Philosophy Now Forum

This is your chance to see real football (not soccer) played at its highest level!

Hi Bob, in the UK the opportunity to see American football has been around for many a year and yes, I accept the Super Bowl is the highest level for this sport.

I do however find it amusing when American football is referred to in error as 'real football', as American football is actually a code of football.

The history of football itself goes back to at least the time of the Ancient Greeks and modern football is attributed to the UK. Real Salt Lake gets my vote though but, hang on, that's an association football team and the original governing body was named the United States of America Football Association.

The accepted history of American Football can be found on the NFL website
http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/image/history/pdfs/History/Chronology_2011.pdf

The only point I was making, Lynn, is that it always rankles me when I hear Europeans refer to soccer as football. In the U.S., soccer is for the most part restricted to little kids, and is virtually unheard of in high school or college sports, much less being found on the professional level. Soccer is played on such an overly large field, and there is virtually no scoring, and it always puzzles me why there are so many riots from the fans since it is such a boring sport. There is more action in the stands than on the field. And the sight of players hitting the ball with their heads is absolutely pathetic.

OK, I think I can see where you are coming from but I cannot understand why .

Association football is referred to as football in countries where it is the dominant code of football but known as soccer where in countries e.g. USA, Australia where it is not. Imo I view both football and soccer as regional terms for the same type of ball sport, in the same way as I regard chips (UK) and french fries (USA) to be the same food type but with regional differences. Sorry that you find it boring, and I would have said that perhaps it is because you have not been brought up with it but association football is the world’s most popular game and has the largest fan following on the planet so I guess lots of people from many cultures and countries do not share your view. But each to their own!

One of my most exciting moments in life, if not the most, was being at the Uefa Cup Final in 2003, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_UEFA_Cup_Final, following which the 80,000 fans of the losing team were awarded the FIFA Fair Play Award for their exemplary behaviour . Imo 80,000 fans is way below the actual number of fans who actually present in Seville for the game -probably 120,000+ .

I am off now to re-join hundreds of millions of fans as we enjoy the talents on display during the Spanish La Liga, i.e. national league, match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid - known as El Clásico http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Cl%C3%A1sico .

Yes, I know that most of the world is big on soccer, which does not do much to alleviate my jaundiced view of the world.

No one wants to take whatever sport you get your kicks from away from you so why the big deal about the rest of the world's use of the word "football"? Contextualize and you'll find it a lot easier.

Soccer is just a boring excuse to cause a riot, and don't call me a liar because you can't point to a single instance of an American football game causing a riot, while I can point to any number of soccer games that have caused riots!

I am disappointed Bob that, although you were not being disparaged but indeed supported in your own choice of sport, you choose to disparage another by stating your opinions as facts, namely that (a) football is boring and (b) football is an excuse to cause a riot. I disagree with (a) and (b) and, at this point in time, have no interest in whether or not any American Football game has ever caused a riot.
If it is not your sport, why even allow it to affect you at all?

Maybe you're not a liar, just badly informed.

Oakland 2003.

"In the latest outbreak of sports violence in the United States, riot police in Oakland used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse hundreds of angry fans rampaging through parts of the Californian city after their team lost Super Bowl XXXVII in San Diego on Sunday night."

American Football: Oakland riots highlight ugly side of US sport

You really should stop making these bold statements that are easy to refute Bob.

I'm talking about riots in the stadium itself during a game!

(a) Please don't call soccer football, it's not football, never was football, and never will be football! Name me one thing that's more boring than soccer other than watching paint drying.

(b) Actually, soccer fans don't need an excuse to riot, they're all just a bunch of hooligans!

Bob, I reserve my right to call it football, whereas I uphold your right to call it soccer, on the basis already mentioned and re-iterated below.
I decided not to quote details of American football riots unless it became a bigger issue, which for you, sadly, it has so I am glad that John has. I am sure I could get information on further incidents more localised to the USA from family there, which may not have made the www press but I believe your statement about no riots has been proven to be without merit.
So I take it you don't want to accompany me to a football match when you are next in the UK then?

Well, it all depends, what do we do afterwards, assuming there's not a riot.

Oh, right, so when you said "you can't point to a single instance of an American football game causing a riot" that's not really what you meant because riots "caused" by the game but taking place outside the stadium are OK I suppose?

Anyway, you're still talking rubbish as this shows: Fans riot after Oklahoma State victory: 13 injured

Celebratory riots are never proper, but I'm talking about soccer riots during the game itself.