Todd once spotted a person wearing a Philadelphia Eagles hat at a local shop. Instinctively, he shouted “Go Birds!”—and received the automatic “Go Birds!” back. After a few minutes of conversation, he invited his new acquaintance, George, to his family’s weekly Eagles watch parties. George and his son showed up that weekend, cheesesteaks in hand. As the season went on, more of George’s family joined. Now, they all look forward to reconnecting as the new NFL season kicks off today.

This simple story captures something important: being a football fan can be good for you and for those around you. You don’t have to know the difference between a cover-four and a Tampa-2 defense to put on a hat, make a friend at the shop, and build a new family tradition. In an era marked by epidemics of lonel

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