Rollerball, Rivalries, and Football Today

9ers

“Just Thinking"

I found myself thinking about football this week. The NFL has wrapped up Week One, college football is in full swing, and high school football has once again turned on the Friday night lights. One thing that cannot be denied is that, even though practices begin in the heat of summer, football has always been the first true sign that fall is on its way.

These days, Halloween decorations and candy start appearing in stores before August is over, and the Spirit Halloween stores have popped up in a shopping center near you. Like it or not, the slow march toward the end of the year has begun, and it began with kick off of the Patriots vs Seahawks game last Wednesday night.

From there, it’s a straight run into the fourth quarter of 2026, bringing with it Halloween, the end of Daylight-Saving Time, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and the welcoming in of the New Year.

But before I launch into a full-blown rant about how quickly the year seems to be slipping away, I wanted to share a few thoughts about football and, hopefully, get some feedback from you along the way.

The San Francisco 49ers opened their season in Australia against the Los Angeles Rams. Setting aside the fact that the 49ers don't actually play in San Francisco and the Rams don't actually play in Los Angeles, why in the world were they playing in Melbourne, Australia?

The NFL will tell you that the goal is to "grow the game globally," they want to build new fan bases around the world, increase revenue, and strengthen the NFL brands internationally. Translation, sell more merch, sell more tickets, sell more streaming, increase sponsorship and develop international corporate partners.

But I think that there is a bigger picture, the NFL is taking the story line from the 1975 cult classic Rollerball, starring James Caan, where powerful corporations controlled the teams and the teams represent nations.

Competition transcended traditional geographic boundaries, with teams and fan bases stretching far beyond U.S. borders?

That may sound like a stretch, but when you see nine international regular-season games being played during an 18-week season with games spread across seven countries: Mexico, Germany, Spain, France, England, Brazil, and Australia, it is hard not to think that the NFL's international experiment is about much more than a single game.

With the cost of a ticket become increasingly expensive, fans pay a premium for the opportunity to attend eight or nine home games each year, yet when their team is selected to play internationally, one of those home dates disappears from the schedule.

Consider the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams rivalry. The two teams first met on October 1, 1950, and after more than 75 years of competition, it remains one of the NFL's longest running and most storied rivalries. Both franchises have spent their entire existence in the same division, Western Conference, now the NFC West.

Yet this season, one of football's classic rivalries was played more than 7,000 miles from California in Melbourne. The Los Angeles season ticket holders lost the chance to watch their hometown team host one of its biggest rivals in person.

There have been countless safety measures introduced into today's game, and with athletes becoming bigger, faster, and stronger than ever, those advancements have gone a long way toward protecting players both on the field and long after their playing careers have ended.

The playing surfaces are remarkable compared to years past, whether it's a meticulously maintained natural grass field or one of the latest synthetic turf systems. Despite that, I still find myself missing the muddy uniforms and grass-stained jerseys of yesteryear.

The same can be said for today's helmets. Beyond the fact that teams seem to have a different helmet design to match every alternate uniform combination, I can't help but wonder how they fall off so easily. Years ago, it took weeks of sweat, practice, and contact before a helmet molded perfectly to your head. Once it fit, it wasn't going anywhere. Today's helmets appear to slide off as easily as your favorite ball cap on a windy day.

And while we're on the subject, how do equipment managers keep all of those team logos looking so perfect? Modern helmets are filled with vents, moving panels and cutouts, yet somehow the stripes and emblems line up flawlessly every week. It's another thing that makes me go hmmmm.

Finally, regarding college football, I think that the NIL and transfer portal is ruining college football. 5th and 6th year seniors are scattered throughout college football, playing for their 3rd or 4th school. Quite simply, the Universities with the deepest pockets inevitably end up in the college playoffs.

Let me know what you think.

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