"This reading of America's game examines the sport's obscure European origins and traces its evolution from a game of privilege into a national institution. It details how prevailing cultural and gender-based imperatives have shaped the game's rules, strategies, and lexicon - and how the game has, in turn, informed the issues of American militarism, feminism, and regionalism. Exploding football's egalitarian stance on race and ethnicity, For Pride, Profit, and Patriarchy also considers how football's obsession with domination and victory reinforces these same values in American culture."--Jacket.