[QUOTE="freelancermaria,  post: 22265, member: 117"]
American football has not made its way into the Olympics mainly because it is primarily famous in the United States, with only a handful of countries fielding competitive teams. In addition, the sport carries a higher risk of injuries, which poses a major concern for the organizers of the Olympics.
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I agree—that is the main reason. Only a handful of countries have competitive American football teams, so it doesn’t have the global reach needed for the Olympics.

[QUOTE]
Among others, one major reason for its rejection by the IOC was its being a game with a high risk of injury
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As for the high risk of injury, that’s a fair point, but what about rugby? It’s also a high-contact sport, yet it was included in the Olympics. Rugby Union (15-a-side) was played in [B]1900, 1908, 1920, and 1924[/B], and Rugby Sevens (a faster, shorter version) was introduced in [B]2016[/B] and has been in every Summer Olympics since.