TVSquad

How about the Tour De France? OLN had done a great job the past few years showing one of the greatest sporting events in the world in a very dramatic and enjoyable way.

And the CBS recap shows on the Sundays during Le Tour are always enjoyable.

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I think that Soccer is a very entertaining sport to watch on TV because there are on time-outs and no commercial breaks! (except halftime) When the World Cup was on, I could not look away. It definitely should have made the list.

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I have to agree with tennis and hockey - you can't beat the replays and commentary - but I must add that seeing either of those live (if you have great seats, of course) is unbeatable. The enthusiasm of the crowd more than makes up for what you might miss without the replays or the camera angles. Plus you see what they don't show you on TV, such as the warm-up (more interesting than you might think!).

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Worst sports? I bet you'll list soccer on that list. Gah! It's so frustrating that the sport never caught on in the States; and when it is on TV, the coverage/announcing sucks. I find it to be one of the most intriguing sports to watch because of the sheer athleticism (these guys are running the WHOLE time), the creative plays, and the diplomacy (fouls/free kicks/etc). It's one of the few sports that I can watch a whole game of, and either be completely into it if the stakes are high and the teams are good, or have it on in the background and glance over to see some great plays. I would have put it on that list, probably instead of poker or hockey.

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I actually think hockey is horrible to watch on TV, unless its in HD. Following the puck is difficult, the camera angles are poor and only the best camera men can track the puck well. I'm a huge baseball fan (I go to 30+ Twins games a year), but I think hockey is more exciting to watch in person than any other sport I've attended.

I would actually contend that soccer is a great sport for TV. Bill Simmons talked about this a few articles ago (can't seem to find it now). The announcers are generally unobtrusive, the camera angle is straightforward, scoring opportunities take enough time to develop so you're likely not to miss any (since the excitement in the announcers' voices slowly builds) and the match lengths are generally set. You know when a game is going to start and when it will end.

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Something tells me, as much as I love watching baseball on TV, I love listening to it on the radio slightly more. I can't quite explain it. It's just almost magical to listen to a game in the same conditions you used to describe watching one.

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baseball?!? i cannot stand watching baseball on tv. and all my friends who are baseball fans tell me i have to go watch it live because tv doesn't do it justice (i've yet to go).

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Henry, I agree with you on listening to baseball on the radio. I think baseball TV broadcasts try to sensationalize everything too much. On the radio, they have to tell you just what happened. There's no room for anything else. In that sense, there's a purity to listening to baseball on the radio. Numerous times I've wanted to watch a baseball game on a muted TV with the radio going. The delay on my satellite never really allowed this though.

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how can this list be so wrong? football was meant for TV. Its played (atleast north of the mason-dixon) for more than half the time in the freezing cold and tickets cost atleast $100. its also the best sport on the list and its #4!!

Baseball and hockey are amazing in person and less amazing on tv (hockey is actually terrible on tv and slightly less terrible in HD).

An including poker? wow. I'm a big fan of poker (maybe too much, as the swelling and depleting of my bank account sometimes shows) but its no sport. purists or otherwise wouldn't call it sport. not even poker players. its certainly competitive but thats not the definition of sports becuase otherwise art collecting would be a sport.

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given that this is tvsquad, not sportsquad, this list is somewhat excusable. but according to things like ratings, things like hockey, tennis, don't belong anywhere in the top 5 unless maria sharapova is involved. basketball too fast? football too many people? these are the worst excuses ever.

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I'll agree with everything you said about tennis. I mean sure I would LOVE to be able to go to any of the Grand Slams in person, but the thing is watching it on TV is pretty sweet. And yes when the US Open rolls around I'm a happy camper. But then again I also love ESPN2 with their coverage of the other slams.

But I have to disagree about baseball. I mean it's fine watching it on TV, but as you said the pace is pretty slow relatively. I get bored easily. Says the person who watches tennis right? (But tennis is awesome! Hee.) But anyways I don't think anything beats being in the stadium live. I mean the energy of the crowd makes up for the slow pacing of the sport. Plus it's SO MUCH fun yelling at the opposing team.

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You sir are no sports fan. Baseball is a live spectator sport along with hockey. Football was born for TV thus the reason its the number one sport in the United States. Did you forget about a sport called basketball?? To put poker on this list is ridiculous. One sport that should be creeping up is Ultimate Fighting. It is a great television sport that is action packed. If youre going to have someone write an article with this topic, please pick a writer who has some knowledge of sports.

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Let me guess, basketball, soccer, golf and nascar are going to be in the worst list right?

While I would say that golf and nascar are really boring, so are baseball and (especially) poker. I mean, poker is not even a sport! It's just a 'game'. It's not a sport if overly obese people can be good at it. Baseball is waaay too long and has way too many fat people.

I am a foreigner in the US so you could say I am a bit culturally biased, but soccer is the most exciting sport. I watched some of the world cup matches in HD and it was really 'the beautiful game'. Plus soccer matches last about 2 hours max and that is a definite plus. They are also more dynamic (though matches with lots of fouls can be frustrating). I also started enjoying basketball during the last season, but all the timeouts and ads soured the experience a bit. I mean, the game is actually an hour long at most but it drags to more than 3 hours sometimes.

Will agree with you on Tennis. It can be fun to watch, and the TV camera angles are great.

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UFC, Ultimate Fighting is the best sports to watch on TV, since it replaced boxing, and The Ultimate Fighter reality show is the best reality series on TV.

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I forgot to mention curling. Now there is a sport made for TV: the matches are usually about 3 hours long, are played in a freezing cold arena, and only really get exciting near the end. For me, that's perfect for a cold winter day with a few cups of a tea and a bathroom down the hall inside of a 15-minute hike through some corridors.

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I'd agree with many of the commenters about hockey. It is a terrible sport on television. I think that may be part of what keeps it from ever truly living up to that '4th major sport' moniker so many want to hang on it. I think there are a lot of other sports that I would have considered long before hockey.

NASCAR, and auto racing in general, lends itself to television well. There are so many tracks and circuits that just don't allow for the live spectator to see the entire race that the great access of television improves the product.

The Olympics have clearly shown us that figure skating is great televsion. The camera can capture all the action and it has great built in drama with the scoring.

While not for everyone, I love the curling coverage I get from the CBC.

And, as moviegoer suggested, UFC is a great televised sport. The matches are a television friendly length, and there is all kinds of excitement. Best of all, it doesn't have the baggage of boxing. It is rare for a UFC fight to end and it be unclear who actually won. Usually, that guy passed out on the mat with the medical team surrounding him, he lost.

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Maybe it's because I'm a Canadian but I have never understood why Americans don't like Hockey on TV. You hear all this crap about the puck being hard to follow and as I say I just don't get it - it's a piece of black rubber on a sheet of white ice. How is that hard to follow? I have literally been watching Hockey on TV all my life. Maybe the rule should be that Hockey for TV should be shot, produced, announced and packaged for the US market by people who know the game - Canadians. You could start by putting "Hockey Night In Canada" on NBC on Saturdays - it's not like they've got anything better on that night.

Oh and speaking of Poker players you love to hate - Phil Hellmuth won his 10th World Series of Poker bracelet a couple of days ago. He'll be insufferable until Doyle Brunson or Johnny Chan win their 11th.

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golf maybe a boring sport to watch..however when it's in hd its unbeleivable. watching the ball flights and contours of the course help people get a perspective of how truly good these pros are and how hard the courses can get. for people who say that golf shouldn't be a sport..try and play it well.

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I think the best five sports to watch in HD are.

1a. Pro Football or college Football
1b. Pro Baskestball (NBA) 0r college Basketball
3. Pro Baseball or college Baseball
4. World Cup Soccer or Euro Soccer
5a. Nascar
5b Golf only when tiger is in contention.

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Brent, I have to say I agree with your comments about hockey on TV. As an American living in Canada - and now a huge hockey fan - I can say that for me, I never enjoyed the game because I didn't understand the rules. It took moving here and having my Canadian husband explain them to me while watching games for me to really appreciate it. Yes, I lose track of the puck from time to time, and yes, I would much rather go to the games in person, but season tickets are out of our price range so I'm very happy for "Hockey Night in Canada."

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