Sports is a big deal. Plunkett Research, Ltd. estimates the world wide sports market to be USD $1.5 trillion. [1]
The most popular competitive sports in the world are soccer/football, American football, baseball, Formula 1, basketball, hockey, tennis, golf and other sports.
While engaging in sports to improve one's health is a positive thing, aggressive competitive sports is a negative thing. But before we get to that, here's why some people may think competitive sports is a positive thing:
Competitive sports may seem to some to have a positive impact because:
- For some, it's their livelihood, it puts food on the table.
- For athletes, it's a way for them to showcase their talents, to push themselves to the limit and to achieve an incredible level of fitness.
- Sports unites people because fans join together to support their team.
- Sporting events give people a lot of pleasure because people really enjoy sitting in front of the TV with family and friends having drinks and snacks.
- It gives people something to do. What else are you going to do, right? Mhhh...
- It brings meaning to people's lives because it gives people purpose - to cheer on their team.
- There may be other reasons as well.
- For one thing, it's a first class distraction:
- Watching endless hours of competitive sports distracts people from their lives, from focusing on what's really important, from truly connecting with family, friends and other people and from engaging in meaningful acts that benefit humanity and all of nature.
- It's only a game:
- Competitive sports has been made glamorous by aggressive marketing practices, by multi-million dollar athletes and by professional analysis in suits who present endless statistics making the sport look more important than it actually is. It's reality TV at its finest. The whole spectacle is treated very seriously. Yet when you strip away all the nonsense, all you're left with is a bunch of grownup chasing a ball around a field. It's quite ridiculous to see.
- When children get too serious about their games, adults often remind them that it's just a game. Yet when adults get too serious about their games, everyone gets caught up in the excitement and nobody stops to point out the obvious, that it's just a game.
- It's a complete waste of time:
- Adults spend hours watching sports on TV, yet they hypocritically limit how many hours their children spend watching TV or playing video games. (For your information, a 2013 estimate by Entertainment Software Association (ESA) shows that the video game industry is worth over USD $21 billion. [2]) Adults want their children to spend time doing more productive things. Shouldn't adults be held to the same standard?
- Competitive sports is a never ending soap opera that has a new story line every year, every other year or every four years depending on the event. It traps people year after year because each year, fans endlessly hope that their team will win.
- It's a complete waste of money:
- With rising ticket prices, expensive merchandising and memorabilia, costly drinks and snacks at stadiums, audiences are paying more - paying for multi-million dollar salaries.
- The 2014 World Cup is being hosted by Brazil. [3] Protesters feel, and rightfully so, that the money their government has spent getting ready for the games, estimated to be around USD $11 billion [4], could have been better spent elsewhere. With a population of over 202 million people and with 21.4% of Brazilians living below the poverty line [5], they have a point. In this YouTube video, John Oliver humorously explains how FIFA, a tax exempt, not-for-profit organization with a billion dollar reserve, bullies host countries to get their way [6] :
- ------
- ------
- While countries often build new infrastructure to accommodate international sporting events, such as the World Cup and the Olympics, sometimes these facilities are only used once, then they're abandoned. [7][8] This lack of foresight is a complete waste of money. You'd think that the long-term use of such expensive facilities would be part of the decision making process - from where to host the games, to where to build the facilities - but obviously it's not.
- Another way people waste their money? Gambling. A 2013 estimate shows that the global sports betting industry is worth up to USD $1 trillion, with an estimated 70% of that trading on soccer/football [9]. Money that is wasted on gambling could have been used to benefit other people and/or nature.
- It's a complete waste of resources:
- The industry ties up talented, intelligent, strong, coordinated, energetic and driven people, who could better spend their time elsewhere, benefiting humanity and all of nature.
- Abandoned sports buildings are a drain on natural resources because the materials used to build the buildings are wasted. That material could have been used to build other things.
- While competitive sports preaches unity, the entire spectacle is driven by selfish interests:
- The very nature of competitive sports pits athletes, towns and countries against each other. This increases discord and hatred.
- Fans may unite to support their team, but they selfishly want their own team to win. They don't care about the other team. Keep in mind, that if one team wins, another team has to lose. One team's gain is another team's loss.
- Sports teams praise team effort, yet individual athletes, coaches and owners selfishly seek their own personal profit and gain by seeking the best deals, contracts, endorsements etc.
- It's dangerous:
- Competitive athletes use dangerous drugs to enhance their performance, they put their lives at risk, all for the sake of a game.
- Fans can get extremely excited, engaging in dangerous, exuberant and/or drunken behaviour, leading to accidents, fights, riots, injury and even death.
- Sports on TV promotes inactivity and unhealthy habits such as sitting for hours at a time, drinking beer and eating potato chips.
- Abandoned sports facilities may have a negative impact on their local environment.
- It's unfair:
- When it comes to competitive sports, it's ridiculous to think that the guy who runs the 100M in 9.63 seconds gets all the glory, while the guy who runs it in 9.75 seconds is virtually unheard of. [10] It doesn't make any sense.
We have to change from personal selfishness to mutual bestowal. We have to connect with each other in mutual concern and consideration. In everything we do, we should seek to benefit others instead of ourselves.
References:
_____________
- Sports Industry Market Research. www.plunkettresearch.com. Retrieved Oct 16, 2014.
- Industry Facts. www.theesa.com. Entertainment Software Association (ESA). Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- 2014 FIFA World Cup. www.wikipedia.org. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
- Will Brazil's World Cup Pay Off For Investors. www.forbes.com. June 12, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- The World Factbook. www.cia.gov. Library, South America, Brazil. Updated May 29, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO): FIFA and the World Cup. www.youtube.com. June 8, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- Abandoned Stadiums of Europe, South America and Africa. Googlesightseeing.com. v.9, issue 3. Nov 18, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- 30 Haunting Photos of Abandoned Olympic Stadiums. news.distractify.com. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- Football betting - the global gambling industry worth billions. www.bbc.com. BBC Sports. October 3, 2013. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
- London 2012, Athletics, 100M Men Final. www.olympic.org. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
