Football and Tennis - Comparitive Essay

Football and tennis are among the most-watched sports in the universe. Even though both sports attract a huge following, there are many differences, proving no relationship between the two sports supporters. The similarities and differences range from structure, participants, rules, fans, and other aspects, as discussed below.

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First, tennis and football enjoy very few similarities in terms of structure. One similarity between the two sports is that they both have an umpire or a referee. The umpire or referee in both sports is the custodian of the rules of the game. The umpire or the referee is in charge of the game by pointing out mistakes, deciding the scores, and solving possible conflicts that are likely to happen during a game. In tennis, just like in football, conflicts are decided by the umpire in tennis or a referee in football.

Another similarity comes from the kind of skills participants are required to have to play both games. Just like tennis players require excellent skills in eye coordination and body fitness, so does a football player. Both sports require that the participants be physically fit, have skills, and hold talent. Thus, a participant in both games requires a set of skills. Since the two games do not share many similarities, below are some of the differences in structure that tennis and football have as sports.

The first difference exists in the type of sports structure. Tennis is an indoor game structure, whereas football is an outdoor game structure. It means tennis is played in an enclosed area with fans and participants enclosed in a specially constructed arena. However, football is an outdoor game where athletes can run around the pitch with very minimal restrictions.

The second difference exists in the number of participants. Tennis is an individual game by two opposing players. A tennis player mostly seeks individual brilliance that eventually leads to individual glory. On the other hand, football is team sports played with 22 players on the pitch, eleven of them playing for the same team. Football might have individual brilliance, but will only be recognized if the team benefits from the glory. Since tennis is an individual game, it is not a contact sport. The two participants rarely touch or come in to contact while playing. The characteristics of being non-contact sports make tennis have low rates of injuries, player, and umpire conflict. More importantly, in tennis, there are minimal forms of violence among the participants.

On the other hand, football is a contact sport where players interact through touching, holding, and even pushing to get one out of possession of the ball. By being a contact sport, football has a low-key form of violence where players engage each other. Such low-key violence is usually resolved by a referee who is in charge of the entire game.

The last bit of difference exists in the rules regarding spectators or fans. Since tennis is an indoor game, the fans are expected to keep quiet with significantly minimized cheering like clapping. The spectators of tennis, if they cheer loudly, their favorite participant is docked off some points due to violation of court. However, in football, the fans are only limited in entering the playing area. The fans are allowed to cheer, talk, and support their team in any way they see best, which is violence-free.

The discussion above highlights some of the differences and similarities between football and tennis. As a compare and contrast essay, it clarifies that the two sports are structured differently, despite the popular opinion that they are two of the most popular sports in the world.