Brandwave

NHL vs Premier League:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, Premier League had more branded searches than NHL among sports leagues worldwide. Premier League had about 83.1 million branded searches, while NHL had 5 million. Premier League made up 33.1% of all sports league searches we track, and NHL accounted for 2%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about sports leagues, NHL appeared in all four answers and Premier League in two. NHL was mentioned before Premier League in three out of four answers.

Among sports leagues worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

Premier League, about 17 searches for every 1 for NHL

Premier League 83.1M searchesNHL 5M searches

Who does AI mention more?

NHL, mentioned in every answer we collected

NHL in 4 of 4Premier League in 2 of 4

Who does AI recommend more?

NHL, named ahead of Premier League in 3 of 4 answers

NHL first in 3Premier League first in 1

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Top sports leagues in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, NHL appeared in all four answers. Premier League was mentioned in two out of four: in two of the three ChatGPT answers, but not in the Google AI Overview. NHL was listed before Premier League in three out of four answers.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. NBA1st
  2. NFL2nd
  3. MLB3rd
  4. NHL4th
  5. Premier League5th
  6. MLS6th
  7. AFL–

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • NFL4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • MLB4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • NBA4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • NHL4 of 4Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • Premier League2 of 4Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers
  • MLS2 of 4Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 1 Google answers
  • AFL0 of 4Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 1 Google answers

See every answer about sports leagues

4 answers

  • Asked ChatGPT

    “Which sports league should I go to?”

    1. 1NBA
    2. 2NFL
    3. 3NHL
    4. 4MLB
    5. 5MLS

  • Asked ChatGPT

    “What are the best sports leagues?”

    1. 1Premier League
    2. 2NBA
    3. 3NFL
    4. 4NHL
    5. 5MLB

  • Asked ChatGPT

    “What's the best sports league for a team to follow?”

    1. 1NFL
    2. 2NBA
    3. 3MLB
    4. 4NHL
    5. 5Premier League

  • Searched Google, AI Overview

    “sports leagues”

    1. 1NFL
    2. 2NBA
    3. 3MLB
    4. 4NHL
    5. 5MLS

  • Searched Google, AI Overview

    “football league table”

    Google showed no AI Overview for this search.

Not named in any answer:

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 19, 2026.

Is NHL or Premier League more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for NHL and Premier League by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all seven sports leagues we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

NHL and Premier League among sports leagues worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for Premier League, NHL. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthNFLPremier LeagueMLBAFLNBANHLMLS
Oct 202528.4%19.1%28.4%0.34%19.1%4.7%0.1%
Nov 202536.2%24.3%4.8%0.2%29.5%4.8%0.09%
Dec 202533.5%33.5%1.1%0.12%27.3%4.5%0.03%
Jan 202640%26.8%0.89%0.12%26.8%5.4%0.01%
Feb 20267.8%47.3%1.9%0.47%38.9%3.5%0.04%
Mar 20263.2%36%7.2%2.6%43.7%7.2%0.06%
Apr 20261.5%29.7%13.4%2.2%44.3%8.9%0.04%
May 20260.92%27.8%10.2%2%50.7%8.3%0.05%
Jun 20262.4%3%22.3%3.7%60.5%8.1%0.04%
Jul 20264.8%8.8%53.3%10.7%19.5%2.6%0.29%
Aug 202617.3%38.6%31.6%6.3%5.2%0.85%0.17%
Sep 202640.2%33.1%18.1%3.6%3%2%0.08%

How has the NHL and Premier League comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings
  • The lead changed hands 2 times in the 12 months ending September 2026: NHL took it in June 2026, Premier League took it in July 2026.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, NHL’s share of searches among sports leagues worldwide moved from 4.7% to 2%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 16.6M to 5M.
  • Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Premier League’s share of searches among sports leagues worldwide moved from 19.1% to 33.1%, and its estimated monthly branded searches moved from 68M to 83.1M.

How did search popularity change for sports leagues worldwide in September 2026?

3 changes

  1. In September 2026, NFL overtook Premier League and MLB to become the leader among sports leagues worldwide, with 40.2% of the searches.

  2. In September 2026, NHL gained share of searches among sports leagues worldwide, from 0.85% to 2%.

  3. In September 2026, Premier League lost share of searches among sports leagues worldwide, from 38.6% to 33.1%.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using NHL’s and Premier League’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

NHL

1 branded search term

  • nhl

Premier League

1 branded search term

  • premier league

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among sports leagues

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