It's easy to think Americans have nothing in common with the people of Afghanistan, where beards are mandatory, women are shuttered away and Osama bin Laden finds refuge. Consider their national sport, buzkashi, an ancient game in which two teams of horsemen vie for possession of a headless goat carcass. Points are awarded for gaining control of the carcass with one's hands and delivering it to a scoring area. But appearances are deceiving. Look deeper, grasshopper, and you will find that buzkashi, which literally means "goat grabbing," bears many similarities to the U.S. national sport, the NFL (sorry, baseball). To wit: Comparing buzkashi and NFL

Buzkashi

NFL Day played Sunday Sunday Ball/object Dead goat,

minus head Dead pig, minus head, guts, legs, arms, genitalia -- all but skin Team scores when it reaches the ... "Circle of Justice" "Promised land," aka end zone Prizes Money, fine turbans Money, EAS-logo caps Game flourished

during era of ...

Genghis Khan

Vince Lombardi Relationship to war Skilled horsemen

held off Alexander the Great for two years World War II generals thought football made good soldiers Horses used Only male studs Only male studs, plus Martin Gramatica Players wear Thick hats, quilted dresses Thick hats, tight pants Everyone wants

The "boz," which is what the headless

goat is called

The Boz, or at least they did until Bo Jackson got his goat Unwritten rule No tying carcass to one's saddle No dragging QB around after whistle, unless it's Jeff George Players on field 12 12, if you count fans in louder stadiums Top players are bestowed with

honor of ... "Chopendaz," a term used to describe

best in sport Haagen-daaz, if Gilbert Brown is given the choice Fights between fans Common Wherever Raiders play In the 24 hours before game time ... Dead goat soaks in

cold water to

toughen it up Cornerback takes cold shower to toughen himself up Players after game Wrestle bare-headed with opponents Wrestle bare-naked with strippers Players sometimes

take a loss so hard they ... Drown their opponents in nearest river Drown their sorrows in Dom Perignon Those not tough

enough for the sport play ... Topay-danda, similar

to stickball Baseball, similar to stickball So, while their national game may seem more primitive, the Afghani sports fans have much in common with their U.S. counterparts. Buzkashi is surprisingly similar to football -- except buzkashi fans get to watch, and even play, at weddings. Tom Farrey is a senior writer with ESPN.com. He can be reached at tom.farrey@espn.com.

