Although some sports enthusiasts deny it, American football is the most popular spectator team sport in the United States [3]. It is also a sport that has managed to develop significant family ties, so much so that identification with a team—whether professional, collegiate, or even high-school, whether perennial winner or an also-ran—often becomes part of a family’s identity, and team memorabilia items become valued (and sometimes squabbled over) inherited items.

The National Football League (NFL) —the overarching business and regulatory body for the sport—has taken great pains to cultivate the image of the game and its players, transforming them from mindless gladiators in one of the most physically punishing sports, into stand-up community contributors. The NFL has done this by encouraging alignment between players, teams, and the sport in general with philanthropic and community-support organizations such as the United Way whose mission includes supporting programs that promote health, nutrition, and wellness throughout the community.

American football players—probably more than those of any other sport—are seen by many as the pinnacles of sexual desirability and virility. Female cheerleaders, who are so iconic to the game, reinforce these images showing that equally athletic and attractive women are drawn to and participate in the spectacle of the sport. Thus, involving cheerleaders in screening programs provides not only a draw for men but also for women.

Even coaches contribute to the game’s image. Coaches are known as rugged individualists and strong leaders who epitomize the best—sometimes the worst—of maleness. The life and death of legendary football coach Vince Lombardi, who gained notoriety with the Green Bay Packers, is a cautionary tale that can be used to transmit important health lessons to men. Lombardi is considered a man’s-man: a smart, accomplished, charismatic leader, mentally and physically tough. Unfortunately, Lombardi’s toughness ultimately proved stronger than his smarts. In his early 50s Lombardi complained constantly of digestive discomfort and, despite access to the best available medical care, he ignored his symptoms, choosing instead to focus on his work. Later, when the symptoms became too severe to ignore, he finally gave in to the constant urging from family, friends, and his employer and sought treatment. However, he refused to get a full workup, and accepted only symptomatic care. Three years later, he was admitted to hospital and, after exploratory surgery, was diagnosed with terminal cancer of the lower gastrointestinal tract. He died soon thereafter vowing to the end of his life to “fight” the cancer. Handled properly and respectfully, stories like these of how misplaced machismo all too often leads to terminal health problems, can be used as modern-day fables that may help motivate men to more actively engage in their own health sooner rather than later.