.

Despite the disparity in games played, total attendance for NBA teams beat out NFL attendance by just over four million. Glimpsing at ESPN's statistics shows that the NFL easily outpaces the NBA in percentage of attendance.

Therefore, it goes without saying that the NFL proportionally has more seats filled than the NBA. 

Average Viewership of the NBA Finals/Super Bowl:

The 2011 NBA Finals, one of the most-watched series in years, got an average of 17.3 million views over the six games. A lot, right?

Considering the Green Bay vs. Pittsburgh Super Bowl this February garnered an audience of 111 million people, it's not much of a comparison. This year's Super Bowl was the most-watched television program in American history. Even the total number of viewers for six NBA Finals games is less than the amount of people who watched the Super Bowl.

Another victory for the NFL!

Average Viewership for the Playoffs:

The most revealing time, when people's true sports allegiances come out, is during the playoffs. Sure, championship games are important. On the other hand, many people watch these sporting events to stay "culturally informed."

Therefore, more stock should be put in the viewership for the entire playoffs, instead of just one game or series. An average of 5.5 million viewers watched the 2011 NBA playoffs on TNT, while an average of 40.3 million watched the NFL playoffs on CBS.

Conclusion: Clearly, the NFL lockout is going to hurt people more. Doctor's orders: if the lockout keeps on going, take out your old NFL games and simulate a season. Be sure to play every Monday night! It's going to be a long fall...