I know that soccer is popular in Western Europe and Australia, but I was highlighting the reason for its popularity in most of the world, especially poor countries.
For instance, while staying overseas, I have taught Latin American children to play American football, and the kids loved the game. Nevertheless, they ended up playing soccer most of the time because they lacked access to the football logistics necessary to organize school and neighborhood teams.
Most of those kids still follow American football on satellite TV and occasionally send me letters thanking me for teaching them football.