Is Football the National Pastime?

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

Apparently one of my co-workers/friends is convinced that Bug Selig revived baseball - so much so that baseball has recaptured its place as the national pastime. I tried, unsuccessfully, to persuade him that football has been America's pastime for the past 20 years.

So, my question to you is, what sport is our national pastime and why?

[TheMalcolmConnection]

I don't have any lengthy explanation, but I'll tell you this: NO WAY IN HELL is baseball our national past-time. You could ask almost anyone and the majority of the population at least somewhat enjoys football. It seems like MAYBE half of people care about baseball during the regular season.

[saden1]

Without a doubt. If money is any indication football wins hands down. Last time I checked the NFL made nearly as much money as all the other leagues combined.

[TheMalcolmConnection]

Not only that, if someone asked me to describe baseball in one sentence, I'd say this:

I hate the Red Sox and Yankees.

The overexposure to those two teams has turned a lot of people off.

[Sheriff Gonna Getcha]

I compared league revenue, league sponsorship deals, and TV viewership of the World Series and Super Bowl and all indicate that football is the national pastime. In 2006, the NFL generated more than $7B in revenue, compared with $6B for MLB. With regard to sponsorships, it's not even close. In 2006, football drew in more than $700M in sponsorship deals to MLB's $300M. Over the past two years, the nine World Series games have drawn just over 128 million viewers. Meanwhile, the last two Super Bowls drew 184 million viewers.

[70Chip]

Its football and has been since the 1970s. Anyone who says otherwise is either A) an aging left wing intellectual who grew up in Brooklyn "right in the shadow of Ebbets Field" or B) George Will. Everyone else knows the score.

[saden1]

Originally Posted by [LEFT

TheMalcolmConnection[/LEFT];408251]Not only that, if someone asked me to describe baseball in one sentence, I'd say this:

I hate the Red

Sox

and Yankees.

The overexposure to those two teams has turned a lot of people off.

How about one word?

Boring!

[12thMan]

Hands down, I said hands down it's football. Before I get into my little argument on this one, I think it's still catchy to say baseball is our national pastime. While it was once true, I don't think that's the case anymore, yet people just like to say it. Kinda like the Cowboys are America's Team. Do you really think all or most of America loves the Cowboys with all the prima donas they currently have? Sure Dallas fans love them, but you'd be hard pressed to make that arguement in this day and time.

Let's just talk endorsements for a second. Money tends to follow success and not the other way around. Professional football players are in just about every commercial from credit cards, to Campbell's soup, video games, car advertisements, to actual sports gear. In other words, the football athlete has permeated just about every aspect of our commercialized culture that you can think of. And let's not talk about hip-hop and other forms of entertainment. I don't find that true of neither baseball itself or it's players. It's also worth noting that baseball has most definitely been tainted by the steriods scandel. Like him or not, for the past few years, Barry Bonds has been THE face of Major League Baseball.

We talk more about who football players date than any other baseball players. We have an entire network devoted to football. Hell, the scouting combine is coming up in, what, three weeks? Even for those that salivate and yearn for football all year around can have their senses satisfied. College football has even gotten in on the act. Can you name a Bowl Game that doesn't have some corporate sponsor?

But here's the one reason I think football is the national pastime --- ready? We spend more damn time on Warpath than any f*ckin Red Sox fan would ever spend on a fan forum. I have the most die hard Red Sox and baseball fans in my office who constantly tease me about the amount of time and energy I devote to Warpath. That my friends, makes football THE national pastime.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Sheriff Gonna Getcha

I compared league revenue, league sponsorship deals, and TV viewership of the World Series and Super Bowl and all indicate that football is the national pastime. In 2006, the NFL generated more than $7B in revenue, compared with $6B for MLB. With regard to sponsorships, it's not even close. In 2006, football drew in more than $700M in sponsorship deals to MLB's $300M. Over the past two years, the nine World Series games have drawn just over 128 million viewers. Meanwhile, the last two Super Bowls drew 184 million viewers.

Well as far as the SB v/s the World Series the SB is one game and people can get together and have a party on that giving night and its over with. This really helps with sponsorship becasue it such a captive audience for that one night. Also baseball is so spread out over the season most fans of a team do not watch everygame they kind of pick and choose which games to watch. Football most fans make it a point to watch their team every Sunday so the market is sixteen games and advertisers knows more of what they are getting. Oh, and baseball is boring.

[SFREDSKIN]

Originally Posted by saden1

How about one word?

Boring!

And a bunch of steroid and HGH enhanced cheating freaks!!!

[SmootSmack]

I like baseball. Love going to games. Hot Dogs and Beer on a sunny summer afternoon at a minor league stadium. Pretty sweet. I don't find it boring at all

But undoubtedly football, NFL especially, is our national pastime.

[saden1]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

I like baseball. Love going to games. Hot Dogs and Beer on a sunny summer afternoon at a minor league stadium. Pretty sweet. I don't find it boring at all

But undoubtedly football, NFL especially, is our national pastime.

That's because you spend 90% of the time talking to the person you're with and the other 10% drinking

[BrunellMVP?]

Football is def. america's favorite sport...
baseball is america's favorite pastime, bc its just that, a means to pass time. its a slow game to both watch and play...though some may argue the same thing about football..

[FRPLG]

I don't even think it requires discussion. The only people who think baseball is still the National Pastime think of it in traditional terms. There are no logiacl arguments that can be made to even remotely compare the popularity of baseball and football so they must fall back on tradition and sentimentality. I guess their defintion of National Pastime is just different.

[djnemo65]

Baseball is like golf or the NBA. Some people like it, some love it, but it doesn't drive the national conversation the way football does. Everybody loves the NFL.