Why "american FOOTBALL" if most of the time is played with your hands and no with your foot?

Question

Why not "Handball" or "Carryball" or somtething like that, WHO INVENTED THAT NAME??

Answer 1

Why It's Called Football
Some might say, simply, "because they kick the football."

But the real story is deeper. The origin of American football is in the history of the world's most popular sport: soccer. When soccer -- more universaly known as "football" (which of course makes sense because soccer players use their feet) -- participants decided to change their centuries-old game with restrictions such as the no-use of hand rules, people who disliked this broke away to create rugby. In the states we have created our own version of the game under the same old name "football" with more of a rugby style, the whole time forgetting why we call it that.

Here are other answers:


American football is a derivative of rugby football, and while the feet are used more often in rugby than on the gridiron, much of the game is still played by handling the ball. Both variations are still considered football.

North America style football didn't used to allow the "forward pass" and much more of the play involved foot work, such as the "drop kick" and the running punt kick. In the first rules, only the " side pass" was allowed, as long as the two players were side by side, with no forward motion of the ball, similar to rugby rules. The Canadian Football League ( CFL ) still allows a drop kick to score a field goal, and also has a thing called a "rouge" when the kicker is able to kick the ball thru the end zone, so it lands out of play , it is worth 2 points. Both the NFL and the CFL still have the drop-kick available as a weapon - on the point-after-touchdown, or from the field for 3 points. The "rouge" is worth a single point here in Canada.

Answer 2

Names are funny. The inventers of the game decided on football, and it's been that ever since. Not everything has to conform to other's ideas. It's worked fine for a long time.
It seems strange that you have this thing about naming things exactly and simply, but you call yourself El chipote chillon. Wouldn't Joe Smith be much simpler ? Who invented that name ?

Answer 3

Because English twits like you do not know their own history.

Rugby is a game on foot (as opposed to horseback) played with a ball.

American and Canadian (and Australian) football evovled from Rugby football.

Answer 4

You should have said not with your foot, instead of "no with your foot". As well Handball is a name of another sport.

Answer 5

It was developed from Rugby FOOTBALL, hence the name. It was first played in 1869(as a college game-Rutgers vs.Princeton).

Answer 6

Do you have this same objection to Rugby football, Canadian football, Celtic football or Australian football? Association football is just one code of many.