we are going to settle this

[Ser Clegane]

American Football all the way. I'm sorry you Europeans don't understand the sport--you'd quickly convert if you spent a week trying to get into it.

I think I have quite a good grasp of the game - while I enjoy watching it, in most cases I would probably still prefer a good Football match

[Ser Clegane]

You understand the rules, but do you understand the game? You have to get together with some friends and play a game of American football to truly understand it. A play lasts only 30 seconds or so--usually less--but that's an entire battle right there.

Actually I did have this experience and I used to cheer for our Highschool team (all the way to the Washington State finals in the Kingdome - which they unfortunately lost )

In addition we have the most popular professional American Football team in Europe located here in Frankfurt.

So I think my connection goes a bit beyond "understanding the rules" - and I'd like to repeat that I tremendously enjoy watching American Football, but in the end it's the traditional Football games I really can get excited about...

[Hurin_Rules]

Ice Hockey.

[King Ragnar]

Hey i forgot one Sport UFC, now there is a mans sport.

[Aenlic]

I think the best sport to watch would be an amalgam of Australian rules football, rugby, hang-gliding, water polo, golf, orienteering, target shooting and the Afghan equestrian sport of buzkashi.

Here's how it would work.

The competition begins in two parts. First there's a scrim where a bunch of aggressive individuals with only parts of their ears remaining attempt to keep each other from gaining control of a little white dimpled ball. At the same time, nearby, a bunch of aggressive and water-logged individuals battle each other trying to toss a long thin club with a wedge-shaped terminus into one or the other team's goal. On a successful goal, a team member oddly clad in mismatched but expensive casual wear grabs the club and runs off to chase the little white dimpled ball which has just shot out of the scrim along with miscellaneous pieces of ear. Now, the oddly clad athlete with the club attempts to strike the ball in such a manner as to make it fly down the field toward another goal. In the air, hang-gliding players battle each other, with the opposing side trying to deflect the ball in flight and the supporting flyers attempting to distract the defending flyers by shooting them with rubber bullets.

Now comes the fun part. The course/field stretches through a mine field, a marsh, some woods, and dangerous cliffs and water traps. The orienteering squad attempts to steer their team member in the expensive casual wear toward the final goal, all the while dodging rubber bullets from the air. As they near the goal, battling groups of horse-riding nomads attempt to gain the advantage. The equestrian team which succeeds in getting closest to the player in the expensive and mismatched casual wear smack him upside the head with a lead-filled blackjack and drag him on the ground while hanging sideways off their saddles toward the other team's goal while the opposing team attempts to steal their casual wear guy back. A successful score entails tossing the limp guy in the casual wear over a goal for points. Then we return to the scrim and water portion of the contest for the next round.

[Crazed Rabbit]

Soccer aka 'real football'.

USA football is boring, with all the small breaks. Baseball is really boring.

all the way to the Washington State finals in the Kingdome - which they unfortunately lost

Really? That happened to my former HS somewhat recently. Might I inquire as to where you went?

Crazed Rabbit

[Papewaio]

Played Football (Soccer) wing, back and goalie for my school. Plenty of blood noses. Even played a version of Football on ashphalt courts using a tennis ball... plenty of skinned knees.

Played Rugby League at lunch breaks at school and cricket too. Chipped my teeth down to the point that they are level with the rest despite starting at least 3mms longer.

Played Union on the weekends. Wing. Starting playing after a mate got his arm broken by the rest of my mates and said 'This is the game for me.'

Played American Football, Corner Back and Special Teams. Broke my collar bone in two places... but denied the running back his touch down.

I have played both Baseball and Softball (mainly softball as we played mixed teams). Pitcher and fielder... not so good at batting, for some reason I could only really hit balls with a lot of spin on them.

Played a tiny amount of Aussie Rules. Watched a lot more, great spectator sport.

====

Cricket people do die... check out the amount of padding in Cricket, the hardness of the ball (it is like a field hockey ball (played that too) with a hard ridge) and the speed at which it is bowled.

Rugby Union... the forwards (the stocky, big guys... Orcs) tend to get their necks broken in the scrums.

[Ianofsmeg16]

I'm a Prop!!! i'm gonna get my neck broken!!!!
Yeah i dont understand why people say Cricket is boring, if you watched the last day of the test at Old trafford a couple of days ago, you'd understand why people are nterested in it

[Proletariat]

Baseball. Now that there's a proper thread, I shall unleash and reiterate.

Soccer and football are more popular than baseball because they are easy to understand. Baseball is the alternative (and maybe Cricket, but I don't live where it's played so I'll never end up giving it a chance).

(All you naughty Americans who are acting as if only you understand this sport need to get over yourselves. Anyone who has the attention span to last a 15 minute quarter can figure the game out. The strategy basically consists of the skill an amateur poker player needs. [They're gonna run? Load the box. They're gonna pass? Dime coverage. Oh, we guessed wrong? Touchdown.])

Football coaches don't even know how to get kicked out of a game properly.

1. Parity — Baseball has it. Football doesn't. Baseball has had five champions the last five years. The New England Patriots have won something like 20 straight Super Bowls.

2. Cheerleaders — Football has them. Baseball doesn't. Never has. Never will. Baseball doesn't need sex to sell its game.

3. Major League Players Association — Unlike football, baseball has a union that's strong and vibrant and watches out for the best interests of its players. There'll never be a salary cap in baseball.

4. Fenway Park — There's a magic there unlike any other place in sports. There's a stateliness that transcends even the special things that have happened there.

5. The Rocket — Every time he walks to the mound, it's an event. At 42, Roger Clemens has 328 victories, 4,317 strikeouts and seven Cy Young Awards. There has never been one like him.

6. Cooperstown, N.Y. — Baseball's Hall of Fame is so splendidly done, it would be special anyplace they put it. But having it in this lovely village enhances what's special. Football can't even come up with a legitimate selection process.

7. Instant replay — Let's stop a perfectly good game for 15 minutes while a guy looks at a television screen to find out what happened. Baseball understands the human element is part of the game.

8. Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell — They're beginning their 15th season together. They define professional and performance.

9. Quarterback ratings — Leave it to football to make one of its most important statistics one that almost no one understands.

10. All-Star Game — It's one of the showcase events in sports. It even counts for something. Does football still play the Pro Bowl?

11. Slogans — Football coaches paste them all over their locker rooms as if players have to be constantly reminded that playing hard and being unselfish is important. Most baseball players get it.

12. SBC Park — Stand on the walkway behind the right-field wall and take in the bay, emerald green field, San Francisco skyline and smell of garlic fries. There might not be a better place on earth.

13. Box scores — One of the most important inventions of the last 100 or so years.

14. Overtime games — You mean a coin flip could decide it?

15. Bud Selig — He's the guy in your neighborhood who almost everyone likes. He's revered by players and owners alike for his integrity and toughness. His legacy will include labor peace, wild-card berths, interleague play and record-setting attendance. He'll be the commissioner all future ones will be measured against.

16. Paul Tagliabue — If we admired smugness, we'd make him king of the world.

17. Janet Jackson — You don't have to ask, do you?

18. Dodger Dogs — Research shows they're as close to the perfect food as now exists. And the setting at Dodger Stadium ain't too bad, either.

19. Quarterback school — Is it where you go to finish your degree? Why does the NFL have so many of them? There must be some really dumb quarterbacks.

20. 56 — Every baseball fan knows Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak is the single most unbreakable record in sports. Or maybe it's Ted Williams' .406 batting average in 1941. Or Nolan Ryan's 5,714 career strikeouts. Baseball's numbers are more than just numbers. They shake memories, provide reference points and are unlike those in any other sport.

21. Ticket prices — Take out a second mortgage if you want to see your favorite NFL team. Better yet, come to the ballpark, where there are still good seats for under $20.

22. Milo Hamilton — He's not the radio voice of the Astros as much as he's the background music of our summers. It's the same with Vin Scully in Los Angeles, Marty Brennaman in Cincinnati, Eric Nadel in Texas, Jon Miller in San Francisco and others. They're constant reminders why we love it.

23. Autograph — Baseball players sign 'em almost every day. Football players don't get close enough to the fans.

24. Bull Durham/Field of Dreams — Baseball has inspired wonderful movies. Football has North Dallas Forty.

25. Ballpark nachos — They remain Arlington Stadium's lasting contribution to the game. They have all the basic food groups. Napkins required.

26. Terrell Owens — Baseball would consider him a bore. Football sees him as a cult hero.

27. Billy Wagner — He's 5-9 and throws 100 mph. Next.

28. September — There's nothing like the grinding, relentless pressure of a pennant race. The season rides on almost every pitch. The players are physically spent and mentally exhausted, and yet, they remember forever how great it was.

29. Coaches who sleep in their offices — Does it really help? What exactly are you trying to prove? Baseball managers go to dinner, not to the office, after games.

30. The World Series — Nine days. Seven games. Curt Schilling's stitched ankle. Priceless.

[Ser Clegane]

Really? That happened to my former HS somewhat recently. Might I inquire as to where you went?

I went to Juanita High in Kirkland - quite some time ago (1986).

IIRC we lost the final to Gonzaga Prep that year.

[edyzmedieval]

All suck....

Basketball rulzzz.....

[Gawain of Orkeny]

So do you. American and Australian football and rugby are all just bastardised versions of football, invented in the town of rugby in England.

Again check the olympic stats. We rule all of sports while you are only good at the ones you invented.

Have you been in a stadium of soccer here and seing everybody sing and scream an getting up on the fences until throwing it down. And then rob (yes rob) the players, it's quite a savage show, at least more savage that any NFL game

Yes the crowd is but not the players. Bye the way I played on a championship soccer team in HS. We came in second in the state. I know all about soccer. Its a great game and takes much more stamina than football as you never get a break espically playing a forward like it did. But football is far more physical a game.

Im sure a Football game(proper football) would beat an NFL game by miles, the sound would be far better

What sound? Soccer is silent compared to football.

also Gawain i still dont know how you can describe a NFL game like a war

Then again I suggest you have no grasp of football. The coaches maje up a war plan. They study the enemies forces and how they use them and come up with both a defense and an offense to take advantage of this. Every play is drawn out and practiced just like we practiced for d day. There is the ground attack of the half backs and fullbacks and sometimes the quarterback. Theres the aerial attack of the OB and the recivers. Then theres the real war in the trenches and thats exactly what its called. In every way football can be compared to war.

[scooter_the_shooter]

WE ALL know IDPA is the most fun and hardest sport......(I suck at it though....I lose....every time)



But sense most here do not know what it is(and it is illegal in many countries ) and those that do probably do not think it is a sport I will have to say that basket ball is the best No normal sport can beat basket ball.


(here is idpa)

http://www.idpa.com/

PS please don't start debating wether this sport should be allowed or not.

[Taurus]

For me it is a real close call between American Football and "the other" Football. But in the end I choose American Football baby!

[Sjakihata]

I know the game very well. Been watching it for more than 3 years now - occasionally play it (or a lighter version of it) with my friends and I've got Madden NFL on the pc too.

But still, football beats american rugby

[King Ragnar]

I know the game very well. Been watching it for more than 3 years now - occasionally play it (or a lighter version of it) with my friends and I've got Madden NFL on the pc too.

But still, football beats american rugby

Lol American Rugby

[ShadesPanther]

may favouite would be
1. the Real football (the one that involves feet touching ball)
2. Rugby. comon Ireland beat England good
3. Baseball (on live at 2am when Insomnia strikes)
4. American football. Rugby with padding and stopping for a breather every 10 secs
5. Cricket its just so boring