Sport in the USA: Values, Ideologies & Practices

The United States has a billion dollar sporting industry that is surrounded around a wide variety of sports played at a recreational, elementary, high school, collegiate and professional level. Sports are played, coached and officiated by both males and females, however professional sport in the United States is dominated by males. With sports ranging from technical, to physical and endurance, there is a huge market for sporting goods and merchandise in the United States. At the top of the market are America's big four sporting leagues: the National Football League (NFL), the National Hockey League (NHL), Major League Baseball (MLB) and the National Basketball Association (NBA). To American sport fanatics, sports and their specific home team play a huge part in their identity. Fans go to great lengths to show their support for their team, which can be seen through merchandise purchases, attendance at games, and support of ones team through social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook. This has allowed the big four conferences to bring in over $400 billion worth of revenue each year. 

In America, the NFL receives the most attention from fans and media. The Super Bowl, the championship game surrounding the NFL has consistently been the most watched television event in America ( so much so, that sponsors are willing to pay upwards $3 million for a 30-second commercial during the event). However with increasing evidence relating football to early on-set demensia and long term brain damage, the NFL is receiving heavy criticism, and many parents are hesitant to allow their children to start playing football. Ice hockey, football and basketball are all games that require physical activity and stamina. Dominated mostly by white and African American (with the exception of ice hockey) muscular males, these sports are enjoyed for their violence and fast paced action. While these three sports receive a lot of attention in the United States, baseball claims the title of America’s passed time. While its participants are not necessarily as muscular as those who play ice hockey, football or basketball, baseball requires a great deal of mental strategy. Many professionals have been perfecting their game since they were toddlers, which has allowed America to perform exceptionally well on the international stage, such as at the Olympics games.

Though dominated by the big four, American’s of all ages have found and continue to find joy in different types of sports – on and off of land, with and without balls, some with protective equiptment, others with out, sports that require pure physical strength, and others that require mental stamina. Swimming is the most popular sport among children, however almost any game with a set of rules and organized competition has a competitive league in the United States. The vast majority of American sports require one to outscore their opponent in some aspect to claim the win. Toward the end of the select season, the teams that have accumulated the most wins compete in a tournament. These mega events often attract a lot of attention from fans and media, and include an ultimate grand prize. For example, players in the NHL work toward earning the Stanley Cup, while players in the NFL work towards winning the Super Bowl. Every athlete who plays and is passionate about their sport has dreams and aspirations to win their championship, for those who have it is a defining moment in ones life.

American athletes are obsessed with winning championships and becoming the best in their field. Big name athletes such as LeBron James for basketball and Sidney Crosby for ice hockey are seen as hero and role models. Because of the way American's view sports, athletes and how they value winning, success in sports is often determined by one's performance both on and off the court. Due to the popularity and insane paychecks these athletes receive, athletes are treated as celebrities, which unfortunately means they are constantly surrounded by paparazzi, and live lavish lifestyles. However, for athletes who do not play professional, or who do not wish to obtain this celebrity status, sports is a fun way to socialize, stay in shape or simply do something you love. 

In America, there are a series of sports ethics that are understood and respecting throughout the sporting community. In 1991, Hughes and Coakley determined there were four factors of ones identity that proves he/she is a "real" athlete. These sports ethics are as follows:

         1. Being an athlete involves making sacrifices for the game

2. Striving for distinction among other athletes

3. Accepts risks and plays through the pain

4. Refuses to accept limits in the pursuit of possibilities

Many athletes inherently follow these dimensions based on the way they were groomed to play their selected sport. Like I had stated previously, sport becomes part of ones identity, and based on this athletes conform to these believes as a life style. I was a competitive swimmer for 16 years, a competitive water polo player for 6 years and a competitive bowler for 4 years. From a very young age, I was told that I would have to make sacrifices for the sport that I loved, whether that be missing homecoming my junior year of high school, or having to wake up at 5:30 AM for six years straight. My freshman year of high school, my water polo coach had engraved on the pool deck " Great choices make for great consequences. Choose dedication, choose handwork, choose to improve each and everyday. Be passionate about your choices and true to the commitment required by them. By choosing thus you will have chose to be a champion." This was his own version of Sport Ethics. We were never taught to play through pain, or refuse to accept limits, nor were we ever told we would have to make sacrifices or not to get distracted by others, because it is something that had always been expected of us. My water polo coach passed away my senior year of high school, but his legacy and the intense passion he had for the sport are still apparent in every single one of his athletes he had coached in the passed 28 years. One torn rotator cuff, a miserable college experience, and three years later, many of the ethics that I have learned through sport are still relevant in my life today. 

References:

Hughes, Robert, and Jay Coakley. (1991). Positive Deviance Among Athletes: The Implications of Overconformity to the Sport Ethic. Sociology of Sport Journal, 8, 307-12.