US Sport

1. Most popular and favourite spectator-orientated sports in the US

1.1. American Football
 American Football was formed in the 1800s at college and university campuses.
o The sport evolved from soccer and rugby, which were popular in 18 th century England.
o Football games were played without uniform rules (either rugby or soccer rules).
o A standard set of rules was created in 1873 (Walter Camp as leading force).
 The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) was created to reform the violent sport.
o In 1905, 149 serious injuries and 18 deaths were recorded.
 American football was most popular at colleges and universities during the 1800s but also played
professionally by athletic clubs.
 In 1892, the first football player was payed to play and in 1893 the first contract was signed.
 The first African-American professional football player signed a contract in 1904.
 The National Football League (NFL) was founded in 1921 to organise the sport.
o The NFL was the most popular professional league in the United States by the 1950s.
 Popularity grew immensely in the 1950s, as the quality of play increased and television started to
broadcast games.
 The first Super Bowl was played in 1967.  

AMERICAN FOOTBALL CONTROVERSIES

National anthem protests

 2016: Quarterback Colin Kaepernick (San Francisco 49ers) sat and then knelt during the National
Anthem before several 2016 NFL games.
o To call attention to the issues of racial inequality and police brutality.
o To not "show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of col -
our".
o Teammates and other players joined.
 2017: the NFL protests became more widespread when over 200 players sat or knelt in response
to President Donald Trump's calling for owners to "fire" the protesting players.
o "Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, he's fired. He's fired!"
 May 2018: the NFL announced that all players who are on the field when the National Anthem is
heard before a game must stand — or they can choose to remain in the locker room without
penalty.
o The policy was put on hold a week later after players filed a grievance.

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE)

Symptoms: e.g. memory loss, confusion, depression and dementia

 1994: the NFL Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee was created to study the effects of concus-
sions on football players, but since then denied admitting the connection between head injuries
sustained while playing football and brain disorders.
 2005: Bennet Omalu found evidence of CTE in Mike Webster. The NFL tried to force him to with -
draw his findings.
 2016: Dr Ann McKee examined the brains of 202 deceased football players (111 NFL players).
o 110 of those were found to have CTE, the degenerative disease believed to be caused by
repeated blows to the head.
o The NFL publicly admitted (for the first time) that there was a link between the sport CTE.

1.2. Baseball
 Baseball’s origin can be traced back to some combination of cricket and rounders, two games
brought over by European settlers. It was therefore mostly played by immigrants.
 The New York Knickerbocker Base Ball Club established a rule set, which is still used today. The
first game played under these rules was in 1846.
 Baseball was a popular sport among soldiers during the Civil War, since it could be played almost
anywhere.
o After the Civil War, during the 1850s and 1860s, baseball gained popularity (mostly among
working-class people).
 America’s first professional baseball team emerged in 1869, where all players were paid a salary.
 The National League (NL) was formed in 1876.
o Rival leagues appeared (American Association, Player’s League, American League).
o First cases of gambling occurred in 1877.
 Baseball as a business is created with Spalding Sporting Goods.
 Major League Baseball (MLB) was formed in 1903.
 The first World Series was played in 1903.
 Black Sox gambling scandal in 1920. All players involved were banned from the game for life.
 Attendance fell sharply during the Depression (1930s).
o Nights games were played to draw crowds and games broadcast live on the radio.
 The first African-American player played in the MLB in 1947 (under contract).
 Television had a negative effect on baseball and attendance decreased in the 1950s.
 Baseball games are slowing down. Games today last about 3 hours (in the 1920s games lasted
under 2 hours).

1.3. Basketball
 Basketball was invented in 1891 by James Neismith, an instructor at YMCA 1 training school in
Massachusetts.
o He came up with the sport as an activity to be played indoors during winter.
o A set of 13 rules was created; many of these rules are still in use today.
 The first women’s game was already played in 1893 at Smith College.
 The YMCA spread basketball across the country and the world on Christian missions.
 While basketball grew immensely at colleges, the professional game was stalled by lack of organ -
isation. Professional leagues were loosely organised.
o Some of today’s basketball hallmarks (e.g. the dunk) were created by college players.
 The first college championship, the National Invitational Tournament (NIT), was held in 1938.
 The National Basketball Association (NBA) was formed in 1946.
 In 1950, the first African-American player played in the NBA. The first NBA contract, signed by an
African-American, was signed the same year.
 College basketball was still more popular than professional basketball in the 1950s.
o The first national broadcast in television (by the ABC) in 1954 was of a NCAA title game.

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Young Men's Christian Association
 Professional basketball was dominated by African-American players in the 1960s (and is still
today).
 Attendance and television ratings of professional basketball were dropping in the 1970s.
o ABC’s television contract ended and CBS, which took over, did not promote the NBA much.
o Drugs (and violence) were becoming an increasing problem in the sport and escalated in
1977 with the “Kermit Washington Punch”, which landed player Tomjanovich in intensive
care.
 The NBA recovered in the 1980s thanks to new television contracts and (inter alia) icon Michael
Jordan and became a booming business.
 The 1992 Olympic Games with the U.S. men’s basketball “Dream Team” helped grow the game
worldwide.
 In the late 1990s, NBA players were the highest paid athletes in the U.S.

1.4. (Ice) Hockey

 The sport (ice) hockey was introduced by European settlers in the late 18 th century in Montreal,
Canada.
 As the sport gained popularity, the official rules were created in 1877.
 The first university hockey team was formed in 1877 and the fist hockey leagues formed in the
mid-1880s.
 In 1892 the concept of a regional competition was created by the Governor General of Canada
(Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley) and the first Stanley Hockey Championship Cup was awarded in
1893.
 Hockey was not only played by men; women also played early organised hockey and formed
their own leagues.
 In the late 1800s and early 1900s, hockey spread geographically and was introduced in the U.S
where it quickly gained popularity.
 Ice hockey was firstly played at the Olympics in 1920.
 The National Hockey League (NHL) was formed in 1917, consisting of only four teams at the time.
 Television, the “Zamboni ice-smoothing tractor” and the first face mask innovated ice hockey in
the 1950s.
 The NHL expanded greatly with more teams joining the league during the 1960s and 1970s.

2. Professional sport
2.1. Organisation of professional sports leagues in North America

National Football League (NFL)

 Season 2018/2019: September 6, 2018 – February 3, 2019
 32 teams compete for the annual championship, the Super Bowl.
o The 32 teams are divided into 2 conferences: the National Football Conference (NFC) and
the American Football Conference (AFC).
o The NFC and AFC are further divided into 4 divisions: NFC North, East, South, West and AFC
North, East, South, West.
 Regular season:
o Throughout the season, each team plays the other teams in their division, home and away.
o At the end of the season, the best teams of the eight divisions, along with the 2 teams with
the next-best records in each conference (“wild-card”), qualify for the play-offs (= 12 teams
in total).
 Play-offs:
o In the single-elimination tournament the 12 winning teams of the regular season compete
against each other.
o The 2 remaining teams in each conference play the conference championship round, to de-
termine the champions of the NFC and the AFC.
o The winning teams of the conference championship round compete in the Super Bowl.
 Super Bowl of 2018/2019 season: February 3, 2019

Major League Baseball (MLB)

 Season 2018: March 29, 2018 – October 28, 2018
 30 teams compete for the annual championship, the World Series.
o The 30 teams are divided into 2 leagues: the American (AL) and the National (NL).
o The AL and NL are further divided into 3 divisions: AL East, Central, West and NL East, Cent -
ral, West.
 Regular season:
o Each team plays the other teams in their division.
o At the end of the season, 10 teams remain (6 winning teams of the divisions and 4 wild-
card).
 Postseason play-offs:
o Each league consist of a one-game playoff between two wild-card teams, two best-of-five
Division Series playoffs (DS) featuring the wild-card winner and the winner of each division,
and finally the best-of-seven League Championship Series (LCS).
o The winners of the American League Championship Series (ALCS) and the National League
Championship Series (NLCS) play each other in the best-of-seven World Series. 
 World Series of 2018 season: October 23-28, 2018; winner: Boston Red Sox

National Basketball Association (NBA)

 Season 2018/2019: October 16, 2018 – June 16, 2019
 30 teams compete for the annual championship, the NBA Finals.
o The 30 teams are divided into 2 conferences: the Eastern Conference and the Western
Conference.
o Both conferences are further divided into 3 divisions: Atlantic, Central, Southeast and
Northwest, Pacific, Southwest
 Regular season:
o During the season, all teams play every team in the other conference.
o The top 8 teams in each conference qualify for the play-offs.
 Play-offs:
o 16 remaining teams compete against each other.
o The 2 remaining teams in each conference play the conference final.
o The winning teams of the conference final compete in the NBA Finals.
 NBA Finals of 2018/2019 season: June 2019

National Hockey League (NHL)

 Season 2018/2019: October 3, 2018 – June 2019
 31 teams compete for the annual championship, the Stanley Cup.
o The 31 teams are divided into 2 conferences: the Eastern Conference and the Western
Conference.
 o Both conferences are further divided into 2 divisions: Atlantic, Metropolitan and Central,
Pacific
 Regular season:
o During the season, all teams play every team in the other conference twice, home and
away.
o The top 8 teams from each conference qualify for the play-offs.
 Play-offs:
o In an elimination tournament, 16 teams play against each other in order to advance to the
next round.
o The two conference champions proceed to the Stanley Cup Final.
 Stanley Cup of 2018/2019: May/June 2019

ALL-STAR GAMES
= an exhibition game that purports to showcase the best players of a sports league.

The All-Star Games are played in every major sport in the U.S.

NBA All-Star game

All-Star weekend with e.g. Slam Dunk Contest, Three-Point Contest

 Starters chosen by weighting 3 voting groups:

o Fan (50%)
o Player (25%)
o Media (25%)
 2 guard, 3 frontcourt players from each conference.
 Reserves will be selected by NBA head coaches (7 from each conference).
 Captains (top vote-getter in each conference by fans) will select from the pool of All-Stars to
choose teams.

2018 All-Star Game: February 18, 2018

Team LeBron vs Team Stephen
148 points : 145 points
Starters Starters
Player Team Player Team
Kevin Durant Golden State Warriors James Harden Houston Rockets
Anthony Davis New Orleans Pelicans DeMar DeRozan Toronto Raptors
LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers Stephen Curry Golden State Warriors
Giannis Antetokoun-
DeMarcus Cousins New Orleans Pelicans Milwaukee Bucks
mpo
Kyrie Irving Boston Celtics Joel Embiid Philadelphia 76ers
Ticket prices
 Most expensive ticket: $12,799
 Average price: $2,638
 Cheapest ticket: $619

Germany: BBL All-Star Game

 BBL All-Star Game is the annual All-Star Game of the German first division basketball league, the
Basketball Bundesliga (BBL).
 Since 2012, the All-Star Game is played between "Team National" (domestic players) and "Team
International" (foreign players).
2.2. Olympic Games
The U.S. won the most medals in every Summer Olympics since 1996.

Medal count by country

Olympic Summer Games (1896-2016) Olympic Winter Games (1924-2018)
Ran
Country Total medals won Rank Country Total medals won
k
1 United States 2,520 1 Norway 329
2 Russia 1,865 2 United States 282
3 Germany 1,681 3 Germany 228
4 Great Britain 847 4 Austria 218
5 France 713 5 Russia 194

Olympic sports dominated by the U.S.

 Swimming:
o Michael Phelps: most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time (with a total of
28 medals)
 (artistic) Gymnastics:
o Simone Biles: considered to be the greatest gymnast of all time
 Athletics: No. 1 country (nearly 800 Olympic medals in total)
 Tennis:
o Serena Williams: 23 Grand Slam Single Titles
o Steffi Graf: 22 Grand Slam Single Titles
o Margaret Court: 24 Grand Slam Single Titles
 Basketball

The politicisation of the medals

 1980: the U.S. and 64 other countries skipped the Olympic Games in Moscow in protest of the
Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan.
 1936: Jesse Owens won 3 gold medals at the Olympic Games in Berlin. As an African American
man, he stood in contrast to Adolf Hitler’s intention for the Games to demonstrate the superior -
ity of the Aryan race.
 1968: on the Olympic podium, Tommie Smith gave the Black Power salute to protest systemic ra-
cism in the United States.

3. Amateur sports: Sports and education

 No minor leagues (vs. in Germany)
 Friday-night high school games/ Saturday-afternoon college football games bring communities,
social classes, ethnic groups together
 After the war: baby boom

The largest programs participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

 Division I: major collegiate athletic powers with larger budgets, more elaborate facilities, more
scholarships
 Division II: smaller public and private institutions that offer fewer scholarships
 Division III: no scholarships

BEGINNINGS OF COLLEGE ATHLETICS

 1843: the first organised college sports club (boat club) was formed in 1843 at Yale University.
 1859: first intercollegiate baseball game
 1896: first intercollegiate basketball game
 1869: first intercollegiate soccer match
 1869: first intercollegiate football game
 1873: first intercollegiate track and field event

COLLEGE SPORT TODAY

 Increased commercialisation of college sports
 Highly organised and competitive
 Local publicity and support → financial contribution through television rights and ticket sales
 Wide variety of sports activities; practice and match facilities
 Scholarships for outstanding high school athletes

College football explained

 Four levels of college football in the NCAA: the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) ≈ Division I.
o With 124 teams in the FBS, divided into 11 conferences.
o Six conferences are considered to be major: the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the Big XII,
the Big 10, the Pac-12, the Big East, and the Atlantic Coast Conference.
 The SEC as the best football conference in the country.
 The goal for every team is to finish the regular season either first or second in the Bowl Champi -
onship Series (BCS) rankings and therefore be selected to play in the BCS National Championship
Game.
o BCS rankings: prior to the season, polls are taken of select FBS coaches and media mem -
bers who cover the sport, asking them to rank who they believe will be the top teams in
the country. Each week during the season the pollsters are asked to re-rank the teams in
order.