American Football

Athletes perform spectacular feats of strength and speed, but sometimes, a player or team rises above the rest to become a legend. From Michael Phelps’ gold medals to Tim Howard’s saves in the 2014 World Cup, this series presents the most exciting records in sports history.

Explore the science behind your favorite sport with simple, clear explanations. Young athletes won't be able to stop listening as they learn more about Sports STEM!

In this hilariously funny essay collection, former ESPN columnist Rick Reilly com­piles the best of his sports columns - essays that include his expert opinion on athlete tattoos, NFL cheerleaders, and even running with the bulls in Pamplona.

It didn’t take long for quarterback Russell Wilson to make a name for himself in the NFL. In just his second season, he led the Seattle Seahawks to a Super Bowl win. In 2020, he became one of just three quarterbacks in NFL history to throw 30 or more touchdowns four seasons in a row. Get all the details about Wilson’s incredible career.

Adam Thielen always knew he wanted to play in the NFL. From growing up watching Randy Moss and the Vikings to playing at a small Division II college, his path to the NFL hasn't always been a straight line. After initially making the Vikings roster in 2013, he was cut to the practice squad. He went on to become Minnesota's top wide receiver.

Soccer is the most popular game in the world, but does it truly belong in the heart of American sports culture? The answer is a resounding yes—and the 150-year journey of elite men’s soccer in the US is filled with drama, surprises, reversals, and triumphs that rival any world-class match.

Between 20 and 30 million people play fantasy football each year. Now, Fantasy Football: The Next Level goes beyond stats and projections to teach readers a proven approach to drafting and managing a team that succeeds - in any league. Dorey's wealth of tips, tools and techniques - based on two decades of fantasy football expertise - will help experienced players and newcomers alike win their championships every season.

The 1972 Miami Dolphins had something to prove. Losers in the previous Super Bowl, a ragtag bunch of overlooked, underappreciated, or just plain old players, they were led by Don Shula, a genius young coach obsessed with obliterating the reputation that he couldn't win the big game. And as the Dolphins headed into only their seventh season, all eyes were on Miami. For the last time, a city was hosting both national political conventions, and the backdrop to this season of redemption would be turbulent.

George Sephton's relationship with Liverpool Football Club began in 1971 when he wrote to the club secretary applying to be the stadium announcer. His first match also marked the debut of Kevin Keegan. For the past 50 years, Sephton has been at Anfield for all but a handful of home fixtures, as well as travelling with the team to major finals. From the highs of winning numerous league titles and European Cups, to the lows of Heysel and Hillsborough, Sephton has been with Liverpool through it all.

Pat Nevin never wanted to be a professional footballer. His future was clear, he'd become a teacher like his brothers. There was only one problem with this - Pat was far too good to avoid attention. Raised in Glasgow's East End, Pat loved the game, playing for hours and obsessively following Celtic. But as he grew up, he also loved Joy Division, wearing his Indie 'gloom boom' coat and going on marches - hardly typical footballer behaviour!

At five feet ten inches tall, running back Walter Payton was not the largest player in the NFL, but he developed a larger-than-life reputation for his strength, speed, and grit. Nicknamed “Sweetness” during his college football days, he became the NFL’s all-time leader in rushing and all-purpose yards, capturing the hearts of fans in his adopted Chicago.

Wer kennt es nicht? Alle Jahre wieder, immer kurz nach dem Jahreswechsel, kommt irgendjemand aus dem Freundes- oder Bekanntenkreis und fragt, ob man nicht Lust hat, den Super Bowl zu schauen. Also jene Sportveranstaltung, die immer mitten in der Nacht vom ersten Sonntag im Februar auf den darauffolgenden Montag stattfindet. Sitzt man dann bei Freunden auf dem Sofa und schaut in die Runde, gibt es eigentlich nur zwei mögliche Szenarien. Das erste Szenario sieht folgendermaßen aus: Man ist umgeben von absoluten Nerds. Alle haben sich für oder gegen ein Team entschieden.

Several years after his playing career was cut short by injury before it had a chance to really begin, John Madden was hired as an assistant coach by the Oakland Raiders, one of professional football's most iconoclastic franchises. Two years later he was named the team's head coach and proceeded to lead the Raiders to five championship games in his first seven seasons. Following years of heartbreaking losses in some of history's most memorable games.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A former high school football star bids farewell to his glory days in this poignant and nostalgic novel that’s “as taut and twisting as a well-thrown spiral” (People). “[Grisham] makes this football game so real that the reader can almost see and hear it...

Russell Wilson is a standout NFL quarterback. Learn about his childhood and his rise to becoming a football superstar.

At the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany, the last thing Adolf Hitler expected was to see a black man compete and win. But Jesse Owens didn't just win. He was dominant in the track and field events, winning four gold medals and helping to set a world record. Now listeners can witness one of the most iconic moments in sports history as Owens proves that people of all races can compete and win at the Olympic games.

Aaron Rodgers is a standout NFL quarterback. Learn about his childhood and his rise to becoming a football superstar.

In the 1930s and 1940s, there was nothing bigger in Texas high school football than the Masonic Home Mighty Mites - a group of orphans bound together by hardship and death. These youngsters, in spite of being outweighed by at least 30 pounds per man, were the toughest football team around. They began with nothing - not even a football - yet in a few years were playing for the state championship on the highest level of Texas football. This is a winning tribute to a courageous band of underdogs from a time when America desperately needed fresh hope and big dreams.

James J. Braddock, dubbed “Cinderella Man” by Damon Runyon, was a once promising light heavyweight for whom a string of losses in the ring and a broken right hand happened to coincide with the Great Crash. With one good hand, Braddock was forced to labor on the docks of Hoboken. Only his...

From New York Times best-selling author Lars Anderson comes a revealing portrait of the first family of American sports. What the Kennedys are to politics, the Mannings are to football. Two generations have produced three NFL superstars: Archie Manning, the Ole Miss hero-turned-New Orleans Saint; his son Peyton, widely considered one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the game; and Peyton's younger brother, Eli, who won two Super Bowl rings of his own.