Football: Why Is It So Popular Today?

823 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: History of football short essay

Understanding football is the main course into knowing why it is so popular. Many other sports do not compare to the impact football has on players and on the fans of its kind. We live in a world that is so diverse and any entertainment comes to us natural. Gambling seems to be the most entertainment is our human society today. We long for Gladiator type sports and games for public entertainment.
To get a better understanding on why football is popular today, we must first look back on the history of the sport.
The first vestiges of what would become American football are found in the 19th century in the games played by students at the elite schools and universities of the United States. A particularly violent running game was played at Princeton University circa 1820, and around this time a kicking game was also being played by students of Dartmouth College. Rules for the Dartmouth game, known as “Old Division Football”, were published in 1871. The first running game to codify its rules was the popular English sport, rugby, and it did so in 1845 (“A Brief History of Football” para.2). Today the NFL has the highest attendance of any other sport in America. Over the years it has grown to astronomical proportions and keeps growing every day. According to the Encyclopedia of International Sports Studies, the overall annual attendance increased from three million at the beginning of former Commissioners Pete Roselle’s term 1960, to seventeen million by the end of his tenure in 1989, and 400 million viewers watched 1989’s Super Bowl XXIII (pp. 932–933). Crazy right? Yes, I thought so to. But, if it wasn’t for Pete, I really do not think the NFL would be as popular today.
According to one news reporter, “Unlike most professional spor...

... middle of paper ...

...he gets paid $6 million annually by the state of Louisiana as an inducement not to move his team. Now that was something I didn’t know, makes you think of where your tax dollars are going to. The NFL’s salary cap makes it so that every team, no matter where they are from, are put on an equal playing field (K.,Jack, par.10). Football’s 16-game season is crucial to the success of its business. The one game a week format has made the want for football more prevalent. In business terms its supply and demand. Since the sport has less of a supply of football games, the demand for them goes up (k.par.4) No matter how great one person is if the rest of his team does not make the grade he will never win. SO many different teams and so many different play styles make sure no game is ever the same. All around just an amazing thing to watch. It's the ultimate Team Sport really.

Show More
Related

  • League Of Denial: The NFL

    1033 Words  | 3 Pages

    The longer that football was on television, the more intense the publicity for the NFL became. The Monday Night Football Logo showed to helmets hitting together forcefully, the NFL marketed the violence and captured the tension between violence and the art of football.

    Read More

  • Cost of Glory: The Issues Surrounding Football Injuries

    728 Words  | 2 Pages

    America’s newfound favorite pastime, football, came from a bizarre chain of events. Football started when a soccer player got fed up with just kicking the ball, so he picked up the ball and ran to the goal. His actions of picking up the ball and running with it fathered a new European sport, rugby, which was soon brought over to American shores, and was altered slightly, the shape of the ball and a few other small rules. The sport became organized into a league and produced the NFL(National Football League). The NFL had a slow beginning, but has picked up popularity, currently having a $9 billion yearly revenue.

    Read More

  • XFL Excitment Or Excuse

    841 Words  | 2 Pages

    Football is something as American as apple pie. It is thought of as gritty, physical, and all around fun just as most Americans like to be thought of. For decades the NFL has dominated the world of football. However, Vince McMahon, the founder of the WWF, has introduced a new and controversial professional football league called the XFL. Much of the controversy is about whether the XFL is a force to be reckoned with or just another of McMahon’s clever marketing ploys. Although the XFL’s survival has been questioned by many, it promises to be a league full of the smash-mouth, trash-talking, fan-oriented football every fan deserves.

    Read More

  • Playing Football: Is The NFL Getting Soft?

    1861 Words  | 4 Pages

    Playing football comes with several risks factors that players’ acknowledge prior to playing the game starting a young age. Regardless, these players still chose to play the game, which they end up loving and cherishing despite all the risks accompanied with it. Football is one of the toughest sports in the world; it takes a certain amount of strength, speed, and aggressiveness to play 48 minutes of hard-nosed football. However, the National Football League (NFL) is in the midst of a controversial issue. Is the NFL getting soft? This has been a debatable issue for several years. While some believe that implementing all these rules in the NFL is progressively turning the game soft, others say that the NFL is not getting soft; it is just trying to make the game safer for its players.

    Read More

  • Soccer is an Unappriciated Sport in North America

    1018 Words  | 3 Pages

    Football is the most popular sport in the world. It is backed by a long history that's incomparable to other popular sports in the world like basketball, volleyball, and tennis. In fact, two of North America?s favourite sports in American football and rugby were created based on the game we call 'soccer'. So why is it that the original game of football is not as nearly as famous as in North American than any other countries outside our continent? A real good reason for this is because soccer doesn't have a great tradition in North America, unlike other sports such as American football, hockey, or basketball. Also, the cultural difference makes soccer less rampant in North America because many of us can?t seem to be patient enough to watch a sport with no frequent excitement. This mostly involves a preferred team scoring numerous times during a match. There are also plenty of other exciting sports that North Americans love to watch and play. Thus, soccer is put in the middle of the backseat of a crammed van, a place where nobody wants to be in or even pay attention to.

    Read More

  • Head Injuries in High School Football

    1542 Words  | 4 Pages

    American Football is a huge spectator sport where offensive and defensive players will use teamwork and perseverance to try and score more points than their opponent. Football is highly respected in America, where boys will try and pursue the dream of playing in the NFL (National Football Association) someday; but if you look at an average neighborhood, you will find that kids and adults of all ages love to go out and throw around the pigskin. (Lerner and Lerner 275). One thing Americans will take pride in is the college and NFL football teams they root for. People sit down with a beer and talk hours upon hours of football and two individuals can get in a heated discussion in the local sports store of whose sports team is better. Surprisingly enough, one will find the most passionate football players at the high school level. Most boys will start their football career as a young child in football programs such as Pop Warner to get a foothold and to get those involved in teamwork and friendships. These programs are usually the start to someone falling in love with the sport and making it a career choice eight years later. Football is one of America’s favorite sports. When fall season comes around, people across America are placing bets, finding out where that new sports bar is, and buying wide screen T.V’s to watch NFL on Sundays. After their team plays, they will go out and reminisce what happened that Sunday. While thousands of fans are still pumped from the NFL games they watched; small towns across America are getting ready to shut down their shops and restaurants to have the chance to make it to the local high schools football game. Ray Glier, a reporter for the New York Times, writes about football in the small town of Appala...

    Read More

  • Speech Persuasive Speech On Concussions

    1084 Words  | 3 Pages

    I. Attention Getter: Football, specifically the NFL, is the most watched sport in America. It attracts an audience by being a game of high intensity and big plays. But the harsh reality of football is the dangerous head injuries.

    Read More

  • History of Football: Walter Camp

    961 Words  | 2 Pages

    How football began, the first American football game was played on November 6, 1869. The Rutgers vs. Princeton played the first game (Bennett). Walter Camp introduced the line of scrimmage and down and distance (Bennett). The first professional “league” was the Ohio League (Bennett). The American Football League (AFL) started in 1960 (Bennett). The first Super Bowl was in 1967 and the Green Bay Packers defeated the Kansas City Chief (Brooks and King). The Houston Oilers defeated the Los Angles Charges in the first AFL championship (Brooks and King). Considered one of the greatest coaches, Vince Lombardi, died from cancer on September 3, 1970 at the age of 57 (Brooks and King). Seven days after Lombardi’s death, the National Football League honored him with the name of the Super Bowl trophy (Brooks and King). Franco Harris made the “Immaculate Reception” which lead to the first Pittsburgh Steelers victory for them (Brooks and King). In the 1970’s the Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls (Brooks and King). In 1978 the National Football League moved from 14 games a season to 16 games (Brooks and King). O.J. Simpson is the first player to rush over 2,000 yards (Brooks and King). In 1981 Ronald Regan said “Football is the last thing left in civilization where men can lite...

    Read More

  • The National Football League ( Nfl )

    1307 Words  | 3 Pages

    The National Football League (NFL) has been a staple on Sunday’s in America homes for quiet sometime. It provides excitement and generates billion’s of dollars, but what I told you that this league may lose viewers or even not exist in a few years. The NFL is a great brand, but what is potentially going up against may have you scratching your head as a parent to let your child even take a snap early in his football career if not taken care of.

    Read More

  • The Dangers of Playing American Football

    709 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...o be a major part of life; but the hopes are that many things about football are changed in order to make the sport safer for everyone.

    Read More

  • Soccer Vs Football Compare And Contrast

    714 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the world of sport, soccer and football with respect to demographic has had numerous controversies. Although both sport are known famously around the globe, for many years fans from both sides are known for asking, is American football same as soccer? What’s the time limit on both sports? What’s the game objective? Do they use the same ball? However they both have similarities and differences which I will be talking about in this essay.

    Read More

  • How the Super Bowl Affects Society

    1728 Words  | 4 Pages

    Sports affect major institutions of society, including the mass media, politics, religion, education, and family. The Super Bowl gathers thousands of viewer’s attention, including those who do not usually watch the regular season games. Football is by all means an American sport. Since the day a baby is born in America, whether it be a boy or a girl, one of the first words they learn to say is ball, and after a few months they add the word foot in front of the word ball, and by the time you know it your baby boy is playing football, and your little girl is cheering “Go Steeler’s go!” and without intention their cultural identity starts.

    Read More

  • History of American Football

    1537 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the modern day United States the sport American football has become not only entertainment but also a tradition whether it’s watching the BCS college championship or watching the super bowl with the family. The sport of American football is unique to the United States and has grown and became iconic over the years and has become a part of many Americans lives. American Football was made in 1869 and was modeled after the sport of rugby. They took the basics of rugby and changed it to make it fit better for them. The game has changed over the years but it also affected many Americans as the tradition of Monday Night football has begun. The game has had problems with the United States government as it was said to be too dangerous to play, this lead to an upgrade in the equipment and they tried very hard to make the equipment well ensuring player safety throughout the sport.

    Read More

  • Soccer: The World's Sport

    963 Words  | 2 Pages

    Owens, Thomas and Helmer, Diana Star. The History of Soccer. New York: The New York Times. Rosen Publishing Group, Power Kids Press, 2000.

    Read More

  • How to Play Football Soccer

    1430 Words  | 3 Pages

    12. No Christian End! The Beginnings of Football in America. Professional Football Researchers Association, 2012.

    Read More

More about Football: Why Is It So Popular Today?

Open Document