He was popularized BEFORE he was champion because he was originally a young chess prodigy and, because we were at the peak of the Cold War, the American people saw Bobby as their Knight fighting the evil Soviet Empire and their Grandmasters who allegedly cheated to keep non-Soviets out of the championship cycle.
Note that a century before Fischer, Paul Morphy was recognized as the undisputed greatest player in the world, though official Wold Championship matches didn't exist yet.
I'm not sure what the point of this post is other than to start yet another 500-comment long thread with no conclusion. None of Fischer's popularity seems out of the normal. Non-Americans seem to be the ones obsessed with bringing him up and discrediting him. He was an inventive player, with an incredibly intriguing personality. And like all current champions/challengers, he reignited interest in the game with his home country. Fischer was popular because he was the champion and never has there been so much drama surrounding a championship match and chess career. He also brought a ton of money to the sport that was never there before. And yet 90% of the threads here about Fischer seem to be from non-Americans who want to start a debate about how Americans are obsessed with him?
As the only player to be successful against the U. S. S. R. during the half-a-century after WWII, I suspect that his over-the-pond popularity was not just a matter of American influence.
How many other players in history managed to pull off a 'clean sweep' in the Candidates matches?
Only two countries I can think of boast more than one world champ, Germany (Steinitz, Lasker) and the USSR/Russia (eight that I can remember). The OP flies a Falkland Islands flag, a little British protectorate that rightfully belongs to Argentina. Tell me OP, because I am old and stupid and have forgotten much, how many world champs has the UK produced, and who are they?
I think Steinitz was Austrian.
I think Steinitz was Austrian.
Hitler was Austrian too. Most people here in Oregon only care about the distinction when we source replacement parts for Mercedeses and BMWs. Pulpofeira, I read your message about the jamon Iberico embargo; we in Oregon and Palo Alto too still have prosciutto from Parma and San Daniele to eat, as well as our own fine American pigs.
Look up.