National team

Popularity and participation

Popularity of a national team also depends on the popularity of the sport in that country. In some countries a particular sport is very popular and may be a national sport but it does not always mean their national team is the most popular. Also, the national team's own league may be popular but the international competition it competes in is not. For example, the Papua New Guinea national rugby league team (PNGL) is extremely popular because the sport is popular in the country, even though the highest competition it competes in - the Rugby League World Cup - is not. In this case, there are numerous reasons for the lack of popularity of the World cup in Papua New Guinea. One is that the country is relatively small, population 8 million, and the expense of travel around the world to follow their team is too great for most. Another reason is that, because 75% of the professionals in the PNGL are not national citizens and therefore only eligible to play for their home country's national team, the Papua New Guinea National Team is not as successful internationally. Therefore, because the national league is inner territorial and more accessible to residents of Papua New Guinea and because spectators feel more invested and closer to their national town clubs, explains why a country's national sport's National Team may not be the most popular team in said area.