American football in Brazil

Last updated

American football has become a popular sport in Brazil since cable television made it possible for people to watch National Football League games. The main organization for American football in Brazil is the American Football Brazilian Confederation.

Contents

Summary

Historically, American football games were played on sand, as to avoid the use of exported equipment from the United States of America and to reduce the impact of the tackles. The 2010s have seen most Brazilian states develop American football teams of various types; including flag football, tackle American football and women's football. [1] A Brazilian Portuguese forum regarding American football was founded in 1998 in order to get more people watching the games on ESPN. As of 2013, there are 2500 Brazilian people who play American football. The first organized American football game between two Brazilian teams took place in 2008 when the Curitiba Brown Spiders took on the Barigui Crocodiles. [2]

100 coaches from American high school and adult amateur teams have been sent to Brazil to teach aspiring coaches about the basics of American football. [3] [4]

Media attention traditionally given to Brazil on association football have been increased towards American football. Very little sponsorship money is given; as most money is tied into association football. Victor Menossi Rodrigues is one of the founders of the Brazilian "form" of American football after experimenting with boxing and judo. A significant number of female spectators are attracted to American football in Brazil; even to the point where they go to parties where the American football players pretend to speak English. Children between the ages of 8 and 13 are being encouraged by educational organizations to start participating in American football. [5]

Other traditional fixtures in the Brazilian sports lifestyle like volleyball and Formula One are slowly losing their fanbase to American football. Once the game transitioned from sand to grass, the popularity of American football jumped. Players are only asked to practice occasionally and women have been embraced into even the "full contact" leagues. [6] Copacabana Beach is considered to be the birthplace of American football in Brazil; where 20 men played the first game of American football in Brazilian history. [7] All American football games not done on the beach are played out in public parks and teams must pay up to $300 to the municipality as rent. [8] All Brazil had for equipment in 1989 was mouthguards from boxing rings and imported American footballs. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Association football</span> Team sport played with a spherical ball

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players each, who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposing team by moving the ball beyond the goal line into a rectangular-framed goal defended by the opposing team. Traditionally, the game has been played over two 45-minute halves, for a total match time of 90 minutes. With an estimated 250 million players active in over 200 countries and territories, it is the world's most popular sport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowl game</span> Category of football games in North America

In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tournament to determine an annual national champion, instead relying on a vote by sportswriters or coaches. In place of such a playoff, cities developed regional festivals featuring bowls. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals. Despite the move to establish a permanent system to determine the FBS national champion on the field, some bowls are still held.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Professional Spring Football League</span>

The Professional Spring Football League (PSFL) was a proposed outdoor american football minor league slated to begin in 1992. The league was founded by Vincent Sette, a computer sales executive, while TV executive Rex Lardner served as commissioner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in Brazil</span>

Sports in Brazil are those that are widely practiced and popular in the country, as well as others which originated there or have some cultural significance. Brazilians are heavily involved in sports. Football is the most popular sport in Brazil. Other than football, sports like volleyball, mixed martial arts, basketball, tennis, and motor sports, especially Formula One, enjoy high levels of popularity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beach soccer</span> Association football played on a beach

Beach soccer, also known as beach football, sand football or beasal, is a variant of association football played on a beach or some form of sand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Touch rugby</span> Derivatives of rugby involving touching instead of tackling

Touch rugby refers to games derived from rugby league in which players do not tackle each other but instead touch their opponents using their hands on any part of the body, clothing, or the ball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Zdrilic</span> Australian soccer player and coach

David Allen Zdrilic is an Australian association football coach and former player, who is currently the head coach of A-League Men club Perth Glory. Zdrilic is also a football presenter on the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), Most recently he was a key figure in SBS's coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sport in Mexico</span>

The most popular sport in Mexico currently is association football (soccer) followed by boxing. Historically, football has been the dominant sport in Mexico shaping the national sports scene. The Mexican Primera División is one of the top soccer leagues globally. Baseball also holds a notable place in Mexican sports culture, particularly in the northwest and southeast regions of the country, particularly in states such as Sonora and Sinaloa, and in the southeast, notably in Yucatán and Quintana Roo. The Mexican League serves as a major league in this sport, with a strong regional following. The country has produced many renowned Boxers, and major fights generate considerable interest and viewership.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cashman Field</span> Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada

Cashman Field is a stadium in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A Las Vegas Stars/51s Minor League Baseball from 1983 to 2018, and home to the Vegas Vipers of the XFL in 2023. The stadium is connected to Cashman Center, an exhibit hall and theater operated by the City of Las Vegas. The complex, built on the site of a former stadium of the same name, is named for James "Big Jim" Cashman and his family, who have been Las Vegas entrepreneurs for several generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports in the United States</span>

Sports in the United States are an important part of the nation's culture. Historically, the most popular sport has been baseball. However, in more recent decades, American football has been the most popular spectator sport based on broadcast viewership audience. Basketball has grown into the mainstream American sports scene since the 1980s, with ice hockey and soccer doing the same around the turn of the 21st century. These sports comprise the "Big Five".

Several sports related to volleyball have become popular. Indoor volleyball and beach volleyball are both events at the Olympics, and sitting volleyball is an event at the Paralympics. Other varieties are localized, or are played at an amateur or informal level.

Ross Ongaro is a retired Canadian soccer player who earned one cap each with the Canada U-20 men's national soccer team and Canadian Olympic soccer team. He played professionally in the North American Soccer League, Major Indoor Soccer League, Western Soccer Alliance and American Indoor Soccer Association. He has coached extensively at the professional level and was the head coach of the Canadian Beach Soccer and Futsal Teams until September 2011. He has been hired by the Chinese Football Association to become their National Beach Soccer Head Coach.

The Russia national beach soccer team represents Russia in international beach soccer competitions and is controlled by the Russian Football Union, the governing body for football in Russia. The team's highest achievements are three World Cup crowns conquered in 2011, 2013 and 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American football</span> Team field sport

American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with possession of the oval-shaped football, attempts to advance down the field by running with the ball or throwing it, while the defense, the team without possession of the ball, aims to stop the offense's advance and to take control of the ball for themselves. The offense must advance the ball at least ten yards in four downs or plays; if they fail, they turn over the football to the defense, but if they succeed, they are given a new set of four downs to continue the drive. Points are scored primarily by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone for a touchdown or kicking the ball through the opponent's goalposts for a field goal. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins.

Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word football generally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly called football include association football ; Australian rules football; Gaelic football; gridiron football ; International rules football; rugby league football; and rugby union football. These various forms of football share, to varying degrees, common origins and are known as "football codes".

The major sports in Venezuela are baseball, basketball and football(Soccer). Baseball in Venezuela originates with the early 20th century cultural influence of the United States oil companies. The Venezuelan Professional Baseball League was established in 1945. Football in Venezuela lags behind baseball, but its popularity in recent years has grown. Basketball and volleyball are also popular sports; there has been a national basketball league since 1974. The Vuelta a Venezuela is one of six cycling events in the UCI America Tour. The polo club Lechuza Caracas has had some success in North American polo competitions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Béla Guttmann</span> Hungarian football player and manager (1899–1981)

Béla Guttmann was a Hungarian footballer and coach. He was born in Budapest, Austria-Hungary, and was Jewish. He was deported by the Nazis to a Nazi slave labor camp where he was tortured; he survived the Holocaust. Before the war, he played as a midfielder for MTK Hungária FC, SC Hakoah Wien, and several clubs in the United States. Guttmann also played for the Hungary national football team, including at the 1924 Olympic Games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of sports in the United States</span>

The history of sports in the United States reveals that American football, baseball, softball, and indoor soccer evolved from older British sports—rugby football, British baseball, rounders, and association football, respectively. Over time, these sports diverged significantly from their European origins, developing into distinctly American versions. For example, over time, American football developed its own rules and style, becoming distinctly different from its British predecessor and uniquely American. While baseball's origins can be traced to British bat-and-ball games such as British baseball, its development in the United States also incorporated elements from various other bat-and-ball games. Today, baseball enjoys widespread international popularity, especially in East Asia and Latin America.

References

Further reading