American Football vs English Football: Kicking The Ball Across The Pond

While bringing the American gaming experience to the UK, we started thinking about all the awesome things both countries have. One thing jumped out at us straight away - football.

Hosted on both sides of the pond, football is a game known by players around the world. But, like plenty other things, the USA has its own twist on the game of football.

See, American football is a different ball game from the football y'all know in the UK. If you're looking for a slice of English-style football action, then you'll want to tune into a game of soccer. 

So, what are the key differences between our beloved sports? Take a look below to find out.

Rules of the games

Let's kick things off with the basics. We're talking the rules of the games, bud! Pull up a seat at an American football game and you might think you're watching a spin-off of rugby rather than the classic football game known in the UK.

With full contact allowed and all the gear to boot, the rules of American football are very different from the football y'all know and love to play in the UK.

To start with, football in the UK uses a pitch with a net at either end. The aim is simple: teams need to score more goals than the opposition to win, by getting the ball into the opponents' net. Teams don't need to sweat it if the ball doesn't hit the back of the net, though, it only has to cross the line at the entrance to qualify as a goal.

The ball is mostly passed, cleared or a shot is taken by kicking or heading it. Arms and hands are the only body parts that can't be used in English football, though some players have famously managed to score with them by fooling the referees.

Over in the States, American football goals are posts instead of the nets. And they're a lot higher than a standard net, too! Featuring a crossbar roughly three metres above the ground, American football players need to aim high to hope to score a goal. 

But that's not the only way American football players can score. Just like all good things, America has supersized the action by adding different ways to score points. The more points a team gets, the closer they’ll get to beating the opposition and becoming the champs. 

Here are all the ways an American football team can score during the game:

• Touchdowns: This move is worth six points, plus the opportunity to win extra points through a conversion. There are two options available with conversions: kicking the ball through the uprights for an extra point, or by getting the ball into the end zone from the two-yard line for two points.
• Field goals: Kicking the ball through the goalposts during American football is called a field goal. This move comes with a payout of three points, and teams have this option if their drive stutters in opposition territory. The longest successful kick on record is 66 yards, which was set in 2021.
• Defences: Defences can score too. They can either intercept a pass from the opposition or recover a fumble and run into the endzone for six. Safeties are worth two points, which happens when the defence tackles the player in possession in the endzone, or if the offence commits a foul in that area.

And American football players don't have free reign to run across the pitch like you'd see in UK football games. In American football, each team has four attempts (also called 'downs') to make 10 yards, which can get them closer to scoring points.

Unlike UK football, players can use their hands to throw a pass to the receiver or run with the ball to make the line. If they make 10 yards, then they'll bag another set of downs to go again.

Number of players

American football teams have a much bigger pool of players to choose from. A National Football League (NFL) roster features 53 players and an extra 16 on the practice squad.

If one of the starters gets injured during all the action, the head coach can activate a practice squad member to take their place.

Clubs in the Premier League (PL) must register a squad of up to 25 by the end of the transfer windows. The first deadline is at the end of August, and the second is at the close of January. Players under 21 don't need to be registered, so most sides work with a group of around 30.

On a PL matchday, clubs name 11 starters and nine substitutes on the bench. Only five of those subs can enter the field, and coaches have three windows to make their changes.

Meanwhile, there are three teams for the price of one in American football - offence, defence and special teams. Each has 11 players, but the entire 53-man roster is active and can be used at any time. You'll often see a lot of the defence switch between plays to try and keep them fresh and healthy, but most of the offence is in whenever they're on the field.

Length of the game

A football match in the UK is simple. It lasts 90 minutes split over two halves of 45 each. The clock never stops, so the referee often adds a few minutes at the end of both periods.

In American football, the game experience is a little more complicated. There are four quarters worth 15 minutes, but the fixture takes an average of three hours and 12 minutes to complete. This is because the clock pauses whenever things like time-outs, touchdowns and changes of possession happen. In fact, the ball is usually only in play for around 11 minutes during American football!

The good news about American football? You'll have plenty of time to play online blackjack and table games in our online casino while you wait for the action to restart.

The leagues: NFL vs Premier League

Try to explain the concept of relegation to an American sports fan, and you won't get far. For a lot of die-hard followers of teams in the PL, it's a scary reality.

There are 20 places in the league, and three of those spots are filled by the relegation zone. Finish in the bottom three and your team is relegated, staring at the prospect of the next season in the second tier.

NFL fans don't need to sweat about being relegated. The 32 teams in American football are split across two conferences (AFC and NFC), with four divisions in each (North, East, South, West).

Landed in fourth place in the division? No problem. There's another chance to win it next year, armed with better draft picks than the other three to rebuild the squad.

The team who finishes top after 38 games in the PL is crowned champions. No tricks, no messing, nice and simple. NFL franchises don't have it so easy - even if they win the division.

Divisional champions are joined in the play-offs with three more teams from each conference on the road to the Super Bowl. Teams can play up to four more games to get their hands on the Vince Lombardi Trophy, and regular season success is forgotten.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers landed the prize in 2020 as the #5 seed in the NFC Conference - six others won more games than they did.

Official nicknames

Football clubs in the UK do have nicknames - they just don't go hand-in-hand with their actual name like in American football.

Part of what makes NFL teams so well-known across the globe is their nickname. Even if people are oblivious to the sport, there's a good chance they've heard of the Cowboys (Dallas), the Steelers (Pittsburgh), and the Patriots (New England).

In English football, the same isn't true. Teams only use their official name, like Manchester United or Tottenham Hotspur. Imagine the Arsenal Gunners or the Chelsea Blues. It just doesn't work, folks.

Moving the team

Football is a business in the USA. Unfortunately for loyal fans, that means being prepared for something unthinkable in the UK - moving the team.

Six franchises have traded places since the Super Bowl era began in 1967, with nine moves in total. The most recent team to up sticks was the Oakland Raiders in 2020, becoming the first NFL team to play in Las Vegas. Anyone familiar with football will know this isn't exactly unheard of for the Raiders. They've been part of four moves, sandwiching a spell in Los Angeles between two stints in Oakland.

Only once in the UK has anything like that happened, since most fans would never accept their team being played in such a way.

Wimbledon were sent over 50 miles to play in Milton Keynes, rebranding as MK Dons in 2004. Their supporters didn't take this lightly and started a phoenix club, ironically rising to the fourth tier of English soccer - where MK Dons currently sit.

Signing players

Transferring players is very different on each side of the Atlantic. While soccer clubs spend hundreds of millions on new signings, NFL teams deal in draft capital.

The British record transfer fee has been smashed four times in the last three years, and four players have moved for sums worth over £100m. Chelsea set the standard twice in 2023, recruiting players in deals worth £106 million and £115 million.

PL teams spent £2.36 billion on new players last summer - a crazy amount, but still nowhere near the value of American football franchises!

If an NFL team wants to sign a contracted player, they trade picks for future drafts. The draft has seven rounds, where franchises select the best players fresh out of college. The worse a team does, the more valuable the pick is.

The Philadelphia Eagles gave up the 18th position in the 2023 draft to recruit a wide receiver from the Tennessee Titans in one of the more high-profile trades from recent years.

Casino across the pond

It's not just football and soccer that we love to compare. At Bally Casino, we're bringing the American gaming experience to the UK. That means we've got plenty of popular online casino games to enjoy, plus a host of live dealer tables.

Take the chance to win progressive jackpots and awesome multipliers in our live casino - Lightning Roulette has prizes worth up to 500x. Play live dealer game shows like Crazy Time and Mega Wheel, or enter the race for 21 in live blackjack.

Prefer to play at your own pace? No sweat. Jump in and place bets on the tables in our casino online, where you control every part of the game. Hit the 'Spin' button to light the fuse and start the action, with random number generators subbing in for live dealers.

And y'all can put all your new football knowledge to use with our epic sports betting platform, too! With American and English football fixtures on the calendar, you can cover both sides of the pond while betting for the chance to come out on top.

Don't Dilly Dally, get on Bally Casino to discover epic casino games online, slots and a whole lot more. Keen for more guides? We got you. Swing by the Bally Casino blog for more content from the top writers in the business.