American football

American football, also known simply as football or gridiron, was a sport played on Earth. In the United States of America the sport was played both professionally and at universities, where talented athletes could be awarded scholarships for playing. The NFL was a professional league in the United States whose teams included the Houston Oilers and the Buffalo Bills. The sport was played both in indoor stadiums with artificial turf and outdoor stadiums on naturally grown fields. The sport could be dangerous, with the potential of serious injury. Although the fans were very partisan and dedicated to their favourite team, they hated seeing such injuries on the field. Marshall Spear was a former college and NFL football player who became the bodyguard of Arthur Tyler III after suffering a career ending injury against the Bills at Rich Stadium in Buffalo, New York. (PROSE: Escape Velocity)

Vislor Turlough enjoyed watching American football but did not understand the rules. (PROSE: The King of Terror)

Behind the scenes

• The Philadelphia Eagles were mentioned in passing in PROSE: Silver-Tongued Liars, but they were not identified as an American football team.
• Professional American football player Hugh Douglas was one of the interview subjects in the BBC America retrospective specials Best of the Doctor, Best of the Monsters and Best of the Companions.