The American football style has developed from a combination of rugby and soccer. Football is much younger and developed only in the nineteenth century. This is one of the most popular sports in the United States. American football attracts millions of spectators and thousands of enthusiastic players.



Football in the US has a culture all its own. In high schools football is the center of much of the student activity; everyone comes out to cheer on their school's team, the homecoming games and dances are almost bigger than prom, and the football quarterback is typically the most popular boy in school. It's almost an institution.

Football rules are fairly complex. Those who don't understand them, or care, can find the game slow moving and boring. On the surface it looks like running and tackling is all the players do, but actually the strategy is difficult and confusing. The coaches and assistants spend years studying offensive and defensive moves that go into making touchdowns. Often they aren't given enough credit for their hard work.

Professional football began way back in 1895 in Pennsylvania. Within the next ten years more teams emerged and colleges started creating football teams as well. The American Football Association formed in 1920, but two years later became known as the National Football League.

Today professional football and the NFL are both very popular and the most well-known players are celebrities in their own right. One of the biggest television events each year is the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl is essentially the finals for each season of football. It draws literally millions of viewers from across the country and plenty from Canada as well.

Television commercials are a big part of the draw of the Super Bowl game. The networks charge their advertisers millions of dollars for a few minutes of air time. The elaborate and star-studded half-time show is also a major event. Thanks to the recent "wardrobe malfunction" it will probably be more popular than ever.

Why is football so wildly popular in the United States? Many people think its because of the game's violent nature. Tackles are hard and rough, many players end up severely injured. Also, many people find the anticipation quite exciting. Anyone who has played football at one time or another enjoys thinking up what strategy they would employ given the current situation. Yelling at the coach for a poor plan also seems to be a favorite of many spectators.

Football has turned into an attractive professional sport. It is as popular as baseball and hockey. Canadians play a different style of football which has slightly different rules from the one played in the US. But it is not as popular as it is in the US.

Children in the US are exposed to the game very early in schools. Even all girl teams are coming up in a big way and there is no gender restriction on the game. Anyone who loves the game can play it in America.