While everyone in the world could have absolutely no problem with the argument that football, otherwise known as soccer for American and Canadian fans, is the most popular sport in the world, American football, which is a mix of football and rugby, could easily be right up there at the top of all the sports popularity lists. American football, especially NFL football, has become one of the most important sports entertainment colossi globally, with all of the main online sports betting platforms offering a slew of opportunities to win money from the game’s action, like betting on NFL picks against the spread for example. But what is it that makes it so popular not only in the US but around the world?
Let’s break down why American football has become so popular and why it continues to amass more and more followers worldwide as time passes.
The Super Bowl
There is only one other televised sporting event that can brag about being as popular as the NFL’s championship game, also known as the Super Bowl, and that’s the UEFA Champions League Final. Yet, still, UEFA’s biggest game of the year draws millions of fans. It doesn’t hold the electricity, pull, and passion that the NFL’s Super Bowl does. The Super Bowl is not just considered a sporting event by any means; its cultural and social magnitudes transcend the normal understanding of what a sporting event can be.
Just by looking at how many people around the world tune in to watch this spectacle, you will see the massive popularity pull that it has, with over 150 million viewers tuning in worldwide to watch last season’s Super Bowl matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. There is only one other sporting event in the world that can take those numbers and make them look like nothing, the FIFA World Cup finals match.
What’s interesting about the Super Bowl is that it’s become more of a cultural event than a sporting event in itself. While many viewers might not pay sufficient attention to what’s going on in the field during each of the four quarters of play, everyone is always ready and on tiptoes to watch the ever-so-famous Super Bowl halftime show and the commercials that appear in every break from the game. With superstars of the caliber of Michael Jackson, Prince, Beyoncé, and The Rolling Stones all having performed in the halftime show and with companies paying millions of dollars for a commercial spot, you know that the artistic and entertainment values are there.
The American Football Culture
Each sporting discipline worldwide has its mannerisms, their slang, and way of experiencing it. With American football, this is taken to whole new levels, with the social impact of the culture that comes from American football becoming more and more apparent as the popularity of the sport continues to grow. Given that the NFL season is only composed of 17 games in the season and a short slew of matchups in the postseason, NFL Sundays have become almost like a religious holiday for sports fans around the world, one that’s composed of hard-hitting action, beer drinking and eating all the greasy, delicious and over the top snacks and food available.
The culture behind the enjoyment of this sport is almost like a poem about what people from all over the world think of what true and proud American culture is like, positively, of course. The inherited passion and excitement that the game entails, as well as the understanding that since the season is only composed of 17 games, every single matchup counts with the utmost importance, makes the activity of watching and living the American football experience that much more enticing for sports fans around the world.
Betting On NFL Action
The levels of popularity that the industry of online sports betting has around the world are immense. I mean, what’s there not to love? If you’re an avid sports fan, one of those who is always on top of all the action, news, stats, and other tidbits of information, the idea of making a few extra bucks here or there from your favorite sporting action has crossed your mind at least once. Well, for online sports betting companies, the NFL has become one of their leading sports betting markets, with fans from all over the world taking to American football wagering as one of their favorite options.
Given the vast array of options to bet on in American football, especially NFL games, fans from all over the world have made wagering on this sport one of the most popular sports betting categories around. This has helped the image and likeness of American football continue to grow even more and even reach markets where at some points, it wasn’t as strong or popular, like Europe and Asia, for example.
