Look at TV ratings, TV revenue, attendence, overall profitability - it's clear Football is the real national pasttime, not baseball.  According to the Harris Poll, 31% of sports fans pick football as their favorite.  16% said baseball.  Not even close.

So what happened to baseball?

My thoughts (informed by interviews with experts): Football is perfect for TV.  Football is perfect for gambling (and now fantasy football has taken that to the next level).  Football is scarce, and therefore anticipated.  The NFL is brilliant at marketing.

There's some thought that there's a psychological thing at play here: we love to watch people beat each other up.  The physicality of football taps into something raw and human.

Anyway: What do you think is the real pasttime? Football, baseball, or hockey?  And why do you think football is such a big deal?

(For fun, see what George Carlin had to say on the topic - h/t Patrick)