London Calling: The Globalization of the NFL

The NFL, like everyone else in the world can clearly see the success that soccer has. The NFL has media to sell to within North America, but is nothing compared to how many countries and places soccer has access too. The Premier League is the top-notch in European soccer.This is the league that the NFL has the biggest competition with, they want to be on their level. And with a revenue of $25 billion/year, I would understand that too.London is obviously well known through out the world and the tourism never stops. That may be part of the reason why the NFL chose that city. I do agree in the sense that it is a very modernized city so it would also help greatly in that aspect. It is also easy to travel to from major places in Europe, as is the Wembley Stadium. The NFL has seen in previous games done in London that a small fan base is there, which is what seems to want to drive them in expansion.

Some of the difficulties that could arise are: time, distance, time zones, and prices. We know that we would have to fly our players out to London and there is a huge time shift that they need a day or more to recover from, especially if they are traveling from the West coast. This can also waste a lot of time and money involving the airfare and stay in Europe. Another thing is the distance and time it takes to travel to London from other countries, then there is the cost. Not every single fan will have the time and money to spend on traveling to London every other week to watch a football game. 

However, just like any other successful and popular sport, they have to start somewhere and they have to start small. Do I think the NFL will be as big as soccer is world wide, I do not think so, but there is a possibility it could be great.

Sociogenesis of Soccer

The game of soccer, dates back to the first laws in London in 1863, here is a brief & condensed timeline of the sport, as told by fifa.com 

1863: The Cambridge Rules are rewritten to provide the game's first uniform regulations.
1866: The offside law is changed to allow players to be onside provided there are three players between the ball and the goal.
1882: The associations in Great Britain unify their rules and form the International Football Association Board (IFAB) to control the laws of the game.
1886: The first official meeting of the IFAB takes place.
1891: Introduction of the penalty-kick.
1913: FIFA becomes a member of the IFAB.
1925: Amendment of the offside rule from three to two players.
1938: The present Laws of the Game are framed in a new system of codification, based on the Laws previously in force.
1958: Substitutes are permitted for the first time, albeit only for an injured goalkeeper and one other injured player.
1970: The system of red and yellow cards is introduced for the 1970 FIFA World Cup ™ finals.
1990: The offside law is changed in favour of the attacker, who is now onside if level with the penultimate defender.
1992: Goalkeepers are forbidden from handing back-passes.
1994: The technical area is introduced into the Laws of the Game, with the Fourth Official following the next year.
1996: Linesmen are renamed Assistant Referees.
1997: The Laws are revised.

Before that, one form of the game was called "Tsu' Chu" and the players had to kick a leather ball, filled with feathers and hair. They kicked the ball into a net that was held with bamboo canes. 
500-600 years later (& up till today) there is a game called "Japanese Kemari", not competitive like Tsu' Chu though. The players have to stand in a circle, relatively small space, and pass the ball to each other without letting it touch the ground. 
Greeks had the game of "Episkyros", not many details of the game are left; men and women did play, both nude also. The Romans had "Harpastum", this game was similar to the Greek's game but they were able to tackle the person who had the ball and it was a competition to go into the opponent's side of the field. 

They have found drawings and painting of what seems to be the people playing these sports, but nothing of recording the scores.

Up till now football/soccer is the most popular and most watched game in the world. This year, the World Cup will take place in Brazil. Countries from all over the world will come to play in hopes of being the world champion for the next 4 years!

Sports in the Ancient World

As soon as this video started I noticed they were (basically) naked, but then I remembered what year that was and what time in day we were. My simple reaction to that reflects a lot of what we see in today's world and how nudity (at least among men) is not completely accepted. During the Olympics back then, their bodies were completely worshiped, they were compared to their Gods. In this way, sports became tied to religion. As opposed to the suiting that Gladiators wore, the Greek were defenseless when it came to that.

Their sports were brutal and although there was some form of regulation, there seems to be none based on current rulings. When they fought, boxed, there were no gloves, skin on skin. Even in MMA/UFC fights they ave some sort of small protection on their hands.

They mention that anyone had the opportunity to participate in these events. From the wealthiest men to the poorest men, it really was a level playing field. Since the training was so intense, the men who did not have wealth could dedicate themselves entirely to the commitment and eventually dedicate their lives to the sport. These games were highly respected among the society. Now a days, there are drafts and generally from college athletes. It is pretty amazing that back then they accepted anyone who took the time and had the dedication to undergo the training necessary to compete in the Olympics. Also, the huge prize of money that was given could be a real game changer if the man to win was in fact poor.

One of the things I found the most interesting was how they were punished for a "false start". In football, if the start before the play, they get a flag and maybe a few yards penalty, not in Ancient Greece. The guilty were whipped in front of over 40,000 spectators. 

Regarding females in this event, only ONE woman was allowed to be present. Yes, that sounds and is ridiculous but there are still places in the world, such as Saudi Arabia, that do not allow women to step foot into their stadiums. I found this article of a recent uproar when American women entered a stadium, they had to get a letter from the Shoura Council to be able to get inside and watch the game. ( http://www.arabnews.com/news/513816 ) 

Since the beginning of time, we have been conditioned to love and thrive on the violence that sport brings and the competitiveness. The Olympics in Ancient Greece prove it, the Gladiators fights prove it, and now even the rough sport of American football proves it. 

Sports, Society, & Me

Although I have never been much of an athlete, I do enjoy watching sports. Since I can remember my dad has always watched sports on television. In his younger years he would play on teams, nothing too big, but just for the love of the game. I grew up around that. My dad's brothers were all about assimilating to the max within the American culture, they focused more on football. That also was brought into play with my up bringing. I remember being in ECE and my dad buying me a Broncos shirt, we were going to the Super Bowl. Here you have a four year old girl wearing a blue and orange shirt, walking around, unknowingly rooting for the team.

Within the reading it mentions that kids are put into sports at a young age because parents believe they will learn "basic values of American society and it builds character". So what exactly are we teaching these kids? What have we been taught? Aside from being competitive in everything we do? I do believe that sports create a sense of unity, if and when people are cheering for the same team. Also the aspect of working together is also crucial in this.

Our athletes are idolized by millions, sometimes more than they should be. Looking at the pay they get for playing these sports is insane, the numbers are huge. But, at the same time it is partly our fault for condoning their games and buying into their sponsors' clothes, brands, food, energy drinks, etc. These athletes also get to be respected, even more so when they win. Currently we have Manning at an all time high pedestal, walking around town you see so many people wearing the jersey with an "18" on it; down the line some of that money is going to him.

At the end of the day, sports is a giant business. So, in a way, yes, American sports are teaching us basic values of our culture. Because these days, everything is a business under another business under another business.

Sport Ethic

"Sport Ethic" is the "sacrifice for The Game" as Hughes & Coakley suggest in the beginning.

The 4 dimensions is an explanation of what has to happen or what ends up happening for these athletes to become successful within their sport. They have to stand above the rest, they have to love The Game over everything and anything else, they have to resist the pain and risks that could happen through their play time, and ignore any of the limits that are or have been "set" by others. There are no limits in how high an athlete can go.

Many athletes comply to these beliefs because they need to show that they are strong beings and not
just talented, they can tolerate more pain than others and  they will not let anything get in their way of winning not only for their team but for themselves, striving that distinction among their peers. Athletes often times are pushed to their limit and then some afterwards.

Not having played sports or being an athlete myself, I have not faced this, at least not via sports.
These dimensions do seem familiar while being a student, especially a person of color at a predominately White university. We constantly have to strive to go above and beyond to prove that we are equally as competent or more intelligent than our White peers.

Although I, along with other non-athlete students, might not have a future sign with a major league team, we do have deals to maintain our own requirements to be able to stay in school, therefore we do have certain guidelines and expectation for which we do have to equal if not surpass to be successful.

Sport(s) in the USA

World wide there are tons of sports and different countries have different preferences and/or favorite sports. Within America the stereotype of what the "All-American" sport is, is football. Once football season that is pretty much all that is talked about. There is also a mix when basketball season kicks in around the same time. The games tend to overlap with each other, making it hard for fans to keep up with their teams.

Within most of the teams, the common traits are: they all have some sort of ball, equal amounts of players, competitive, and for some reason, they are generally male-dominated. Although the US has come very far in trying to level the field within men and women, there is the undeniable preference for the men in sports as opposed to the women. The typical (or the most televised games) are usually with the men's teams. Occasionally they will show a glimpse of the cheerleaders or their dancers on the sidelines when they break away to commercials.

To be "successful" as an athlete, everyone has to know what them you play for, what position you play, what the number on your jersey is, and you have to outshine everyone else. There are often players who have the stories that are based on the "American Dream": they started off at a small town or school and were somehow scouted and went to college and then drafted into the big leagues. At the end of the day, the most important thing about sports in America, is winning. Being as our country has always been highly competitive, we strive for our teams to provide and exemplify the same standards.