The National Basketball Association has one of the highest percentages of African American players from the big four professional sports leagues in North America. In 2023, approximately **** percent of NBA players were African American. Meanwhile, ethnically white players constituted a **** percent share of all NBA players that year. After the WNBA and NBA, the National Football League had the largest share of African Americans in a professional sports league in North America. How do other roles in the NBA compare? When it comes to African American representation in the NBA, no other role in the NBA is as well represented by African Americans as players. Meanwhile, on the opposite end of the scale, less than **** percent of team governors in the NBA were African American in 2023. During the 2022/23 season, the role with the second-highest share of African Americans was head coach, with a share of ** percent. That season, the number of African American head coaches in the NBA exceeded the number of white head coaches for the first time. African Americans in the NFL In 2022, the greatest share of players by ethnicity in the NFL were African American, with more than half of all NFL players falling within this group. The representation of African Americans in American Football extended beyond the playing field, with **** percent of NFL assistant coaches being African American in 2022 as well. However, positions such as vice presidents and head coaches were less representative of the African American population, as less than ** percent of the individuals fulfilling these roles in 2022 were African American.

Of the big four professional sports leagues in North America, the NFL and the NBA have the highest percentage of African American players. In 2023, **** percent of NBA players were African American, as well as half of the head coaches within the league.

Professional sports leagues in North America have traditionally been home to athletes from many backgrounds and ethnicities. In the 2023 season, over ** percent of the players in the National Basketball Association (NBA) were African American. In comparison, **** percent of NBA athletes were white and *** percent were Hispanic.

In 2023, over ** percent of players in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) were black or African American. Meanwhile, just *** percent of players in the league identified as Asian.

In 2023, the greatest share of players by ethnic group in the National Football League (NFL) were black or African American athletes, constituting just over ** percent of players within the NFL. Despite the large population of Hispanic or Latino people within the United States, there is a substantial underrepresentation within the NFL, with only *** percent of players identifying as such. National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that was established in 1920 and now consists of 32 clubs divided into two conferences, the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). The league culminates in the Super Bowl, the NFL's annual championship game. As the league’s championship game, the Super Bowl has grown into one of the world's largest single-day sporting events, attracting high television ratings and generating billions of dollars in consumer spending. NFL revenues The NFL is one of the most profitable sports leagues in the world, generating a staggering **** billion U.S. dollars in 2022. This total revenue of all ** NFL teams has constantly increased over the past 15 years and, although this figure dropped significantly in 2020, this was largely as a result of the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) containment measures. This significant drop in revenue demonstrates one of the primary impacts of COVID-19 on professional sports leagues. NFL franchises As a result of this profitability in non-pandemic times, the franchises of the NFL are attributed extremely high market values. The Dallas Cowboys were by far the most valuable franchise in the NFL, with a market value of **** billion US dollars in 2023. The high value of NFL franchises can be seen clearly when compared to those of the NBA, MLB, and NHL. Franchises within the NFL had an average market value of approximately *** billion U.S. dollars in 2023.

Stephen Curry was the top-earning player in the National Basketball Association (NBA) between May 2024 and 2025, with on court earnings of 56 million U.S. dollars and endorsements worth 100 million U.S. dollars. Trailing the legendary point guard was another basketball icon, LeBron James, with total earnings of 133.8 million U.S. dollars. NBA revenue streams Players in the NBA have two main sources of revenue: salaries from the team, and endorsements from companies and brands. NBA players not only have deals with sports brands such as Nike and Adidas, but also with consumer products such as Coca-Cola, Panini, Kia Motors, and Red Bull, to name a few. Shoe deals are particularly profitable for NBA players. Michael Jordan, for example, still profits from endorsements, as his signature Air Jordan shoes have a large share of the basketball shoe market. King James reigns supreme Although Steph Curry earned more in 2024/25, LeBron James remained the NBA player with the highest cumulative career earnings as of May 2025, with over half a billion U.S. dollars in on-court earnings. As a four-time MVP winner and the NBA's all-time highest scorer, James' earnings have certainly been backed up by his on-court performances.

Of the big four professional sports leagues in North America, the NFL and the NBA have the highest percentage of African American players. In 2024, around **** percent of NFL players were African American, as well as around **** percent of assistant coaches.

As of May 2025, Diana Taurasi was the all-time leading points scorer in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), having amassed 10,646 points in her career. In second place was Tina Charles, with 7,739 points. Diana Taurasi and the Phoenix Mercury Diana Taurasi professional playing career started when she was the first overall pick in the WNBA Draft for Phoenix Mercury in 2004. She won three WNBA championships with the franchise, the most recent in 2014. As a recipient of many league honors, including the WNBA Rookie of the Year Award (2004), the WNBA Most Valuable Player Award (2009), and one of the WNBA Top 15 Players of All Time (2011), Taurasi is considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time. Nicknamed the “White Mamba” by one of the NBA's top scorers Kobe Bryant, who himself was known as the “Black Mamba”, Taurasi achieved the highest number of WNBA points scored in history when she surpassed Tina Thompson’s record in 2017. Who are other leading players in the WNBA? In addition to Diana Taurasi, the WNBA is home to many other successful basketball players. Sue Bird, who was the first draft pick of the Seattle Storm in 2002 and who played there for 20 years until her retirement in 2022, held the record for the most assists in the WNBA as of May 2025. Bird is also considered one of the greatest WNBA players of all time, and won four WNBA championships with the Seattle Storm. In terms of all time steals leaders in the WNBA, the record goes to former WNBA player Tamika Catchings, who played for 15 years with the Indiana Fever and amassed a total of over 1,000 steals. Meanwhile, Ticha Penicheiro, who also played for 15 years on three different WNBA teams, is the second-highest ranked WNBA player of all time in terms of assists, and the third-highest in steals. Most of Penicheiro’s career was played with the Sacramento Monarchs, an WNBA team that was in operation from 1997 until 2009.

In a survey conducted in March 2023 in the United States, ** percent of Black respondents were casual fans of the WNBA. Since its inception in 1997, the Women’s National Basketball Association has forged a strong fanbase both in the United States as well as abroad. Individuals aged between 18 and 34 make up the highest share of avid and casual fans, compared to the ** to ** age group, for instance, in which ** percent of survey participants indicated that they were not a fan of the professional sports league. Additionally, when it came to the level of interest in the WNBA by gender, the WNBA was found to be more popular amongst males than females, with ** percent of the former indicating they were avid fans of the league whereas just **** percent of females indicated the same.

College sports are very popular in the United States and the championships are organized in divisions around different sports sanctioned mainly by the NCAA, the largest college sports organization. In 2022, an estimated **** percent of male student athletes in United States were white, while **** percent were African American.

College sports are very popular in the United Stated and the championships are organized in divisions around different sports sanctioned mainly by the NCAA, the largest college sports organization. In 2022, almost ** percent of female student athletes in United States were white, while *** percent were African American.