&gt; Anecdotally, I would assert sports (NFL, NBA, futbol&#x2F; soccer) seem to be growing more popular to every day people.<p>Are they? As average IQ continues to rise (the Flynn Effect), I would expect to see fewer and fewer people being as heavily devoted to sports as previously, not because sports fans are stupid, but because intelligent people are capable of enjoying more than just sports. The folks in my D&amp;D game like to talk about the game sometimes, but they have other fun things in their lives too.