American football is very similar to rugby. However, there are some differences between these two sports we’d like to underline. The American football appeared in the XIX century. It emerged from the game of rugby. The father of this American sport is considered Walter Camp.

In the early times, football was not exactly how we know it now. There were several changes that were applied to the rules over time. Also, the physical aspect of football was very important as many times there were fights during the games. The rules were not so strict as they are today so these fights had minor consequences to the players.

The first rules of the American football were established in 1863. In 1869, the first American football game took place between Princeton and Rutgers. Rutgers won the game with 6 to 4. After this first game, in 1873, the first association of football teams was created.

Its name was Intercollegiate Football Association and only 4 teams were part of it: Yale, Princeton, Rutgers and Columbia. This association recommended that the game should be played with 15 players in each team.

The rules of the game suffered changes as the game was more and more popular outside colleges too. Walter Camp, the father of the American football made rules that stated the 11 players and the 110 yards field. Tackling and downs were also legalized shortly after these rules. They were inspired from rugby.

At the end of the 19 century, many cases of serious injuries and even deaths made several colleges to ban this sport. These injuries resulted from the physical aspect of American football. The year of 1905 was important for the future development of football in the United States. This is because, under directives of Theodore Roosevelt, National Collegiate Athletes Association formed. It is known as the NCAA.

The great thing about football is that even if it is an American sport and it is played only in this part of the world, it gains in popularity in other parts of the world. This is because of its challenging nature. Many Europeans watch football for example even if rugby is much more played in Europe.

The Super Bowl is one of the most watched sport events in the world as it is played between the best teams of the season. Advertising costs are very high at Super Bowl reaching more than 3 million dollars in some cases. The industry of football cards or other memorabilia is very powerful as football attracts more and more fans every year.

The economy of the United States was influenced by this great sport in many ways. First of all it was influenced because of the great opportunities for business in the cards and memorabilia sector. Secondly, because of the great advertising possibilities when it comes to football games which are watched by millions. Therefore, we can say that football is a great sport and has a great history behind it.