It is a common stereotype that Americans don’t like football. They created their own version and then renamed football soccer.
American football is hugely popular in the United States, it is the most-watched and valued sports league in the country, and the Super Bowl is watched by 100 million people.
Yet, football is actually quite popular in the US. Its top-flight league, Major League Soccer is the fastest growing football league in the world and is attracting many players from European clubs to help boost the league’s talent and appeal.
Despite this growth, there are still many differences between American “soccer” and football in England.
History
England is regarded as being the birthplace of football. Even FIFA considers the sport to have been invented and first played here. The English FA was founded in 1863, with the FA Cup being the world’s oldest football club competition.
While the English football league began its life back in 1888, giving the sport a long heritage in the country.
Meanwhile, football has had a difficult history on the other side of the pond. The first football club appeared in the US in 1862 when Oneida Football Club was founded.
However, the sport was very disorganized and disagreements about rules eventually led to the creation of American football in 1869.
The first domestic league, the American Soccer League, was not founded until 1921, and then only lasted 12 years.
The current Major League Soccer began life in 1995 as a condition for the US being given the 1994 World Cup, with the first games being played in 1996. Meaning soccer in its current form has a quarter of the history of football in England.
Betting
Betting on football is a very popular activity in the UK, with brands spending millions on advertising and sponsorship of football each year.
The system of betting on sports is also different in the US. You will find that most US bookmakers will display their odds as a number with a + or – sign next to it, rather than the fractional odds provided in the UK.
The two types of odds can be converted backward and forwards, but it can be a little confusing the first time you see these whole numbers.
Also, the most popular type of bet in US sport is the point spread bet, which means a team can win a game but the bet still does not payout, or conversely, they could lose a game and the bet still pays.
In addition to point spreads, other popular bets include totals, money lines, and props, and the possibility to apply the BetMGM promo code to go risk-free when trying some luck in your favorite sport.
Players
England has some of the best football players in the world thanks to the draw of the Premier League. Players come from all over the world, and there is no cap on the number of international players.
Although there are some flimsy restrictions on the maximum players can be paid, they’re nothing like the stringent rules in the MLS. When David Beckham joined LA Galaxy in 2007, the MLS had to create a “designated player” rule to allow circumvention of the league’s salary cap.
Although the situation has changed a lot in recent years, the quality of MLS players was brought into question during the 1998 World Cup.
The US National team, which was comprised mostly of MLS players, finished in last place. Things were different four years later though when the team made it to the quarterfinals.
The MLS still doesn’t quite compare to the Premier League though. Portland Timbers player Liam Ridgewell told The Independent in 2016 that the league is about the equivalent of The Championship.
The average total wage bill for an MLS club is around $8-10 million for a season. While a lot of money, it is less than some Championship clubs and is nowhere near the hundreds of millions spent in the Premier League.
From this, it is clear to see that the quality of football in the US is still not on par with that in England, although things appear to be improving for the MLS. In line with the lower levels of quality, MLS Players are paid less than those in England.
It remains to be seen as to whether the growth MLS is experiencing can help it to catch up to the Premier League.