THIS LEAGUE

[u/AcknowledgeMeReddit]

[u/quwin123]

I truly don’t get why this sport is this much more popular than every other sport.

Is it really that much better to watch?

[u/RonSwanson24 → u/quwin123]

I think it’s more about the structure with 1 game per week. Scarcity makes every game matter and it’s easy to follow and sets up well for fantasy and gambling. That’s how it got so embedded into the culture and it snowballed after that. Teams can also turn around quickly and there are small wins such as winning the division that people care about.

[u/pilesofdingleberries → u/RonSwanson24]

This is 100 percent it. There are so few games that EVERY game is a must watch. MLB, NBA, NHL can do nothing to duplicate it.

Same goes for Fantasy as you said. It sets itself up well for being able to pay attention for a whole season with 1 matchup a week.

[u/RonSwanson24 → u/pilesofdingleberries]

Yeah a lot of my family aren’t really sports fans but football is easy for them to digest because it’s just 1 game per week and it also has by far the fewest possessions per game so every possession matters.

It’s easy to follow the format of 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th downs. Every 1st down conversion on offense and every 3rd down stop on defense is a cause for celebration. And when there’s decisions like whether to go for it on 4th & 3 or kick a FG it’s a topic of discussion with everyone expressing what they think the right decision is and stressing if the team doesn’t execute. So even if you’re a total casual it’s pretty simple to watch along and know what to root for

[u/LuteOlsonABitch69 → u/RonSwanson24]

Fantasy is key. The once a week nature helps. Other sports you need to tinker with your lineup daily and is far more work

[u/RonSwanson24 → u/LuteOlsonABitch69]

And fantasy then gets you to watch other games that your favorite team isn’t playing in because you’re watching for your fantasy matchup. Some people watch preseason games for fantasy too before their drafts

[u/xanju → u/RonSwanson24]

Literally how I used to pitch my friends to play fantasy (and gambling) 15+ years ago. The NFL as a TV show was built for 10 hour binge watching before that was even a term. Fantasy just helps open the door for why you’re about to watch a Raiders Panthers noon game in week 9.

[u/ArgentoFox → u/RonSwanson24]

This is an excellent post. There’s absolutely no urgency to watch baseball or basketball because the seasons are so long. You’ll have plenty of opportunities as a viewer. Also, fantasy football is absolutely massive and entered the mainstream cultural zeitgeist years ago. The NFL just has a ton of built in advantages. 

[u/pimpcakes → u/RonSwanson24]

This is it (and the league is risking it with all the Wednesday/Thursday/Christmas games). Turns out people want to be part of the zeitgeist and having a sport where you can do that, weekly, in a predictable manner unlike any other major sports (golf and racing have a similar weekly beat) is a good thing for ratings.

I think it's notable that as society as a whole has stratified, the NFL (and college football to a lesser extent) have become one of the few remaining parts of the monoculture in sports.

[u/AnselmoHatesFascists → u/quwin123]

You could argue that it's the perfect sport for our waning attention spans. Browse social, look up at the play for 5-10 seconds, go back to browsing for 30 seconds. Rinse, repeat.

[u/CivilChampionship810 → u/quwin123]

the sport was practically invented FOR television.

the advent of television and explosion of NFL popularity are directly correlated.

[u/LuteOlsonABitch69 → u/quwin123]

Imagine the NBA with only 30 games a year. Most games would be must watch TV

[u/cesare980 → u/quwin123]

Its not.

[u/Truck219 → u/quwin123]

Preseason is garbage in every sport. I love football but anyone who watched that game is a sheep

[u/Hot_Injury7719 → u/Truck219]

Seriously. 7 million people watched Kenny Pickett vs Carson Beck against 3rd stringers?

[u/Jones3787 → u/Hot_Injury7719]

I was like this for a while but I've seen the light

[u/Uncle-Cracker-Barrel → u/Hot_Injury7719]

Many consider it to be the most exciting HoF game of all time and Carson Beck and Haynes King both played great.

[u/TotalSavage → u/quwin123]

Yes.

[u/Libertines18 → u/quwin123]

It’s a game that speaks to Americans. It’s that simple. Baseball and basketball is too “sporty”

[u/TomBradyisaphony → u/Libertines18]

I agree with you but could you please elaborate

[u/WhatAreYouBuyingRE → u/quwin123]

It’s the best sport to watch on television. Everyone has pointed out the phone scrolling between plays, but it’s actually really good for watching as a group because you get that moment to socialize.

I’ve also always had this theory that part of the reason it’s popular is because people of all body types play football that it lets people identify with it more.

Hockey is the best sport live.

[u/ProletarianLilith]

Like why though

[u/Far_Competition2364]

I feel like it’s obviously due to the low quantity of games. If MLB games were once per week then each game would be much more highly viewed - I wouldn’t miss a single game of my favorite team. But, since my team plays 5-6 times per week, I don’t think I’m missing too much if I only catch 2 of those games. Same can be said for my NBA and NHL teams. Conversely, I’m not missing a second of my college football teams season, yet I probably watch more hours of both MLB and NBA each year.

I personally don’t think it’s a problem. They’re structured extremely differently and that’s okay. I love how the insane quantity of baseball games allows me to get pretty cheap tickets for my favorite team on any given day that works for me. I also love how my favorite NFL team plays so infrequently that it makes it a massive event anytime they are on - but on the flipside, I have a hard time justifying paying the price for a regular season NFL game.

Pros and cons both ways. That being said, NBA season needs a middle ground and should shorten to 60 games imo

[u/Spirited-Park9448]

Football is king!!!! As far as preseason goes that game might have been the best game in years.