Gridiron Football

Gridiron football, sometimes known as North American football, is an umbrella term for related codes of football primarily played in the United States and Canada. The predominant forms of gridiron football are American football and Canadian football. The terms refer to the sport's characteristic playing field, which is marked with a series of parallel lines resembling a gridiron.

"Gridiron" football developed in the late 19th century out of the older games related to the games now known as rugby football and association football. It is distinguished from other football codes by its use of helmets and shoulder pads, the forward pass, the system of downs, a line of scrimmage, more specialist positions and formations, free substitution, platooning of different players for offense and defense, measurements in yards, a distinctive brown leather ball, and the ability to score points while not in possession of the ball by way of the safety. Walter Camp is credited with creating many of the rules that differentiate gridiron football from its older counterparts.

The international governing body for gridiron football is the International Federation of American Football (IFAF); although the organization uses the name "American football" and plays all of its international competitions under American rules, it uses a definition of the game that is broad enough that it includes Canadian football under its umbrella, and Football Canada (the governing body for Canadian football) is an IFAF member.