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Baseball has long been called the national pastime of the United States-since the late 1800s, in fact. Its popularity grew rapidly after it took root in immigrant communities of the northeastern United States, adapted from a British and Irish game called "Rounders." It spread nationwide during the American Civil War. Eleven years later, in 1876, the National League was formed, followed in 1901 by the formation of the American League. Baseball had begun its rise to an unquestioned dominance of America's sports scene that would last until the 1970s when better television technology helped spur a rise in football's popularity.

Today, U.S. citizens can still call baseball the national pastime, though not without a challenge from football fans. Football enthusiasts point to recent polls which consistently show respondents choosing football as their favorite sport by about a 3-1 margin. The December, 2006, Gallup poll resulted in a 43% to 11% trouncing. Baseball ranked third behind basketball, which edged out baseball by 1% after running neck-and-neck for years.

Even considering that the Gallup poll was conducted while baseball was in its annual hiatus, it's obvious that football is the decisive winner in the "favorite sport" category. But "national pastime?" That's a different question.

The major league baseball season stretches from spring to fall each year. It's always been associated with the hazy, lazy, crazy days of summer. It has a laid-back style that demands little attention, yet its duels between pitcher and hitter can be mesmerizing, and its sudden bursts of action reward even the most casual observer.

With its undemanding nature it's no wonder that baseball fairs poorly against its more intense rival in Gallup's poll. But when a Harris poll recently asked Americans whether they were baseball fans, 47% said they were, at least somewhat. Football fans tallied 59% on the Harris poll-still a lead, but not the 3-1 blowout of Gallup's "favorite sport" question.

It's when you look at attendance statistics, however,that Major League Baseball becomes the clear winner over its National Football League counterpart as a provider of pastime entertainment. Over 17 million attended NFL regular season games in 2006, but over 76 million attended MLB season games. The reason is baseball's generous serving of games, providing 162 games per team per year as opposed to football's paltry 16. Even when you add College Football's annual attendance to the mix (about 48 million in record-breaking 2006) football lags behind baseball in people watching in person. This is without counting those who go to minor league baseball or college baseball games.

Clearly, when people say (or hum) "Take me out to the ball game!" it's baseball that they're thinking of.

Learn more about this author, Charles Hughes.
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