Football Versus Footbal – English Contrast Essay
Since ancient times human beings have developed ways of training their bodies; firstly as a manner of being strong, then as a way of becoming integral developed human beings and fulfill the “healthy body, healthy mind” principle and finally as a way of having fun healthily, developing as an individual, being able to work as a team member and staying healthy as well.
There are numerous sport disciplines, in which individuals can develop and strengthen their physical abilities such as athletics, swimming, gymnastics, basketball, tennis, etc; even though, there is specially one which evokes great passion worldwide called football. Nevertheless, this generic name is used to identify several quite different sport disciplines, but the most famous ones are football or soccer and American football. Both have the same objective, both mean a lot to their fans and in both their star players are well paid; though, they differ from one another in their essence, this means the way they are played and issues such as pitch measurements and match time, players` role and equipment, ball itself and penalties.
As a similarity, the two sports have the same grounds and are big sources of entertainment. The object of both sports, like most other games of football, is to advance the ball towards the opponent`s end of the field and score more points than the opposite team in a period of time. Besides, the most exciting moment of the game is definitely scoring goals. This is what makes people to become fans and incorporate the sport into their lives; football fans do whatever they can in order to support their team(s) for instance: watching their team on TV or alive, buying shirts and caps, watching the sport section on TV or reading it in the newpapers. As a consequence of this fanaticism, famous and wealthy teams are constantly hiring famous players and paying them exorbitant wages. Both sports have very well known stars such as Ronaldo, Ronaldiño, Beckham and Zidane in football and Donovan McNab, Terrell Owens, and Payton Maning in American football; they earn millions of dollars every season, besides most of them are paid by working on advertisements for famous sportwear such as Nike, Adidas, ect.
In contrast, both games differ in style. These sports are played in different ways. Football is a ball game played with the feet, but players may use any part of their body except their hands and arms to propel the ball; the exceptions to this is the goalkeeper, who is the only player allowed to handle the ball in the field. On the contrary, American football is a ball game played with the arms, this means players may carry the ball, throw it or handle it from one teammate to the other and placekick it. Another difference lies in the pitch measurements. A football field must be rectangular and have two goal posts at each side, its length should be in the range of 90-120m. and the width between 45-90m. Near to the goalposts there is an area called “penalty area.” On the other hand, an American football pitch must be a rectangular of 110m. long by 49 m. wide; the field is crossed every 4.55m. by lines called “ yard lines” and there are two goal posts outside de marked area. Moreover, the period of time involve in both sports is unlike. A football match consists of two periods, known as halves, of 45 minutes each; there is usually a 15-minute break between halves, known as half time; the end of the match is known as full-time. In some tournaments if a match is tied at the end, it is necessary to play extra time, this means two 15-minute periods. If the score is still tied after extra time, the use of penalty shootouts is allowed. Differently, it is the case of an American football game which consists of four quarters of 15-minute, with a halftime after the second quarter. If a game is tied after four quarters, the teams play another 15 minutes. The first team that scores wins; if neither team scores, the game is a tie.
Another difference is established by the elements that are used in these sports. Even though, both sports need eleven players on the field; their equipment and roles are different.. In football, players are required to wear a shirt, shorts, socks or stockings, footwear and adequate shin guards. About their roles, there are four positions in which players are strategically placed by the coach: goalkeeper, defenders, midfielders and forwards; each one of the players generally plays in the same position; besides, the team is leaded by a Captain. Contrarily, in American football players protect themselves using three kinds of protection: head protection which includes the helmet, jaw pads, face mask, mouth piece And chin strap; body protection such as neck roll, shoulders pads, shock pads, rib pads, arm pads, elbow pads, lineman glovers and receiver glovers and finally leg protection as hip and tailbone pads, girdle, thigh and knee pads, football pants and football cleats. In relation to its players` role, a team is divided into three specialized separate units: the offensive team, the defensive team, and the special teams; which are all lead by a field marshal.
In the same way, both sports are played with different types of balls. On one hand, football uses a sphere shape ball which is made up from synthetic leather and it has a diameter of 22 m approximately. There are various types of it for instance: proffesional balls, indoors balls, promotional balls, etc. and four different sizes and weights according to the players` age. On the other hand, American football uses a pointed oval shape ball which is made up of four pieces of leather stitched together. It is about 28 cm. long and about 18 cm. in diameter at its center. It could be made either of rubber or plastic. Lastly, in both sport referees have different ways of showing a misconduct or fault to the audience. In football referees show a caution (yellw card) or a sending off (red card) while in American football they thow a yellow handkerchief on the ground.
In conclusion, it is easy to appreciate both sports have their own charm. On one side, football is an sport easy to play, it does not require to much equipment, it is mostly about ability and it does not need a special field or ball. On the other side, American football represents a discipline in which force is everything, a possibility of learning a new game system and an illusion of wearing a big equipment. However, it is also easy to figure out why football is and will always be the most popular team sport in the world, because of its simplicity, you only need a ball and the will to play.