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FOOTBALL BECOMES AMERICAN TRADITION

RATINGS AND MONEY

• The New Orleans Saints' victory over Indianapolis in the Super Bowl was watched by more than 106 million people, surpassing the 1983 finale of "M-A-S-H" to become the most-watched program in U.S. television history

• Game 4 of the 2009 World Series soared to an audience of 22.8 million viewers

• A Super Bowl commercial costs 1 million dollars for a 30 second ad

PRO FOOTBALL BEGINS

• In 1920, the American Professional Football Association was formed. The first game was played in Dayton, Ohio on October 3, 1920 with the host Triangles defeating the Columbus Panhandles 14–0.

• The league changed its name to the National Football League (NFL) two years later, and eventually became the major league of American football. Initially a sport of Midwestern industrial towns in the United States, professional football eventually became a national phenomenon.

FOOTBALL CULTURE

• Football lends itself to bonding through the game experience as a fan as well. College football is an integral part of large university life, and that atmosphere extends to professional football as well, particularly in the Northeast.

• Fans go to game early and "tailgate," which is essentially a big cookout.cocktail party before games. Thus football has become for many a social event as well as an athletic one.

• Lastly, football is an excellent avenue to channel the competitive American spirit, as soccer does in other countries. Many fans live and die by their teams performance.

• Professional sports gambling has has exploded as well over the last few decades, and football lends itself well to sports gambling. Gambling on the Super Bowl is approaching a billion dollar enterprise.

FANTASY FOOTBALL

• In the last several years, this competitive aspect has grown exponentially as the game of "Fantasy Football" has exploded in America.

• Fantasy football is played now by over 30 million Americans, and the numbers are increasing. This game is played by a group of fans (usually 10) getting together and drafting real NFL players on their make-believe "team." Teams play each other weekly, and earn points based on the individual successes of their players (scoring touchdowns, for example).

COLLEGE BOWL SYSTEM

• Unlike most other sports—collegiate or professional—the Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly known as Division I-A college football, does not employ a playoff system to determine a champion. Instead, it has a series of "bowl games." The annual national champion is determined by a vote of sports writers and other non-players. This system has been challenged but little headway has been made given the entrenched vested economic interests in the various bowls.