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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.
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]
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players each who primarily 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.
Flag football is a variant of American football where, instead of tackling players to the ground, the defensive team must remove a flag or flag belt from the ball carrier ("deflagging") to end a down. The sport has a strong amateur following with several national and international competitions each year sponsored by various associations but is most popularly played in America where it was invented.
The participation of women and girls in sports, physical fitness and exercise, has been recorded to have existed throughout history. However, participation rates and activities vary in accordance with nation, era, geography, and stage of economic development. While initially occurring informally, the modern era of organized sports did not begin to emerge either for men or women until the late industrial age.
Football is the most popular sport in Brazil and a prominent part of the country's national identity. The Brazil national football team has won the FIFA World Cup five times, the most of any team, in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. Brazil and Germany are the only teams to succeed in qualifying for all the World Cups for which they entered the qualifiers; Brazil is the only team to participate in every World Cup competition ever held. Brazil has also won an Olympic gold medal, at the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Rio de Janeiro and at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.
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. Great players like Neymar have devoted their life to sports and became a celebrity.
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.
The most popular sport in Mexico currently is association football followed by boxing. However, there are regional variations: for example, baseball is the most popular sport in the northwest and the southeast of the country. Basketball, American football and bull riding are also popular. The tradition of bullfighting remains strong in Mexico.
Sports are an important part of culture in the United States. Historically, the national sport has been baseball. However, in more recent decades, American football has been the most popular sport in terms of 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". In the first half of the 20th century, boxing and collegiate football were among the most popular sports after baseball. Golf, tennis, and collegiate basketball are other spectator sports with longstanding popularity. Most recently, Mixed martial arts, has been breaking records in attendance and broadcast viewership for all combat sports.
The Brazil women's national football team represents Brazil in international women's football and is run by the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF). It has participated in eight editions of the FIFA Women's World Cup, finishing as runner-up in 2007, and seven editions of the Copa América Femenina.
Women's professional sports are a relatively new phenomenon, having largely emerged within the latter part of the 20th century. Unlike amateur women athletes, professional women athletes are able to acquire an income which allows them to earn a living without requiring another source of income. In international terms, most top female athletes are not paid and work full-time or part-time jobs in addition to their training, practice, and competition schedules. Professional organizations for women in sport are most common in developed countries where there are investors available to buy teams and businesses which can afford to sponsor them in exchange for publicity and the opportunity to promote a variety of their products. Very few governments support professional sports, male or female. Today there are a number of professional women's sport leagues in the United States and Canada.
The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
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 localised, or are played at an amateur or informal level.
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.
American football, also known as gridiron, 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 passing 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 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 a 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 normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly called football include association football ; gridiron football ; Australian rules football; rugby union and rugby league; and Gaelic football. These various forms of football share to varying extents common origins and are known as "football codes".
Due to historical associations and geographical location with the United States, Cubans participate in American popular sports. While the majority of Latin American nations embrace soccer as the national game and pastime, in Cuba things are different. The country is not known for its soccer programs internationally. Instead, baseball is the most popular team sport along with volleyball, wrestling, basketball, sailing, boxing, and trekking.
The major sports in Venezuela are baseball, basketball and football. 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.
Miami United Football Club is an association football team based in Miami, Florida, United States. Founded in late 2012, the team made its debut in the Sunshine Conference of the National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) in 2013. The team plays its home games at North Miami Athletic Stadium, located in North Miami Beach, Florida.
Aline Villares Reis is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. She is the current goalkeeping coach for the Orlando Pride in the National Women's Soccer League. Aline grew up in Campinas, Brazil. At the age of 18, she moved to Orlando, FL to play college soccer. Aline was a standout player for every team she has participated in. She is known for her athleticism, speed & agility, leaping ability, and high technical level, being considered the Jorge Campos of women's soccer.
