I've been playing Magic since before high school when it first started. I can tell you it was extremely popular bacಌk then, in fact there were multiple brick and mortar stores just in my area dedicated exclusively to Magic cards.

That being said is it as popular now? I have a hard time believing they sell more than pokemon at this moment. But I wi𓂃ll say that it probably does have more "playe෴rs" than pokemon. It seems like no one actually plays the pokemon TCG, it's all just about the collection. Hell even in the pocket edition, where it's safe to actually play with your rare cards unlike the real world, battling feels like an afterthought. MTG on the other hand you can find a thriving community and frequent tournaments in most cities.