Baseball was long ago titled “America’s Pastime”, it was a symbol of the United States and, however stereotypical, a topic of conversation between fathers and sons nationwide. However, much like basketball, baseball is now a game shared by the world. It is beloved in South American and Pacific countries; with each having their own professional leagues and slew of Major League Baseball stars to call their own. Baseball is no longer America’s; it’s the world’s game. But what about football? More specifically: the NFL.
Of the four major sports leagues in North America the NFL is the only one without a team outside the States. Now the exception to this rule for the NBA and MLB is Toronto, with failed franchises moving from Vancouver to Memphis and from Montreal to Washington respectively. The NHL is the most diverse, but seeing as without Canadian teams and players the league would probably collapse, it’s a bit of a different circumstance. Either way, a passport is required to play in each of these three leagues. Recently the NFL has been getting closer to branching out. Regular season games have been played in Mexico City, Toronto, and London; the latter two having become annual events. Moving franchises to Toronto and London has even been debated and deliberated at length. But to me the question isn’t: Could teams survive in outside the U.S.? But: Could the NFL keep its identity?
Take Sunday’s Super Bowl. In fact take any Super Bowl. The NFL always tries to sell its global efforts. I mean how many times have you heard “viewed in over 200 countries” at some point during the opening 20 minutes of the broadcast? Countless. They aren’t wrong, but the game is a spectacle, it’s easily identified with. In fact it just justifies my point; the NFL could survive anywhere, the league is that well run. But Super Bowl XLV’s pre-game festivities did little to showcase any other nation but the United States, alienating those other 199 apparent nations enjoying and partaking in the big game.
Yes. It is important to show support for the troops. I have no problem with any of that, especially considering this is likely the most watched event on the Armed Forces Network, but reading the Declaration of Independence before the game? Seriously? For a league that is trying to market its product in Britain; is it really the best idea to read a document that features a section completely bashing King George III and basically listing the reasons they wanted out from under “absolute Tyranny”? Does no one else see the irony of the Americanised NFL having a colony… Sorry, a team in London? It’s like the bizzaro Declaration of Independence. Even the singing of “God Bless America” presents a problem when dealing with the league featuring non-American teams. It’s a tradition, and quite frankly, a beautiful song. But are you going to sing it at a Super Bowl featuring a team from Toronto? If so where? Between “O Canada” and “The Star-Spangled Banner”? Is it politically correct to break-up national anthems so you can sing a second song about how white and foamy one nation’s oceans are? From 6 p.m. to the 6:30 kick-off there’s so much Americana shoved down the throat of the viewer you’re left coughing up stars and stripes for a week.
