JJohnson
Banned
I was thinking about the DSA timeline, and FleetMac's Union Forever, and what the state of sports and sports leagues would look like in various alternate timelines, since some of the same events may or may not occur to create our versions of soccer, football, baseball, hockey, rugby, basketball, and any other sport you could name. I was wondering, what kinds of alternate versions of sports and leagues could you see forming in a given alternate timeline?
For example:
1. Alternate USA: 64 states, from Baffin Island to Baja California, including Rio Grande, Sonora, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Puerto Rico, Bermuda, and the Bahamas.
NFL: 48 teams, including Bahaman Hurricanes, Baja Scorpions, Nova Scotian Lumberjacks, and the Quebec City Rebels; divided into 2 divisions, east and west (formerly north and south), which play from Patriots' Day (which fall September 1st, commemorating the Siege of Fort Henry, and the other battles that fell in September, then later, the entire Revolution) till the first week of January, in 24 regular games, and 4 play-off games, ending in the America Bowl.
-this football is played more like OTL Rugby, but still recognizable, and is quite physical. There are 15 players on each team on a 120yd x 55 yd field, with helmets and pads.
-There were three leagues which merged into the National Football League: American Football League, National Football League, and the Southern Football League.
RFL (Rugby Football League): played more like the English sport it came from, Rugby teams from the United Kingdom, and the British Commonwealth (Cuba, South Africa, New Caledonia, New Zealand, British Honduras, etc.) will often visit the American Rugby leagues for away games in special post-season international matches for the Rugby World Cup. It changed in the 60s from 2 40-minute halves to 4 15-minute quarters mostly for television audiences and schedules.
EFL (English Football League): most similar to what most of the world calls "Football" (known as European Football elsewhere in the world), or British Football in former British colonies. There is a British Cup, played amongst members of the British Commonwealth, in addition to the World Cup, played amongst most countries of the world every 4 years. Its biggest difference from OTL is the ability for any player to catch the ball with your hands to stop it, then dropping it to kick down the field.
2. United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Malta, Gibraltar, County of Calais)
Rugby (RFU): played with 13, went professional in 1920 after the end of the war. At first, it was played mostly in the Southern Union (SU), but returning soldiers in Ireland and Scotland had learned the game alongside their comrades, bringing the came back with them, spreading its popularity. The longer rugby league field (OTL) is used, and tries are called 'touchdowns' since the mid-40s due to American influence.
Football: most similar to OTL's 'football', but has a fixed on-field team of 14, and can substitute injured teammates at any time.
American Football: not as popular as Rugby, but roughly the same popularity as football.
3. Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia (former British colonies)
AFL (Australian rules Football): occurs on a rectangular field, coming from the use of rugby fields for this game during the early 1900s, 20-minute quarters, and went professional in 1952, and borrowed 'rushing' from American football due to extensive contact during the great war between the two countries, and still uses similar helmets to early 20th century American football players, as well as long pants instead of shorts. There is an Australian Cup tournament played amongst the top 2 of the 16 teams (2 from each state/territory), and a Pacific Cup, played after the main Football season, amongst New Zealand, New Caledonia, and Australia, whose location rotates between the three countries each year. The game's popularity rose with the advent of television in the 60s to surpass world 'football' due to its faster gameplay and much higher scores.
Rugby (ARL, Australian Rugby League): same game and rules as English Rugby, most often played at a college level, though there is a professional league as well, which plays Commonwealth games mostly.
4. Germany
Football (Rugby): mostly the same game as England's, due to a long tradition of cultural exchange, mostly through Hanover, and after the personal union ended, during the second great war as allies. There are teams through the mainland German states, along with former colonies, including Middle Africa (Mittelafrika) (roughly OTL DRC, Congo, and Gabon), Namibia, and Bismark Island (OTL Reunion).
Fußball ('football'): regular football, participates in the World Cup.
American Football: American-rules football, has roughly the same level of success as Fußball, and follows almost the same league setup and schedule, playing for the German Cup (Reichsmeisterschaft). German teams play the top 8 American and top 8 Commonwealth teams in the World Football League for the World Cup in Football.
So, what would your ideas be for alternate sports and sports leagues?
For example:
1. Alternate USA: 64 states, from Baffin Island to Baja California, including Rio Grande, Sonora, Nova Scotia, Quebec, Puerto Rico, Bermuda, and the Bahamas.
NFL: 48 teams, including Bahaman Hurricanes, Baja Scorpions, Nova Scotian Lumberjacks, and the Quebec City Rebels; divided into 2 divisions, east and west (formerly north and south), which play from Patriots' Day (which fall September 1st, commemorating the Siege of Fort Henry, and the other battles that fell in September, then later, the entire Revolution) till the first week of January, in 24 regular games, and 4 play-off games, ending in the America Bowl.
-this football is played more like OTL Rugby, but still recognizable, and is quite physical. There are 15 players on each team on a 120yd x 55 yd field, with helmets and pads.
-There were three leagues which merged into the National Football League: American Football League, National Football League, and the Southern Football League.
RFL (Rugby Football League): played more like the English sport it came from, Rugby teams from the United Kingdom, and the British Commonwealth (Cuba, South Africa, New Caledonia, New Zealand, British Honduras, etc.) will often visit the American Rugby leagues for away games in special post-season international matches for the Rugby World Cup. It changed in the 60s from 2 40-minute halves to 4 15-minute quarters mostly for television audiences and schedules.
EFL (English Football League): most similar to what most of the world calls "Football" (known as European Football elsewhere in the world), or British Football in former British colonies. There is a British Cup, played amongst members of the British Commonwealth, in addition to the World Cup, played amongst most countries of the world every 4 years. Its biggest difference from OTL is the ability for any player to catch the ball with your hands to stop it, then dropping it to kick down the field.
2. United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Malta, Gibraltar, County of Calais)
Rugby (RFU): played with 13, went professional in 1920 after the end of the war. At first, it was played mostly in the Southern Union (SU), but returning soldiers in Ireland and Scotland had learned the game alongside their comrades, bringing the came back with them, spreading its popularity. The longer rugby league field (OTL) is used, and tries are called 'touchdowns' since the mid-40s due to American influence.
Football: most similar to OTL's 'football', but has a fixed on-field team of 14, and can substitute injured teammates at any time.
American Football: not as popular as Rugby, but roughly the same popularity as football.
3. Australia, New Zealand, New Caledonia (former British colonies)
AFL (Australian rules Football): occurs on a rectangular field, coming from the use of rugby fields for this game during the early 1900s, 20-minute quarters, and went professional in 1952, and borrowed 'rushing' from American football due to extensive contact during the great war between the two countries, and still uses similar helmets to early 20th century American football players, as well as long pants instead of shorts. There is an Australian Cup tournament played amongst the top 2 of the 16 teams (2 from each state/territory), and a Pacific Cup, played after the main Football season, amongst New Zealand, New Caledonia, and Australia, whose location rotates between the three countries each year. The game's popularity rose with the advent of television in the 60s to surpass world 'football' due to its faster gameplay and much higher scores.
Rugby (ARL, Australian Rugby League): same game and rules as English Rugby, most often played at a college level, though there is a professional league as well, which plays Commonwealth games mostly.
4. Germany
Football (Rugby): mostly the same game as England's, due to a long tradition of cultural exchange, mostly through Hanover, and after the personal union ended, during the second great war as allies. There are teams through the mainland German states, along with former colonies, including Middle Africa (Mittelafrika) (roughly OTL DRC, Congo, and Gabon), Namibia, and Bismark Island (OTL Reunion).
Fußball ('football'): regular football, participates in the World Cup.
American Football: American-rules football, has roughly the same level of success as Fußball, and follows almost the same league setup and schedule, playing for the German Cup (Reichsmeisterschaft). German teams play the top 8 American and top 8 Commonwealth teams in the World Football League for the World Cup in Football.
So, what would your ideas be for alternate sports and sports leagues?