American football involves two players of 11 members each trying to score points by taking the ball to the opponent team’s end zone. On the other hand, Rugby is a mixture of American football, soccer, and basketball. The game is played on a rectangular field between two teams of 15 players each. The objective of the sport is to run with an oval ball through the opponent’s goal line or kick it over the post.
For bettors on sites like Betway, it’s one of the more popular sports to put their money on. It’s why online Superbowl betting and rugby betting are more common today than before.
The two sports are different in a variety of ways and here are some of them.
Comparison Between American Football And Rugby
American football is played between two teams of 11 players whereas Rugby feature 15 players in each team. The objective of both games is to take the ball to the opponent’s checkpoint. One kicks the ball between a field goal in football and kicks it through a post in rugby. American football is played in four quarters of 15-minutes each, with an intermission called half-time after the second quarter. On the other hand, Rugby is played in two halves of 40 minutes each split by a ten-minute half time.
The clock in football stops frequently as compared to rugby. Like its name, American football is popular only in the United States and Canada but almost every other country has a Rugby team. The football players wear a lot of protective gear for the game including a helmet, shoulder pads, chest protector, mouth guard and more. In rugby, one can only wear modest padding on the head and shoulders with mouthguard being a must for everyone.
Differences Between American Football And Rugby
There are a lot of differences between the rules of American football and rugby. The 11 players in American football can get as many substitutions as they want whereas the rugby players only get 7 at the most. Any substituted player cannot return on the rugby field unless an injury has brought the game to a halt and no other substitutes are left.
In American football, both the teams line up at a scrimmage where they throw the ball at one of the players and start playing. Each team gets to move the ball after the ball has been moved for at least 10 yards and with 4 downs. Rugby is faster and rougher than football as players compete for the possession of the ball. A player can run with, kick or pass the ball to another player in his team. The opponents can tackle, do scrummages, rucks, mauls and more to win. The other dangerous things aren’t allowed and can result in a foul.
Though slightly different from each other, American football and Rugby are both dear sports for Americans that imbibe a feeling of belongingness. Which one is your favorite? Let us know below.
