Aussie Football- 2nd most popular.

[Zombie]

How can American Football really be called football?

How many kicks would there be in an average game? about 15? for both teams?

 

[PC28]

If we were averaging the size crowd they reported, we wouldn't be in the trouble we're in now...

 

[BrisGirl]

Originally posted by Zombie
How can American Football really be called football?

How many kicks would there be in an average game? about 15? for both teams?

I agree, I feel exactly the same way about Rugby League. It is an insult to call it football, because the main part of that game is carrying the ball.

If the ball was meant to be carried, it would have a handle.

 

[Jabso]

They should do the ratio of crowds per population, and also some teams away games at their home ground (like Collingwood vs. Essendon) should be counted as home games as they also contribute.

 

[mic59]

Originally posted by Zombie
How can American Football really be called football?

How many kicks would there be in an average game? about 15? for both teams?

I hardly think we can argue about what is and isn't football. Not that it matters anyway. After all, by definition the only real games of football are soccer and Gaelic football as the dictinary definition of a ball is "anything spherical or nearly so". The distance an Australian football is from the spherical can hardly be called "nearly so".

 

[Zombie]

Originally posted by mic59


I hardly think we can argue about what is and isn't football. Not that it matters anyway. After all, by definition the only real games of football are soccer and Gaelic football as the dictinary definition of a ball is "anything spherical or nearly so". The distance an Australian football is from the spherical can hardly be called "nearly so".

"Any of various rounded, movable objects used in various athletic activities and games"

Gaelic is basically a game the Irish play because they are crap at soccer (football) and want to pick the ball up with their hands.

 

[Mooster7]

HOMER RANT ALERT - PLEASE SKIP PAST


I'm going to be a homer, and complain bitterly about something on that site. It gives the Washington Redskins the number one spot because they have a new slightly larger stadium than do the Kansas City Chiefs. The fact is, the 'Skins can sell out their stadium every week, but that's about it. A lot of the seats sold there as a matter of fact are to fans from opposing teams. On the US Eastern Seaboard, everything is a a small drive or a cheap hop flight.

In KC it's entirely different. Arrowhead stadium sells out 78,000 each home game. We don't need fans from other cities either. Arrowhead will sell out even if the KC Royals are playing in their own stadium just across the parking lot. What's more, if by some odd chance each of those 78,000 got sick and couldn't go to the game, another 78,000 would take their place. Ditto, if the second lot fell ill. Arrowhead gets filled every week - period. Figure in that we haven't won the Super Bowl (Yank Grand Final) since 1969, nor have we made the finals in since 1997. There can be freezing rain, a meter of snow, and a bad season and Arrowhead gets filled to the brim.

No other NFL city can make the same claim. Across the state in St. Louis, they're starting to have available tickets because of their poor start for 2002. Bandwagon freaks. They were in the Super Bowl last year.

One last point. There was an US Lieutenant Colonel injured in the 11 September attack on the Pentagon. He was burned over 65% of his body. He's spent the last year or so having lots of surgeries and so forth. Tough year for him as you can imagine. Anyway, they asked him what it sounded like when the aircraft struck the Pentagon. He said, "It sounded like Arrowhead Stadium." Enough said. The Redskins can kiss my ***.

Rant over. Thanks,

 

[Dan26]

Mooster,

Of the 32 NFL teams, are there any who can't sell-out their stadiums each week, where the general public could rock up on the day, and get a seat?

And even if the public do turn up on the day to get what's left, are there still teams who can't fill the stadium anyway?

 

[dr nick]

for those of you who were thinking the figures were a bit low for some teams and a bit high for others, i just realised these figures were for the 6 month period till the end of 2001.

cant wait till they update the site

 

[MoffOnTou]

i hate to burst the bubble, but the website is a bit of a crock. I have had discussions about this website in the past, and the numbers are basically pulled out of someones arse.

Immediately, i could discredit the overall figures. College football in America (the NCAA) would attract average crowds that are much, much higher than the AFL. I know that for instance, some teams sell out 90,000 seat stadiums week after week.

Bottom line, i wouldn't put the rent on these figures being accurate

Moffo

 

[GOALden Hawk]

Originally posted by MoffOnTou
i hate to burst the bubble, but the website is a bit of a crock. I have had discussions about this website in the past, and the numbers are basically pulled out of someones arse.

Immediately, i could discredit the overall figures. College football in America (the NCAA) would attract average crowds that are much, much higher than the AFL. I know that for instance, some teams sell out 90,000 seat stadiums week after week.

Bottom line, i wouldn't put the rent on these figures being accurate

Moffo

Exactly what I was going to post - Michigan average 90,000+ to their games from memory, absolutely phenomenal when you consider they are not a professional side.

 

[Mooster7]

Originally posted by Dan26
Mooster,

Of the 32 NFL teams, are there any who can't sell-out their stadiums each week, where the general public could rock up on the day, and get a seat?

And even if the public do turn up on the day to get what's left, are there still teams who can't fill the stadium anyway?

Yup. It goes from week to week, year to year, but there are lots of teams who can't sell their seats. The Rams started 0-5 and their bandwagon fans left spare chairs in the last St. Louis home game.

Not at Arrowhead. I was serious when I said it would sell out three times over. You can always get tickets in the parking lot, but in KC they are sold tickets. They all go. In other cities you buy unsold tickets at the gate, and there are still blanks in the stands come game time.

 

[hawkfan5]

Originally posted by GOALden Hawk


Exactly what I was going to post - Michigan average 90,000+ to their games from memory, absolutely phenomenal when you consider they are not a professional side.

90,000?!?!

That is an unbelievable effort, we would be lucky to get to that mark maybe twice a year in the AFL.

 

[Dan26]

Mooster,

Which teams traditionally struggle for fans? I notice the Cardinals had a few crowds in the 30,000's. Is Arizona just not a football city, or something?

 

[Mooster7]

Originally posted by Dan26
Mooster,

Which teams traditionally struggle for fans? I notice the Cardinals had a few crowds in the 30,000's. Is Arizona just not a football city, or something?

The Cards have been bottom feeders for a long time. Before they moved to Arizona, they were in St. Louis (before the Rams moved there from LA). They sucked in St. Louis for years, and continued in this fine tradition after the franchise relocation. Hard to build a loyal fan base in a new locale when you suck, eh? Add to that, I think that region is more keen on baseball and basketball (read heretics).

Actually, this year the Cards are having one of the best seasons they've had in my memory. 30 grand is half lite. I think their Sun Devil Stadium holds 70 some-odd thousand. Is that crowd figure from the Preseason, Dan? I bet they're doing better now - especially since they have a higher probability of making the Playoffs than do the Rams.

Most NFL cities have fluctuating crowd loyalty. AFC West Teams - KC, Denver, San Diego & Oakland - are consistently fanatic. KC and Oakland most of all.

Special mention should be made to the Green Bay Packers. They always fill their seats too. There's some harsh Winter weather up there. They'll sit loyally through a 3 hour game in the snow and ice with temperatures and wind chill savagely below freezing. I'm talking Siberia type cold. What's more, there is a 'generational' waiting list for season tickets. Which means if you pass the waiting list to get on the waiting list for tickets. Your grandchildren might get them. That sounds like a joke, but it's absolutely true.

I will say the Pack are more loyal than KC. At the same time, my family is originally from Wisconsin, I've been to Green Bay myself, and the only entertainment in GB aside from football is making (permanent) snowmen and casting shadow puppets on the wall with your hands - oh, and drinking beers.

If you have the time, you can read about the legendary Ice Bowl here:

http://ps1.sportsline.com/u/page/historian/icebowl.htm


Win or lose, the Pack has been sold out before that, and since. Right up to the 'final siren.' Peace,

 

[TheMase]

Originally posted by hawkfan5


90,000?!?!

That is an unbelievable effort, we would be lucky to get to that mark maybe twice a year in the AFL.

Not really that unbelieveable.

Think about it this way, we get 80,000 to a Collingwood v Essendon match, in a country where there is 19 million people.

America gets 90,000 continually in a country that has around 190 million people.

Lets work that out.

Our 80,000 is the equivelent (If I worked it out correctly) of us getting 800,000 to that particular match.

So our effort is actually unbelieveable.

 

[Stealth bomber]

Special mention should be made to the Green Bay Packers. They always fill their seats too. There's some harsh Winter weather up there. They'll sit loyally through a 3 hour game in the snow and ice with temperatures and wind chill savagely below freezing. I'm talking Siberia type cold.

I've done it. And let me tell you what, I love it! The temperature can be literally -20*C and there will be people barbecuing in the parking lot. If you focus on the game and forget about the weather, you really don't notice

What's more, there is a 'generational' waiting list for season tickets. Which means if you pass the waiting list to get on the waiting list for tickets. Your grandchildren might get them. That sounds like a joke, but it's absolutely true.

It is absolutely true. I believe the waiting list is currently around 40,000, and names only move up when season ticket holders die, because nobody (NOBODY) gives them up. My father's company has 8 season tickets, and I have been the beneficiary of this on occasion.

It must be said though that this list doesn't really do some teams justice, like the Packers for example. Lambeau Field has a much smaller capacity then teams like Detroit and Washington who have newer, larger stadiums.

Lambeau is currently being renovated and expanded, so the total capacity will be going up to about 71,000. Look for them to jump in the standings.

 

[Stealth bomber]

Immediately, i could discredit the overall figures. College football in America (the NCAA) would attract average crowds that are much, much higher than the AFL. I know that for instance, some teams sell out 90,000 seat stadiums week after week.

Notable college stadium capacities:
Pennsylvania (Penn) State - 109,000
Univ. of Michigan - 106,000
Univ. of Tennessee - 103,000
Rose Bowl (UCLA) - 102,000
Univ. of Texas - approx. 101,000

These rarely sell out though unless the game is really important.

I must mention my beloved Nebraska Cornhuskers, even though they are having their worst season in 41 years (5 wins from 8 games, but the toughest ones are still to come).

They have sold out every home game since 1962, although the stadium was smaller then; it has gradually increased. All the tickets are sold, although you can usually get them on the street before the game for near or slightly over face value, then cheaper as kickoff approaches.

From 1972-1998, the average crowd for a Nebraska home game was 73,000, and since 1999 it has gone up to 77,000 due to a small expansion.

 

[MoffOnTou]

Stealth,

I know someone who went to Michigan and they pretty well assured me that the ground sells out week after week. I think its more a case of people with tickets not turning up. Its an amazing feat, but even if it didn't sell out week after week after week, the average crowds would still be well above the AFL numbers. As someone mentioned before, some of the AFL crowds were inflated as well.

Im not aware of the population of Michigan, but i doubt that its has a huge population. And Melbourne has, what 3-4 million in it?? I think the numbers are comparable. You cant consider the population of the whole continent, just the state where the team is based.

BTW, America has 290 million

Moffo

 

[dr nick]

Originally posted by MoffOnTou
i hate to burst the bubble, but the website is a bit of a crock. I have had discussions about this website in the past, and the numbers are basically pulled out of someones arse.

Moffo

well moff, obviously im not going to try and work out all those numbers for myself, but i looked at a few of the AFL and NRL crowds for the last 6 months of 2001 (July - Dec) and they proved to be true. they also include any semi's of GF's the team may happen to play.

wouldnt have a clue about college football, wouldnt know where to look for figures, but im staggered at how popular it is. unbelievable

 

[Stealth bomber]

Canadian Football explained

Canadian Football is essentially identical to American football, with three or four slight rules quirks.

1. 12 players on the field instead of 11.
2. Field is 10% longer and 20% wider, with larger end zones.
3. Only three downs instead of four.
4. Missed field goal and extra point attempts can be "returned" - if you bring it out of the end zone, it scores one point. This is called a "rouge", and is probably the single most confusing thing associated with Canadian football.

The Canadian Football League plays each year for the Grey Cup. Currently there are 9 franchises: Toronto Argonauts, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Ottawa Renegades, Monteal Allouettes, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Calgary Stampeders, Edmonton Eskimos, and British Columbia Lions.

Until very recently, Ottawa was also called the Rough Riders (Note that it is two words instead of one). This has always been a subject of ridicule in the U.S., one good example being in the Terrance and Phillip episode of "South Park" where they go to the Roughriders vs. Rough Riders football game.

The league actually expanded into the U.S. in the early 90s, with teams from Baltimore (before the Ravens existed) and Las Vegas and a few others. The Baltimore team originally wanted to call itself the Colts, (the Indianapolis Colts were the Baltimore Colts prior to 1984) but the NFL intervened and they settled for Stallions instead. Baltimore is the only US based team to win the Grey Cup, which they did in either 95' or 96'. When the NFL's Cleveland Browns became the Baltimore Ravens, the Stallions folded and all of the other US-based teams went A over T as well.

The majority of the players are basically NFL rejects, although there was a requirement at one point that 20% of all rosters must be Canadian born, don't know if that is still true.

 

[Tim_in_Philly]

Originally posted by hawkfan5


And I also had a look at the VFL teams in another section.

Box Hill has the best average attendance of 2068, Werribee has an average of 1980 while perhaps the most dissapointing of the average attendances is the Murray Kangaroos, with an average of just 464 at each of their games.

You forgot Tasmania: 3218. In Hobart it's about 4,000 with two or three games each season having been near 5,000.

 

[dr nick]

i cant even find college football on that website. perhaps they only do professional leagues?

 

[Stealth bomber]

Tennessee and Michigan have both averaged well over 105,000 for the past five years, NCAA records which continue to be broken as each one further expands their stadiums and attempting to one-up each other. There has been an ongoing battle between the two schools for the title of world's largest gridiron stadium.

The University of Texas (fittingly) wants in on this, as they have reportedly made plans to expand their own stadium from 85,000 to possibly as much as 110,000.

So Nebraska's streak may not look like much, but the population of the state of Nebraska is only 1.6 million people. When full, the football stadium is the 3rd largest city in the state.

The populations of Michigan and Tennessee, respectively, are 10 million and 5.7 million. To be fair, they do have other universities to compete within in their state.