Professional sport was born in the USA. Nowhere in the world does the concept of playing sport for money ring truer than in the good ol' United States.
Early this year, a new sport joined the established professional ranks. Rugby union, which in 1995 decided to shed its amateur status, was elevated to the company of its more illustrious American cousins, thanks to Rupert Murdoch and his dream of a global television empire.
A US$10 million Murdoch deal, spread over 10 years, gave the struggling United States of America Rugby Football Union (USARFU) a lifeline and the hope for a better future.
The money will be welcomed by the American rugby authorities who in the past have had to scrimp for funds to fuel their dream of turning rugby into a major sport.
Not that a million dollars a year will have a huge impact. But it is a start, according to Ed Schram, manager of the American Eagles, an ever-popular team at the Hong Kong Sevens.
'It is essential, but we are still a long way behind other rugby-playing countries like Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. But at least we can now be able to attract more players into rugby,' said Schram.