Who really is America's team

[BigDmoney]

I'm really sick of cowboy fans referrering to themselves and the cowboys as america's team. When was this distinction made? i hate how they take something that one idiotic writer said probably 25 years ago and made it official somehow. So i ask the question...who really is america's team?
Packers?.....Steelers?.........Cowboys?......49ers ?.....who deserves it?

[The Leaper]

I think the guys over in Germany right now for the World Cup are America's Team.

No single professional league team in the United States is "America's Team". That is one of the dumbest phrases in professional sports.

[red]

i don't know if there is an americas team. the teams are pretty well spread out around the country, so you don't have to look far to find a local team to root for.

i think americas team is whoever is the best at that time. in the 80's everyone had 49ers gear, then the cowboys, then everyone jumped on our bandwagon, then denvers, then that pats and now the steelers have a huge national following

[BigDmoney]

if it were determined by national following then I would say the steelers are the team. They have the natiional following from the 70's when football was exploding and those fans have moved accross the country created steeler fans everywhere.

[Rastak]

if it were determined by national following then I would say the steelers are the team. They have the natiional following from the 70's when football was exploding and those fans have moved accross the country created steeler fans everywhere.


They were EVERYWHERE in downtown mpls the day of the Vikes-Steelers game last year.

[red]

if it were determined by national following then I would say the steelers are the team. They have the natiional following from the 70's when football was exploding and those fans have moved accross the country created steeler fans everywhere.


They were EVERYWHERE in downtown mpls the day of the Vikes-Steelers game last year.

they had a huge crowd at green bay last season too. you know a team has a huge national following when theres almost as many steelers fans at lambeau as packer fans

[Tony Oday]

I think Big D is talking about America's team in the NFL.

I would think there are two: the Packers, most loyal fan base in the NFL year in and year out its a family and a culture rolled into one.

THe Raiders---I know I know everyone hates them but man you ALWAYS see silver and black no matter if they are good or bad in every city.

[Rastak]

if it were determined by national following then I would say the steelers are the team. They have the natiional following from the 70's when football was exploding and those fans have moved accross the country created steeler fans everywhere.


They were EVERYWHERE in downtown mpls the day of the Vikes-Steelers game last year.

they had a huge crowd at green bay last season too. you know a team has a huge national following when theres almost as many steelers fans at lambeau as packer fans


Yea, that was amazing (the lambeau thing that is). I went to the Vike Steelers game and there were about 25 of them in the brewpub I was in before the game. After the game I stopped back down there and there were a table full of them next to me and they got carded. These guys all had Pennslynannia IDs so they were traveling. Amazing.

[HarveyWallbangers]

"if it were determined by national following then I would say the steelers are the team. They have the natiional following from the 70's when football was exploding and those fans have moved accross the country created steeler fans everywhere."

Well, the NFL actually started taking off in the 60s. That's when TV coverage came around, and the Packers have benefitted to this day from that. It's really hard to say. I'm biased, I'd say that there are three teams that would battle for the title: Dallas, Green Bay, and Pittsburgh.

[HarveyWallbangers]

they had a huge crowd at green bay last season too. you know a team has a huge national following when theres almost as many steelers fans at lambeau as packer fans

I was at this game. It was slightly more Steelers fans than the Bears usually bring. My best guesstimates are there were around 7,000-8,000 Steeler fans--which is a ton in Lambeau. I'm guessing some of that had to do with the Packers record. I'd venture to say you'd get as many or more than that in Pittsburgh if the Steelers were 1-7 and the Packers were 7-1 (or whatever their records were).

I've been to a couple of Viking games and Bear games at Lambeau. Generally, the Bears "travel" about 5,000-7,000 fans. The Vikings "travel" about 3,000-5,000 fans. The Steelers were slightly more than the Bears usually bring. Other teams don't normally bring in that many fans.

[BigDmoney]

i have season tickets to the vikings and i have never seen a crowd that full with the opposing team as the steelers game last year. Packer games alway bring in lots of traveling fans, but the steeler game was insane. Even one of the guys that we took to the game was a steeler fan. We had an understanding that he was not allowed to cheer for the steelers that day. Packer fans are VERY loyal, but i would say the most wide-spread fans are steeler fans.

[CaptainKickass]

It's well documented and I can personally attest to the fact that Packer fans are literally everywhere. There is a "Packer bar" in every major metropolitan city in the US as well as many more in Canada, Europe etc.

I read somewhere that the Pack were first named "Americas Team" by a sports writer/journalist in the 60's and then it somehow was bestowed upon the Cowboys in the late 80's.

Regardless, I don't really care. The Pack are certainly the most original in the entire league and probably most of professional sports with the small market and publicly owned status, not to mention one of the oldest franchises. Win or lose - these things are what makes the organization great in my opinion.

[b bulldog]

The Packers are the closest thing to a National team in the NFL with the boys #2.

[HarveyWallbangers]

i have season tickets to the vikings and i have never seen a crowd that full with the opposing team as the steelers game last year. Packer games alway bring in lots of traveling fans, but the steeler game was insane. Even one of the guys that we took to the game was a steeler fan. We had an understanding that he was not allowed to cheer for the steelers that day. Packer fans are VERY loyal, but i would say the most wide-spread fans are steeler fans.

I'm thinking you are really overstating. I've been to three Packers-Vikings games, and there were always at least 25,000 Packer fans. My buddy, who is a Steelers fan, went to the Steelers-Vikings game last year. He estimated that there were about 20,000-25,000 Steeler fans.

I've been to Seattle when there were over 20,000 Packer fans. The only game the Cardinals sold out in the last five years or so was their game against the Packers. Me thinks you don't want to give the Packers their proper due. Like I said, the Packers, Steelers, and Cowboys have the biggest followings, and it would be damn near impossible to determine which is the most popular. Dallas probably gets the best TV ratings with the Packers and Steelers not far behind. The Packers and Cowboys probably, on average, do the best in memoribilia sales. I'm sure the Steelers are currently #1 because they won a Super Bowl, but Green Bay always ranks high even when they are crappy.

[Charles Woodson]

I dont think u can have a americas team. the only way u could do it is by decade. i mean cause every team has its run. pats-2000 so far

[red]

i don't know if we have americas team right now, although i've also seen packer fans everywhere i've been

but i can promise you we have americas player in brett favre. the experts might have it out for him, but if you talk to real football fans from any team who'll find out that the respect the hell out of him more then any other player, and when he's on TV, they watch

[Little Whiskey]

i think the closest to an america's team would be the Cubs. seems like everyone could root for the cubs. (unless your a live on the southside of Chicago).

[BigDmoney]

sory mr. wallbanger, but I'm not everstating anything. Th steelers to the game last year outnumbered any packer game i have been to. Plus the fact that they were more vocal than most packer games i ahve attended (although they were ahead almost the entire game which probably hadalot to do with that).

As far as merchandise, i wouldn't be surprised at all if the raiders win that battle every year. the simple black and silver are in every inner city in america. Most of jersey sales are probably bot fans, they jsut buy them because they look "cool".

[Tony Oday]

But I bet that there are more fights at the Vikes Packer game!!!!!!

[HarveyWallbangers]

As far as merchandise, i wouldn't be surprised at all if the raiders win that battle every year. the simple black and silver are in every inner city in america. Most of jersey sales are probably bot fans, they jsut buy them because they look "cool".

Steelers led last year. Oakland led in 2004. Green Bay has a record of nine straight seasons in the top 5, and have also had the top sales at time in the past. Several teams have split the top sales over the last 10 years, but Green Bay has been a constant in the top 5, and I think that says a lot.

[Anti-Polar Bear]

I think the Cowboys are indeed America's team. Go to any foreign land and almost any lad who knows a damn about American football will tell you their favorite team is the Cowboys. Hence, the Cowboys represents America; hence, they are America;s team.

I think the Raiders are California's team.

I think the Dolphins are Florida's team.

I think the Packers are white men's team. :wink:

[woodbuck27]

America's Team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Dallas Cowboys: The Complete History of America's Team 1960-2003

America’s Team is an established term used to describe the Dallas Cowboys franchise that plays in the NFC East of the National Football League.

Bob Ryan, the Vice President and editor-in-chief of NFL Films, coined this for the Cowboys in 1979. After preparing and editing the team’s 1978 season highlight film he had to come up with a title for the film. He was quoted as saying:

"After the '78 season, the Cowboys had just lost a crushing Super Bowl to the Steelers. I wanted to come up with a different twist on their team highlight film. I noticed then, and had noticed earlier, that wherever the Cowboys played, you saw people in the stands with Cowboys jerseys and hats and pennants. Plus, they were always the national game on television."

Drawing upon this inspiration and that of other nationally followed sports teams, such as the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in college football and the Boston Celtics in pro basketball, which Ryan said "are all America’s teams," he decided to use America’s Team as the name of the highlight film.

During the Cowboys' first game of the 1979 season, a nationally televised game against the St. Louis Cardinals (which Dallas won 22-21), the television announcer introduced the Cowboys as America’s Team and the nickname stuck.

Originally Dallas’ Hall of Fame coach, Tom Landry, did not approve of the appellation. He felt that it would give opposing teams extra incentive to play harder. Eventually he gave in and actually came to like the name.

In 2003, NFL Films released a DVD collection chronicling the Dallas Cowboys franchise entitled The Dallas Cowboys: The Complete History of America's Team 1960-2003.


Other claims to the name

** The term is occasionally used by some fans to describe the Green Bay Packers.

** The term was also applied to the New England Patriots by some fans after the Pats repeated a feat accomplished for the first time by the Dallas Cowboys several years earlier, namely winning three Super Bowl victories in a mere four years.

** And in 2005, the name was briefly used as a term of endearment for the New Orleans Saints following the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.
A term is also used for the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers, Atlanta Braves, and the Boston Celtics.

** The Fabulous Sports Babe dubbed the Hartford Whalers America's Team on her ESPN radio show.

** It's also a term used for a team that currently has a good reputation nationwide.

** The Oakland Raiders are occasionally called by this name, but more often an equivalent term, Raider Nation, is used to expressed similar widespread fandom.

** In 2004, ESPN christened the University of Utah's football team America's Team during their improbable run to an undefeated season and a BCS bowl game. The Utes became the first non-BCS team to play in a BCS game.


So there are several establised claims to the esteemed term or accolade of America's Team. woodbuck27

[jack's smirking revenge]

What's America's soda? Or America's TV show? Or America's idol? Is football America's sport? Is there an "America's Team" in basketball? Or baseball? My point? It's arrogance to call anything or anyone "America's Team" because we're a diverse nation of differing opinions and interests. A Cowboy fan in Dallas would laugh in our faces if we called the Pack "America's Team". Likewise to a Steeler fan. Or a Bears fan. Football is entertainment. If its judged by how well the product sells, then the title is awarded based on popularity.

I love the Pack and they are my favorite professional sports team, but I can't call them "America's Team". Applying that title works when you're a fan; doesn't work so well when you're not a fan. It's a marketing gimmick, meant to sell more jerseys and boost PR for a team.

Perhaps "America's Team" is whoever won the Lombardi Trophy the previous year. In that case, the Steelers are "America's Team".

tyler

[jack's smirking revenge]

America's Team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Dallas Cowboys: The Complete History of America's Team 1960-2003

America’s Team is an established term used to describe the Dallas Cowboys franchise that plays in the NFC East of the National Football League.

Bob Ryan, the Vice President and editor-in-chief of NFL Films, coined this for the Cowboys in 1979. After preparing and editing the team’s 1978 season highlight film he had to come up with a title for the film. He was quoted as saying:

"After the '78 season, the Cowboys had just lost a crushing Super Bowl to the Steelers. I wanted to come up with a different twist on their team highlight film. I noticed then, and had noticed earlier, that wherever the Cowboys played, you saw people in the stands with Cowboys jerseys and hats and pennants. Plus, they were always the national game on television."

Drawing upon this inspiration and that of other nationally followed sports teams, such as the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in college football and the Boston Celtics in pro basketball, which Ryan said "are all America’s teams," he decided to use America’s Team as the name of the highlight film.

During the Cowboys' first game of the 1979 season, a nationally televised game against the St. Louis Cardinals (which Dallas won 22-21), the television announcer introduced the Cowboys as America’s Team and the nickname stuck.

Originally Dallas’ Hall of Fame coach, Tom Landry, did not approve of the appellation. He felt that it would give opposing teams extra incentive to play harder. Eventually he gave in and actually came to like the name.

In 2003, NFL Films released a DVD collection chronicling the Dallas Cowboys franchise entitled The Dallas Cowboys: The Complete History of America's Team 1960-2003.


Other claims to the name

** The term is occasionally used by some fans to describe the Green Bay Packers.

** The term was also applied to the New England Patriots by some fans after the Pats repeated a feat accomplished for the first time by the Dallas Cowboys several years earlier, namely winning three Super Bowl victories in a mere four years.

** And in 2005, the name was briefly used as a term of endearment for the New Orleans Saints following the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.
A term is also used for the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Lakers, Atlanta Braves, and the Boston Celtics.

** The Fabulous Sports Babe dubbed the Hartford Whalers America's Team on her ESPN radio show.

** It's also a term used for a team that currently has a good reputation nationwide.

** The Oakland Raiders are occasionally called by this name, but more often an equivalent term, Raider Nation, is used to expressed similar widespread fandom.

** In 2004, ESPN christened the University of Utah's football team America's Team during their improbable run to an undefeated season and a BCS bowl game. The Utes became the first non-BCS team to play in a BCS game.


So there are several establised claims to the esteemed term or accolade of America's Team. woodbuck27

Great. So an NFL films guy is the start of this whole Cowboys-Americas Team fiasco. With that in mind, the title is even more irrelevant. Were the Cowboys America's Team when they were 4-12 and one of the worst teams in football? I think not.

tyler

[Little Whiskey]

so if or when another team wins more championships will Green Bay lose its lable as TitleTown USA??

[jack's smirking revenge]

so if or when another team wins more championships will Green Bay lose its lable as TitleTown USA??

Would stand to reason. To me, Titletown USA isn't as offensive as a team calling themselves "America's Team" and the "Titletown" title really only covers the NFL. Chicago, as a city, probably owns more professional sports titles than Green Bay. A rhetorical question: do you think many people outside of the GB fanbase call GB TitleTown? Do you think a Bears fan calls GB TitleTown? Isn't it arguable whether or not GB has more titles than any team in the NFL? (I thought history was a bit controversial pre-NFL). I don't know. Just wondering.

I think I'm going to start calling myself "America's Demon Rat".

tyler

[Scott Campbell]

America's Team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

** In 2004, ESPN christened the University of Utah's football team America's Team during their improbable run to an undefeated season and a BCS bowl game. The Utes became the first non-BCS team to play in a BCS game.



I did not know that. Cool.