I've never really given a flip about "popular" sports, and especially not about the made-for-media circus that is most sports in the US of A. I remember coming here from Denmark in 1981 and learning within a few months that the reason there was zero interest in soccer here was that you can't have something go for 45 minutes straight without a break for commercials.
Let's face it, we live in a world that's largely designed to UN-train us from any semblance or desire to have independent thought.