Steve Kroll
Wine Guy
American Football did indeed originally derive from Rugby, but other than the fact that both sports continue to use an elongated ball, they've gone down separate paths and there aren't many similarities these days. I found an interesting table of comparisons between the two sports:Perhaps becaus the English, Welsh and the French has taken up rugby and perhaps American football developed from that.
American Football vs Rugby - Difference and Comparison | Diffen
There are surprisingly (at least to me) quite a large number of American Football teams in Europe, according to this website:
American Football in Europe
Be that as it may, while American Football is the most watched sport in this country, it remains little more than a curiosity to the rest of the world. Relegated to late night viewing, as you say.