Soccer leads Russia, ahead of Ice Hockey and Boxing. Ranking of 15 sports.
This page ranks the sports of Russia by the evidence behind each one, because no single measured national total for club members, licenses, or a population survey was confirmed for Russia in this run, so the ranking below rests on documented recognition, organizational reach, and competitive record rather than one comparable count. The figures come from Ministry of Sport of the Russian Federation.
Soccer is on top, followed by Ice Hockey and Boxing. The full table below covers 15 sports, and every section further down names the source for the figure it uses.
The Most Popular Sports in Russia
The table counts evidence, not people who say they like a sport. It is the figure that is published the same way for every sport in the list, which is what makes the rows comparable. The reference year is 2024.
| # | Sport | Basis for the placing |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soccer | The Russian Football Union governs the men’s and women’s national teams and the country’s professional league system, and soccer draws the largest television and stadium audiences |
| 2 | Ice Hockey | The Ice Hockey Federation of Russia oversees the Kontinental Hockey League and the national team, and ice hockey carries deep cultural weight from the Soviet era’s international do |
| 3 | Boxing | Boxing is listed among the sports recognized and funded by the Ministry of Sport, and Russian boxers have a long record of Olympic and world amateur titles. |
| 4 | Athletics | Track and field is one of the Olympic sports the Ministry of Sport lists among nationally funded disciplines, with a long record of Soviet and Russian medalists across running, jum |
| 5 | Basketball | Basketball is organized nationally with a men’s and women’s league system, and the Russian national teams have historically reached Olympic and European finals. |
| 6 | Volleyball | Volleyball is organized nationally with a men’s and women’s Super League, and the men’s national team has won multiple Olympic and world titles since the Soviet period. |
| 7 | Swimming | Swimming is a nationally funded Olympic sport with organized club and school programs, and Russian swimmers have won Olympic titles across sprint and distance events. |
| 8 | Wrestling | Freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling are among the sports with the deepest Olympic medal record for Russia, continuing a Soviet era tradition of national training centers. |
| 9 | Judo | Judo is a nationally organized Olympic combat sport in Russia, with the Judo Federation of Russia running the national team and domestic championship system. |
| 10 | Sambo | Sambo is a combat sport that originated in the Soviet Union and is promoted by the Ministry of Sport as a nationally significant discipline with its own federation and championship |
| 11 | Figure Skating | Figure skating is a nationally prominent winter sport in Russia, with a training system that has produced a long run of Olympic and world champions across singles and pairs. |
| 12 | Biathlon | Biathlon is a winter sport with strong regional followings in Russia, organized nationally with its own federation and a long Soviet and Russian Olympic medal record. |
| 13 | Cross-Country Skiing | Cross country skiing is organized nationally as a winter sport with deep regional participation, particularly in Siberia and the Urals, and a long Olympic medal history. |
| 14 | Tennis | Tennis has grown in organized participation in Russia since the 2000s, backed by a national federation and academies that have produced multiple Grand Slam champions. |
| 15 | Chess | Chess is registered as an official sport in Russia under the Ministry of Sport, with a national federation, ranking system, and a long history of Soviet and Russian world champions |
Is There a National Sport of Russia?
Russia has no national sport laid down by law or by government decision. Russia has no sport designated as the national sport by law or government decree.
- Ice Hockey. Ice hockey is often treated as a de facto national sport because of its central place in Soviet and Russian sporting identity and its long record of international titles.
- Soccer. Soccer is treated as a de facto national sport because of its size as the most widely played and watched team sport in the country.
Sports That Were Invented in Russia
- Sambo. Sambo was developed in the Soviet Union in the 1920s and 1930s, combining elements of judo and traditional wrestling styles from across the country.
#1 Soccer
- Governing body: Russian Football Union
- Top national league: Russian Premier League
- Best known athlete: Igor Akinfeev. Longtime goalkeeper for CSKA Moscow and the Russian national team, holder of the record for most caps for the Russian national side
Soccer is the sport with the broadest participation base in Russia, organized nationally by the Russian Football Union and played at every level from schoolyards to the Russian Premier League.
CSKA Moscow, Spartak Moscow, and Zenit Saint Petersburg are among the clubs that draw the largest crowds, and the national team’s matches remain the most watched sporting events in the country.
Latest Posts about Soccer
#2 Ice Hockey
- Governing body: Ice Hockey Federation of Russia
- Top national league: Kontinental Hockey League
- Best known athlete: Alexander Ovechkin. NHL forward for the Washington Capitals who became the league’s all time leading goal scorer, a milestone reached during the 2024-25 season
Ice hockey ranks close behind soccer in national attention, with the Kontinental Hockey League built as a top level domestic competition spanning Russia and neighboring countries.
The sport’s status was built on the Soviet and Russian national team’s long record of world and Olympic titles, and it remains a primary route for Russian players into the NHL.
Latest Posts about Ice Hockey
#3 Boxing
- Governing body: Russian Boxing Federation
- Best known athlete: Dmitry Bivol. Light heavyweight professional boxer who has held a world title belt and remained unbeaten across a run of world championship bouts
Boxing has a long organized tradition in Russia, with regional and national federations feeding fighters into both the Olympic amateur system and professional world title bouts.
Russian boxers have repeatedly reached Olympic finals in the amateur ranks, and several have gone on to hold professional world titles internationally.
Latest Posts about Boxing
#4 Athletics
- Governing body: Russian Athletics Federation
- Best known athlete: Yelena Isinbayeva. Pole vaulter who won Olympic gold in 2004 and 2008 and repeatedly broke the world record over her career
Athletics has a deep competitive tradition in Russia, built on Soviet era training systems that produced generations of Olympic medalists across sprinting, jumping, and throwing disciplines.
National championships and youth development programs continue to feed athletes toward international competition despite disruptions to the sport’s international standing in recent years.
Latest Posts about Athletics
#5 Basketball
- Governing body: Russian Basketball Federation
- Top national league: VTB United League
- Best known athlete: Andrei Kirilenko. Forward who played over a decade in the NBA for the Utah Jazz and was later named Most Valuable Player of the EuroLeague
Basketball is played widely in Russian schools and clubs, with the VTB United League serving as the top domestic competition and drawing clubs from several neighboring countries.
The men’s national team won the 2007 European Championship, and several Russian players have gone on to careers in the NBA and top European leagues.
Latest Posts about Basketball
#6 Volleyball
- Governing body: Russian Volleyball Federation
- Top national league: Super League
- Best known athlete: Dmitriy Muserskiy. Middle blocker on the men’s national team that won Olympic gold at the 2012 London Games
Volleyball has been a major Olympic sport for Russia since the Soviet period, when the men’s and women’s national teams repeatedly reached Olympic finals.
Domestic clubs compete in the Super League, and the men’s team’s 2012 Olympic title remains a reference point for the sport’s standing in the country.
Latest Posts about Volleyball
#7 Swimming
- Governing body: All-Russian Swimming Federation
- Best known athlete: Alexander Popov. Sprint freestyle swimmer who won four Olympic gold medals across the 1992, 1996, and later Games and set world records in the 50 and 100 meter freestyle
Swimming is taught widely through school and club programs, with regional centers feeding swimmers toward national championships and international competition.
Russian swimmers built a strong Olympic record from the 1990s onward, led by sprint specialists who set world records in freestyle events.
Latest Posts about Swimming
#8 Wrestling
- Governing body: Russian Wrestling Federation
- Best known athlete: Alexander Karelin. Greco-Roman wrestler who won Olympic gold in 1988, 1992, and 1996 and went unbeaten in international competition for over a decade
Wrestling in both the Greco-Roman and freestyle disciplines has one of the longest organized traditions in Russia, rooted in regional training schools built during the Soviet period.
The sport has produced a long line of Olympic and world champions, and it remains a core part of the country’s Olympic sport funding structure.
Latest Posts about Wrestling
#9 Judo
- Governing body: Judo Federation of Russia
- Best known athlete: Tagir Khaibulaev. Heavyweight judoka who won Olympic gold at the 2012 London Games
Judo has grown into a well funded Olympic sport in Russia, supported by a national club network and youth development programs across multiple weight classes.
Russian judoka have reached Olympic and world championship finals across both the men’s and women’s divisions in recent decades.
Latest Posts about Judo
#10 Sambo
- Governing body: All-Russian Sambo Federation
- Best known athlete: Fedor Emelianenko. Multiple time sambo world champion who also became one of the sport’s best known figures through his mixed martial arts career
Sambo holds a distinct place in Russian sport as a discipline developed domestically, combining elements of wrestling and judo into its own competitive system.
The All-Russian Sambo Federation runs national championships, and the sport is closely tied to Russia’s broader combat sports training infrastructure.
#11 Figure Skating
- Governing body: Figure Skating Federation of Russia
- Best known athlete: Evgeni Plushenko. Men’s singles skater who won Olympic gold in 2006 and Olympic silver in 2002 and 2010, alongside multiple world titles
Figure skating draws heavy television attention in Russia, especially around national championships and the Winter Olympics, where the country has a long medal record.
Specialized skating schools in Moscow and Saint Petersburg have produced generations of Olympic and world champions in singles, pairs, and ice dance.
Latest Posts about Figure Skating
#12 Biathlon
- Governing body: Union of Biathlon Federations of Russia
- Best known athlete: Alexander Tikhonov. Biathlete who won four consecutive Olympic gold medals in the relay from 1968 to 1980 for the Soviet Union
Biathlon combines cross country skiing and rifle shooting and has a strong following in Russia’s northern and Siberian regions where winter sport infrastructure is well established.
The national federation runs a domestic circuit that feeds athletes toward the Biathlon World Cup and the Winter Olympics.
#13 Cross-Country Skiing
- Governing body: Cross-Country Skiing Federation of Russia
- Best known athlete: Elena Vyalbe. Cross country skier who won multiple world championship titles in the 1990s and later became head of the national cross country skiing federation
Cross country skiing is practiced widely across Russia’s colder regions, supported by school and club programs that have produced a long line of Olympic and world champions.
The sport’s domestic season culminates in national championships that feed the country’s teams into the FIS World Cup circuit.
#14 Tennis
- Governing body: Tennis Federation of Russia
- Best known athlete: Daniil Medvedev. Men’s professional player who reached the ATP world number one ranking and won the 2021 US Open singles title
Tennis has expanded steadily in Russia since the 2000s, with private academies and the national federation developing players who compete at the top of the professional tours.
Russian men’s and women’s players have repeatedly reached Grand Slam finals and held the world number one ranking in recent seasons.
Latest Posts about Tennis
#15 Chess
- Governing body: Chess Federation of Russia
- Best known athlete: Garry Kasparov. World chess champion from 1985 to 2000, widely regarded as one of the strongest players in the sport’s history
Chess is classified as an official sport in Russia, with a national ranking structure and a federation that runs championships from youth through elite adult level.
The country’s dominance of the world championship through most of the twentieth century built a training and club system that continues to produce top ranked players.
Sources
Figures on this page come from national federations and statistics offices and are only as current as their latest published report. Last reviewed: August 2026.
FAQ
What is the national sport of Russia?
Russia has no sport legally designated as its national sport. Ice hockey and soccer are the two most commonly treated as de facto national sports because of their popularity and international title record.
What is the most popular sport in Russia?
Soccer has the broadest participation base of any sport in Russia, organized nationally by the Russian Football Union through school, club, and professional levels including the Russian Premier League.
What are the most popular sports in Russia?
Soccer and ice hockey lead, followed by boxing, athletics, basketball, volleyball, and swimming, with wrestling, judo, and sambo reflecting Russia’s long tradition in combat sports.
What is the second main sport in Russia?
Ice hockey ranks second, governed by the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia and organized around the Kontinental Hockey League, which built on the Soviet national team’s international success.
What is the fifth main sport in Russia?
Basketball ranks fifth, organized through the Russian Basketball Federation and the VTB United League, with a national team that won the 2007 European Championship.
