"The point being that people who know anything about American Football are actually pretty scarce in the world as a whole."

That is basically true...but it doesn't have the same meaning as a statement that "... there are Americans who think that the rest of the planet doesn't exist."

One reminds us that soccer/'football' is more common about the world, the other is a generalized slap at American attitudes....even if it doesn't say "all" Americans. Couldn't the simpler point have been made?

I see quite a lot of these remarks from certain people who seem to not have much use or respect for American ways in general...from their beer to their politics to their taste in food and sports.

All complaints have some basic truth at their root, but at a certain point it is like the pot calling the kettle black. Show me which countries or ethnic groups do NOT have characteristics that could use improvement.