NFL

Spotify Wrapped dropped this month, showing listeners what songs and artists they looked up and listened to the most (my number one artist was Don Toliver if you’re curious). If Google had a similar wrapped project, I guarantee you that “crazy soccer flares” would’ve been in my top 100 searches for all of the past five years.

There’s something about a wall of fire that is exceptionally intimidating to look at. Any time — prior to 2020 that is — I see fans of South American or European clubs ignite their flares and sing rapturous chants I get envious.

Soccer players kicking field goals should be a no-brainer. I firmly believe that becoming a kicker in the NFL is a viable back-up career for soccer players that retire or don’t make the cut. Look at Cairo Santos — he was born in Brazil and initially wanted to become a soccer player. That dream died and then boom, he transferred his abilities to American football and will now make $1 million this season kicking for the Chicago Bears.

There’s nothing like September in the sporting calendar. 

The crisp, serene, hazy weather of an Indian summer descends on the land. Fall coloring dashes the landscape in vivid hues of earthly life. The crack and smoke of an afternoon barbecue rolls into the flame and warmth of an evening fire pit. 

Hoodies come out. The beer grows darker. The movies and TV shows are more frightening. All good things.

American football is one of the most watched sports in the United States, but domestic soccer — the world’s football — usually falls by the wayside.

Out of all the soccer leagues across the pond, the English Premier League is the most popular in the U.S., while the NFL is facing a somewhat uncertain time.

The 2019-20 season, like all things in 2020, proved to be different. Viewership for both of these professional leagues was turned on its head. So what is the average EPL vs. NFL viewership?

It was, without doubt, the most earthshattering sports moment of 2020. It didn’t happen on the pitch, but via an anachronistic piece of equipment long since forgotten. Lionel Messi informed Barcelona of his intention to leave the club via a fateful fax last week. The memo immediately became one of the most stunning faxes in sports history, but was it the most shocking of all time?

The reviews are in, and they are not good for Madden 21.

The latest installment of EA Sports’ flagship NFL franchise has been obliterated by reviews since its Aug. 25 release. The Metascore currently sits at 63, with the user rating score a shockingly low 0.3, making it one of the lowest-rated games of all time. From awful glitches to predatory microtransactions in Ultimate Team, no one seems to like the game. It’s so bad, if you Google “Metacritic” the autofill will suggest “Metacritic Madden 21.”

It’s been a big week for wealthy team owners giving money to overpaid marketing folks to come up with new names for sports teams. From Washington, D.C., to Seattle, Washington, new names have been announced in some of America’s most popular sports. 

As much as we love soccer here at The18, we’re a bit disappointed that the NHL is winning in the naming department this week.

NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes received an historic contract on Monday, signing a 10-year deal with the Kansas City Chiefs worth up to $503 million. The half-a-billion dollar contract is the largest in North American sports history and absolutely dwarfs most contracts in the soccer world.