Portal:American football

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American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), 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 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. A game is won by the team with the higher number of points, which 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.

American football evolved in the United States, originating from the sports of soccer and rugby. The first American football match was played on November 6, 1869, between two college teams, Rutgers and Princeton, using rules based on the rules of soccer at the time. A set of rule changes drawn up from 1880 onward by Walter Camp, the "Father of American Football", established the snap, the line of scrimmage, eleven-player teams, and the concept of downs. Later rule changes legalized the forward pass, created the neutral zone, and specified the size and shape of the football. The sport is closely related to Canadian football, which evolved in parallel with and at the same time as the American game, although its rules were developed independently from those of Camp. Most of the features that distinguish American football from rugby and soccer are also present in Canadian football. The two sports are considered the primary variants of gridiron football.

American football is the most popular sport in the United States in terms of broadcast viewership audience. The most popular forms of the game are professional and college football, with the other major levels being high-school and youth football. , nearly 1.04 million high-school athletes play the sport in the U.S., with another 81,000 college athletes in the NCAA and the NAIA. The National Football League (NFL) has the highest average attendance of any professional sports league in the world. Its championship game, the Super Bowl, ranks among the most-watched club sporting events globally. In 2022, the league had an annual revenue of around $18.6 billion, making it the most valuable sports league in the world. Other professional and amateur leagues exist worldwide, but the sport does not have the international popularity of other American sports like baseball or basketball; the sport maintains a growing following in the rest of North America, Europe, Brazil, and Japan. (Full article...)
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The 1879 Navy Midshipmen football team represented the United States Naval Academy in the 1879 college football season. The team was the 1st season intercollegiate football squad to represent the United States Naval Academy. The team had no coach, as it was entirely student-operated; however, it was captained by squad member Bill Maxwell. The team played just a single game, which was a scoreless tie with the Baltimore Athletic Club. The team was entirely student operated, and was not supported by the Naval Academy's faculty. The school would not have another football squad until 1882. (Full article...)
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The following are images from various American football-related articles on Wikipedia.

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Cleveland Browns Stadium
Cleveland Browns Stadium
Cleveland Browns Stadium is a football stadium located in Cleveland, Ohio. Home of the Cleveland Browns National Football League franchise, it sits on 31 acres (13 ha) of land on the shores of Lake Erie and has a capacity of at least 73,200.

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Zock Alexander Allen (born June 12, 1968) is a former gridiron football linebacker who played for the BC Lions and the Las Vegas Posse of the Canadian Football League. From 1991 to 1994, he played in 27 regular season games, recording 119 tackles, four sacks, and two fumble recoveries. He played college football for the Texas A&M–Kingsville Javelinas. (Full article...)

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I think he was the greatest football player that I ever stepped on the field against. Nobody dictated what you could do offensively like L.T..
— Steve Bartkowski

Retired Atlanta Falcons and Los Angeles Rams quarterback, on New York Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor

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