Baseball or Football : Which Would You Say is Our National Pastime???

Growing up in the sixties and seventies, most people I hung around seemed to agree with the general consensus that baseball was our country's national pastime. As a baseball guy, I'm still going cowhide over pigskin. I suspect baseball will always be my national pastime. However, it has become a rather hotly-debated topic in recent years.

Back a couple years ago, Bloomberg Politics conducted a poll asking this very question:

"A national pastime is a sport that is considered to be a central part of the culture of a nation. In the U.S. today, do you think that sport is baseball or football?"

Football won that poll.

I read an article in The Atlantic a few years back that argued vigorously for baseball still being the national pastime.

I was reminded of this topic last week when the radio station I was listening to mentioned a survey that had asked this question. Football won that survey by a slim margin.

Where do you fall in this debate??? What is your reasoning?

I'll post a poll for those who want to vote. I'll include basketball , for those who want a third option.

Cincy area, with the interest in HS/College/Pro football, I'd say football.

I said Football in the poll, but for me personally growing up Baseball and Basketball were tops, with Football taking 3rd place.

Now that I'm older I barely have the patience to watch a whole Major League Baseball, or NBA Basketball game on TV, but I'll watch an NFL game whenever it's on the tube.

I personally don't think that our culture, with so many options of things to be preoccupied with, have the attention span to follow Baseball and Basketball on a daily basis, but with NFL Football it's mostly a Sunday tradition albeit the Monday and Thursday Night games that just keep the follower juiced and pacified from having to wait a full week, while the whole thing isn't as consuming as paying attention daily.

Also, NBA basketball feels repetitive, and MLB feels too slow, while even though patience can also be required in football, the action, score or not, can keep the fan interested.

My Top 5 as a kid:

1. MLB

2. NCAA Basketball

3. NBA

4. NFL

5. College Football

My Top 5 as an adult

1. NFL Football

2. College Basketball

3. MLB

4. NBA

5. College Football

Football.

By the definition it is football by a mile.

Baseball and it's not even close. Let's see which sport is still around in 50 years also.

Baseball and it's not even close. Let's see which sport is still around in 50 years also.

Thank you, JA !!!!

Football now and has been since the turn of the century. Plus football at the College and High school level trounces baseball not to mention at the NFL/MLB level.

As for 20 years from now it will be Basketball. Football will regress and Basketball will take over in the US. And Basketball will become more global also.

Baseball will always be around but decreasing in popularity as a generation that made in #1 literally dies off.

Baseball and it's not even close. Let's see which sport is still around in 50 years also.

In 50 years how many americans will be laying baseball in the MLB?

Baseball each and every day for me.

It wasn't in the question but Soccer in 25/50 years will be king in the USA especially if it goes to open soccer like the rest of the World.

Football will be banned or the game will be changed so much you won't recognize it from how it is played today.

I love baseball but so many kids and young adult think it takes just too much of their time to watch.

Soccer is great to watch on TV, players are always moving with no time out and you know what time the game will start and what time it will end, as the clock never stops running.

Yep as us old guy's die off and the youth of today get my age, soccer will be king!

For me personally the order in which I would watch them if all were on at the same time.

1. College Football

2. NFL

3. College Basketball as a whole (UK Basketball would be my #1 alone)

4. NBA

5. College Baseball/Softball

6. Little League WS

7. MLB

As a kid it was...

1. MLB (Listened on the radio more than I was able to watch on TV)

2. College Basketball

3. NBA

4. NFL

5. College Football

For me personally the order in which I would watch them if all were on at the same time.

1. College Football

2. NFL

3. College Basketball as a whole (UK Basketball would be my #1 alone)

4. NBA

5. College Baseball/Softball

6. Little League WS

7. MLB

 

As a kid it was...

1. MLB (Listened on the radio more than I was able to watch on TV)

2. College Basketball

3. NBA

4. NFL

5. College Football

What has most contributed to the decline in MLB for you since you were a kid?

What has most contributed to the decline in MLB for you since you were a kid?

I hate the Braves and Cubs and for about 15 years that was all that was on TV, I just grew away from it then. Then once I had a family and kids never had time to sit and watch a game. Some Sunday's after church I'd watch the Reds with my father-in-law, but we both usually ended up asleep in recliners.

I'll still watch the Reds from time to time and I'll try to catch most of the playoffs, but I've near zero passion for baseball now.

It wasn't in the question but Soccer in 25/50 years will be king in the USA especially if it goes to open soccer like the rest of the World.

 

Football will be banned or the game will be changed so much you won't recognize it from how it is played today.

 

I love baseball but so many kids and young adult think it takes just too much of their time to watch.

 

Soccer is great to watch on TV, players are always moving with no time out and you know what time the game will start and what time it will end, as the clock never stops running.

 

Yep as us old guy's die off and the youth of today get my age, soccer will be king!

All good points.