How to get into American Football?

worm · January 7

Hey guys!

Being a foreigner and not having American Football here (instead we have Soccer and Rugby, and instead of Soccer we call it Football), I never got into the sport. When I was a kid I tried playing a videogame of it but didn't understand a thing.

Let's say I'm interested in getting to know the sport, to watch a game and understand it, and maybe get the excitement behind it, where do I start? What do you recommend?

**Mike** · January 7

6 hours ago, worm said:

Hey guys!

Being a foreigner and not having American Football here (instead we have Soccer and Rugby, and instead of Soccer we call it Football), I never got into the sport. When I was a kid I tried playing a videogame of it but didn't understand a thing.

Let's say I'm interested in getting to know the sport, to watch a game and understand it, and maybe get the excitement behind it, where do I start? What do you recommend?

It's great to see you take an interest! The best way to learn is probably by watching a TV broadcast if you get the chance. The TV broadcast has two announcers, one to give the play-by-play, filling you in on what's going on. The second announcer is the analyst (aka. color commentator). They give statistics, talk strategy, and give deeper insights. These are often former players.

Tomorrow is the College Football National Championship game. That's the college football equivalent of what the World Cup is in soccer. If you can watch the TV broadcast of it, that would be a great place to start!

NFL UK also put out a Beginner's Guide to American Football on YouTube. It's just over a minute long but does a great job of going over the basics. It might be worth checking out the channel to see if there's more like it.

**Mike** · January 7

I found another channel with more in-depth guides to American Football. Here's their Football 101 Playlist. Another channel that might be worth exploring.

Some minor things have changed since these videos were made, but they're mostly negligible. For example, the season is now 18 weeks (17 games) instead of the 17 weeks (16 games) mentioned in the video.

worm · January 8

Thanks Motor! I will check this out during this week and report back, we'll see if I'm in or out!

**Mike** · January 8

1 minute ago, worm said:

Thanks Motor! I will check this out during this week and report back, we'll see if I'm in or out!

Looking forward to your thoughts!

worm · January 8

Alright, I'm interested. The sport looked complicated, but now I see it's quite simple but with some complexity that makes it unique, in a good way. I feel I can get into it fairly easily as a casual viewer, but I know it has its depth and learning curve to understand it at a higher level.

I will watch some games on YouTube and try to grasp the basics explained in these videos.

Do you have a specific game to recommend me? Like one would recommend a specific boxing match that displays good quality and entertainment.

**Mike** · January 8

9 hours ago, worm said:

Alright, I'm interested. The sport looked complicated, but now I see it's quite simple but with some complexity that makes it unique, in a good way. I feel I can get into it fairly easily as a casual viewer, but I know it has its depth and learning curve to understand it at a higher level.

I will watch some games on YouTube and try to grasp the basics explained in these videos.

Do you have a specific game to recommend me? Like one would recommend a specific boxing match that displays good quality and entertainment.

Glad you checked it out. Without any context, here's a playoff game from 2017 that's absolutely worth checking out (Vikings vs Saints)

And one other would be the Super Bowl from the 2016 season (Patriots vs Falcons).

They're a few hours long, so you'll need a bit of time. Hope you enjoy!

**Mike** · January 8

And one more... This is my favorite team (Carolina Panthers) in the Super Bowl following the 2003 season. It didn't go the way I hoped, but still a classic.