Basketball has gotten bigger because the asphalt jungle of the urban environment has given yesterday's and today's youth a means of climbing out of that existence, and I support it big for that reason. Anything that can promote moving up without the use of guns, drugs, and prostitution is good in my book. The only reason hockey doesn't grow as much is because ice rinks have to be built and such and too expensive to maintain for a typical high school, so only the northern most states (and Canada of course) can regularly sport hockeys teams in the winter as they can get a game up on a well frozen lake. That isn't happening abywhere below the great lakes as even in southern Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, West Virginia, and northern Kentucky, our lakes don't freeze over thick enough to be safe for skating on a regular basis.

Anything below the great lakes is unnecessary in my opinion. Except for boston, they're pretty cool.

@Geofram - you are so right about collegiate sports. They still love the game. Although I think Olympic winter sports are still great. Bobsled, Luge, Skiing, and Biathalon are all sports you won't see in the states at a collegiate level (at least not televised). Olympic Hockey can also be very enjoyable. But I think my love for it is nostalgia for the "Miracle on Ice" US Olympic Gold in 1980.

Man, that was so uncool. ;-P I love my "Old Kentucky Home", even if I'm a transplant from Ohio born in Virginia. But Vermont, New Hampshire, or Maine is where I would most love to spend Christmas (outside of Munich, Germany which IS Christmas as far as I'm concerned). Never been to any of those three, but they just *feel* like Christmas in America personified. Them and New York City.

I don't like having to weed through so many "sports" that I deem worthless to get to anything good in the olympics. Winter olympics aren't so bad, but since I'm rarely at a tele and travelling all winter, it becomes a nightmare for me to try and catch a good game.

And college sports are on the weekends, days where I'm not busy and can sit down and empty a mug or two. Only Americans in the traditional sense can pretend like Sunday and Monday don't exist in the week.

Best Christmas -> Boston or Vancouver.
Best Spring -> Anywhere England or Seattle.
Best Summer -> Toronto, hands down.
Best Autumn -> Usually Toronto, but I love me some Montreal.

I'm in VA right now, and whilst the weather and trees are beautiful, I'd rather be north.

To all of those playing FIFA 08 and FIFA 09: Do yourself a favor, and buy Konami's Pro Evolution Soccer, or alternatively, Winning Eleven (Same game, Japanese version)

I absolutely loathe New York City, even the parts that remind me of TO just smell funny.

@Geofram. Who says collegiate sports aren't professional. They surely aren't amateur anymore.

Heck - check out this link - all about recruiting 13 year old kids for secondary ed programs.

http://www.cleveland.com/big-man-on-campus/

The line between collegiate and professional certainly blurs or gets destroyed in American Football.

But "soccer," baseball, hockey, and usually basketball hardly get the spotlight like their professional stepdads do.

Well I think college basketball certainly gets as much coverage as the NBA. And all things being fair, it should really get more since it is vastly more entertaining. On the other hand, I prefer the NFL to NCAAF, since so many college football games are blow-outs, just kinda sad to watch.

i enjoy college ball because it is more for the team and not the money. Draugnar brought up rugby a sport in which i play and too enjoy. but over all my favorite sports go as such

Football
Rugby
American Football
Curling

what can i say i love a good curl

What on EARTH do you (I'd say Europeans, but there are probably some Americans who'd prefer futbol to football, so all in that category, then) have against football?

11 men- just like futbol? (I may be mistaken, hate futbol...)
Striving towards the other team's goal/goaline
Penalty=yellow/red card or a yellow flag
Strong rivalries

And over futbol, American Football has:
-More ways to handle the ball (throw it, kick it, stick it in a stew... maybe not the last one)
-The clokc counting down, not up (WHY do you guys have the clock do that?)
-Better looking uniforms (That one's totally superficial, but come one- given the choice between a skinny white/black/hispanic/whoever guy/girl in striped pants and shorts vs. a tall musclely quarterback or a big strong runningback/linebacker, in solids, gleaming helmets, and the like... it just seems...)
-Strategy (futbol has it too, obviously, but a huddle and then a psecific play requiring every man for the specific situation? And the choice on how to handle the ball to give it more depth...)

And, the cruncher for me:

-Higher scores. I'm not asking for a 100-98 game like the NBA, I think that's too much, to simple almost. But 1-0? 2-1? Come ON. You want me to sit for hours for 1 goal? They have more goals than that in an international sport I DO love, hockey (go Ducks! Go Team USA! Boo Red Wings! Boo Germany!) Still- 1 score? Unless its Rams-Bucs (sorry, fans) there will be more than one score in any football game. 21-17. 27-24. 34-28. About the highest I've e3ver seen a game get would be around 46-41 or so. Break down the 6 for a TD, one for an XP, 2 for a STY, and 3 for a FG, and that equates to around 3-7 scores or so a game per team- plenty of offense and still great defense and strategy.

Aside from it being AMERICAN football and folks not liking we the States anymore, why the animosity towards football?

And, in any event, I think we can all agree on one thing-

Be it futbol, hocker, or whatever:

Down with Team Germany! :)

@impasse - I am in total agreement. NFL way better than NCAA football. NCAA b-ball way better than NBA.

@DJecc - Don't delude yourself. College athletics at the D1 and D1-AA and D2 levels is all about the money. More wins = Better endowments = Higher Salaries = Higher Profile Coaches = More TV = Better Players = More Wins. Repeat ad nauseum. Now - I am a card carrying member of the UK Wildcat nation and love college ball, but I am not deluded in anyway about the level of amateurism and playing for the name on the front of the jersey.

@ obiwan - Down w/the Germans!

no sir i do not agree with that! up with Germany!

and you must not watch much football to know what you are supposed to watch for in a game. americans love scoring i know because i am an american. but thats not the only thing to sports. when i watch soccer i get excited over a good cross. a good save. or a good slide tackle. scoring doesn't make the game.

American football may have more ways to handle the ball but which is harder throwing a ball or kicking it? jsut look at the footwork of some of these football players. bicycle kicks and everything. there is a reason its called the beautiful sport.

as for strategy yes american football has alot but football does as well. you have counter attacks and set pieces and more. and we dont get time outs to plan.

better looking uniforms i beg to differ futball jerseys are the most comfortable things ever! and they have more color. and what i like is they change the away jerseys and third jerseys every year. so we aren't stuck with the same design.

clock counting up. we have no time outs. time is added on to the end for injuries and fouls. we are runnig nall the time. no little huddles to have a respite

and Rare Eagle your a good man. Go big blue!

What I dislike about American Football, as well as baseball, is the fact that it is so segmentized in really short "plays", that start and end in no more than 20 seconds.

This is also true but to a lesser extent in basketball, where the game is also frequently stopped (by scoring points or fouls).

Real fútbol has a different flow, and that wich you critize (low scores) is what makes it, in my opinion, most interesting. In a game that ends 100 - 87, there's little margin for a team to loose when they've played the best. In fútbol, a team can play defensively the whole match, get a lucky break on a counter attack, and win a game they should normally loose.

I see a basketball game and think "oh, there goes another basket". In fútbal, each goal can (and usually does) change the flow of the game dramatically.

and i see your point too

that was @ Rare Eagle

does any one have any thouhts on the american football game played in London every year? and londoners like it?

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