11/20/2017
For most Ukrainian women, Thanksgiving Day is associated with a deliciously prepared turkey. But for Americans, a turkey is just one of the attributes of a holiday, although the most important one.
For 128 years Thanksgiving Day has been considered the day of American football. In 1874, eleven years after President Abraham Lincoln ordered the last Thursday of November to be regarded as Thanksgiving Day, the first game of football between the two university teams was played. Two years later, an Intercollegiate Football Association was established in the north-east of the country. In the 90 years of the XIX century on the occasion of Thanksgiving, the champion was determined, and in this game, two of the strongest teams of the association participated: the players of Yale and Princeton universities. The final of 1890 gathered a record number of spectators - 40 thousand people, which for that time was very much.
In the mid-90s of the 19th century, Thanksgiving Day really turned into an American football festival across the country. That day on green lawns there were schoolboys, sportsmen from amateur clubs and university commands.
It should be noted that the competitions held were also a considerable source of income. For example, the final game of 1893 between Princeton and Yale brought both to 13 thousand dollars, a fairly large amount for those times. This money went to various sports programs and later became an important source of financing activities for the training of athletes in these schools.
Since the mid-30s of the last century, Thanksgiving has taken its place in the calendar of the professional National Football League (NFL).
It all started with the fact that businessman Rogers Richards acquired in 1934 the rights to own the club Portsmouth Spartans (Ohio) and moved with him to Detroit. Here the team changed its name, and to this day it has remained unchanged - "Detroit Lions". The rivals of "lions" were chosen Chicago "bears" and they had to hold the first ever NFL game on Thanksgiving Day.
Today, American football is very firmly established on the screens of our TVs, being one of the most spectacular and popular sports programs that gather millions of spectators. Watching the games of professional clubs on Thanksgiving Day has become the same tradition for Americans as preparing a turkey for a festive table. Many fans do not sit down at the table until the game in Detroit is over.
But the match in Detroit is no longer the only match in the NFL on Thanksgiving Day. Another game is played on the field of Dallas "cowboys" though right after the end of the match in Detroit. For many fans, Thanksgiving Day turns into a double pleasure: you can eat well and enjoy football.
So, gentlemen and your Ukrainian wives, if you, too, consider yourself at least a little American, do not confine yourself to one turkey, do not forget to turn on your TV at 12.30 - this is the time of the game in Detroit, and at 4.05 - the beginning of the match in Dallas.
Bon appetit and sporting emotions!
