Role of Fandom in sports
Throughout history and modern times
Thesis
by
Jiří Jánočko
Submitted in partial fulfillment
Of the requirements for the degree of
Bachelor of Arts
In
Communication and Mass Media
State University of New York
Empire State College
2016
Reader : Todd Nesbitt
Acknowledgement :
I want to thank my mum mostly as she was the one always pushing me and supporting
me throughout university years and being able to get to this point and about to
graduate. I also want to thank my big brother Martin that was watching over me ,
pushing me and making sure i keep hustling. Also I would like to thank all my teachers
it must not been easy with me always but thank to your guidance being able to finish
this.
.....Van Wilder OUT !
Table of Content :
Introduction :Page 5-7
Chapter 1 :Fandom In Ancient Times : Page 8-17
1.1 Fandom In Ancient Greece : Page 8
1.2 Fandom In Ancient Rome : Page 10
1.3 Fandom In Nazi Germany : Page 13
Chapter 2 :Rise of radio and Television and its impact on
fandom: Page 18-29
2.1 The rise of Radio : Page 19
2.2 The role of Television : Page 22
Chapter 3 : Digital media and its effect on fandom: Page 30-35
3.1 Convenience : Page 30
3.2 Participation of the audience : Page 32
3.3 Sports figures as celebrities : Page 33
Chapter 4 : The sociological aspects for fans interest in sport
:36- 40
4.1 Connection and Identity : Page 36
4.2Narratives in sports fandom : Page 38
Conclusion : Page 41-46
Abstract :
This Thesis discusses the role of fandom in sports throughout history and
modern times. The three historical eras that are looked at are the times of
Ancient Greek Olympic games , the times of roman gladiators and at the Nazi
Olympics in 1936. By viewing the role that sports had on the societies
throughout years we can see the importance it played in many people's lives.
After this the paper looks at the different technological inventions such as radio
and TV and how it helped to popularize sports globally , and in the end see how
the new digital media keeps changing the shape how people view sports. Sports
have been used as a powerful tool by governments and countries since the
ancient times and it still has the same use as it had all those hundredths years
ago. Professional Sports bring a unique kind of entertainment for the viewers as
it's like going to theatre to see a play but without knowing the outcome of the
story. Sports evoke so many emotions in people from happiness , sadness being
proud and mostly it creates bond between people that these sporting event
creates. It's important for us to understand the origins of this phenomenon of
sports fans and this paper will touch on all those different areas.
Introduction
In Ancient times sports became a form of competition in physical activity or in games
of similar nature. These sports first took form of casual entertainment to improve the
physical abilities of the participants. In most of these sports there were always certain
rules by which one can achieve the victory. One of the first recorded professional sports
events in our history are the Ancient Greek Olympic Games that happened in 776BC.
These Olympic games served as to honor the god of thunder Zeus. These games served
as a place for equal competition for the surrounding nations that were during the times
of war. During the period of the games there was a ¨Olympic truce¨ which meant that
the fights have been stalled during the time of the games as not to anger Zeus. These
games served as platform for the athletes from their nations to gain the graces of gods
for their nations and become heroes in the eyes of their people. This was the first time
that masses of people gathered to observe athletes perform and root for them.
When we move further down the history another big events in sports history were the
Gladiator games in Ancient Rome that started in 1st century BC. During that time the
role of the athletes changed but also the role of the passive viewers changed. These
fights were put on to entertain the poor masses and to be used as distraction by the rich
and to keep the peasants happy and entertained. At the time the emergence of ¨teams¨
and rich owners owning teams and stables of athletes that represented them and their
5
colors. This was the first time that people aligned themselves with different athletes and
supported them during the fights . These fighters gave the people hope , that by fighting
hard you can achieve greatness even at those times , but mostly it kept them entertained
as these masses gathered in massive coliseums to watch these fighters fight to the death.
While throughout history sports were often used as distractions by the government to
keep people happy that has changed drastically now.
With the emergence of mass media such as radio, printed media and TV the perception
of sports has changed. While in ancient times only way to see sports was to go watch
them live in person , with the rise of all these different medias it became much easier to
observe these events and to get invested in watching them. While even in one of the first
news papers there always were sports sections that were reporting on the events as it
became clear people are interested in watching sports and emerging themselves in it.
Radio brought us the first live sports cast that was reporting the events that were
happening at the time on the field. This already brought even more people interested in
sports as they could even listen to the sports but the TV was really a game changer.
With televisions came live casts of sports games that quickly turned into one of the most
watched things on the television. Even today the single most watched TV program in
United States is the Super Bowl every single year. Live sports casts suddenly brought in
the general public and whole mass audience as during big sporting events or
international matches sports fans or not turned in to watch the event and support their
nations athletes. Suddenly the public was closer than ever to all these athletes and sports
and became more immersed in the world , and it became larger part of life of many
people today.
6
Today with internet the obsession with athletes and following sports is even bigger than
ever. You can follow your favorite athlete or team on Facebook, Twitter , their
WebPages or anywhere on internet , and this gives these athletes a huge super star like
status. Now more than ever athletes are taken as a huge celebrities that are followed by
millions of fans all around the world as the way for them to connect with any fan over
the world is now easier than ever. These stars then are not only seen in sports as they
became large part of the popular culture. You can see them in commercials , TV shows ,
being written about all the time and often not because of the regard to their
performance. We put athletes today on pedestals because as kids we are taught to look
up to these athletes as role models because of their performances on the field but while
we grow up we become more interested in them whole as objects.
This paper will discuss the sociological effects of sports , specifically it will examine
the role of audience or ¨fans¨. It is important for us to realize the role that the sports play
in our everyday lives, as we can see that throughout the history sporting events were a
way to get citizens occupied and to give them a place to look for idols and to cheer for
someone. For us to be able to understand the evolution of the role of the fandom
throughout history we will look into the role that sports formerly had in society and how
fandom has changed. The question this thesis will answer is what the appeal of sport
has been to people and the reasons for fans and fandom to exist over time . It will
attempt to predict the future role of fandom in sports and society.
7
Chapter 1
Fandom in Ancient Times
1.1 Fandom in Ancient Greece
For the first case of fandom in history we can look to Ancient Greece and the Olympic
Games that they held every four years from 776 BC all the way through till 394 AD
when the emperor Theodosius canceled them. As Judith Swaddling explains in her work
there were many ways that the citizens at the time were affected and how this was the
birth of arena sized sports competitions that gave birth to the first fans as they were
thousands of people watching live and celebrating their athletes. As mentioned in her
paper it was a tradition that during the times of the Olympic Games there was called a
¨Olympic truce¨ between the competing nations , as these games were in celebration of
the Greek god Zeus so no blood was to be spilled during the times of competition. By
winning these competitions the athletes and the nations that were represented by them
were suppose to be blessed by the Zeus which could be explained as origin to the
tribalism that we see in sports fans even in modern times.
The fact that suddenly common citizens were rooting for these athletes it created a sense
of community as these people gathered around to cheer onto these strangers. During the
times of war and distress this time of peace was a good way for people to become fans
as it was another escape from the realities of the normal life. This is parallel to what we
can see even today as sports fan use sports as escape of the reality and to feel like part
8
of something bigger and more important(Swaddling , p-8) . As it was during the times
of the Ancient Olympic Games the winners of the athletic events were lauded as heroes
it created environment where a large amount of people could gather behind them and
feel like they were part of the victory. This is a reason that many people become fans
even now as to feel like they are part of the team they support and to share the spoils
when the victory arrives. This creates environment where the people of the nations that
won feel sense of entitlement and pride above the competing nations and to be able to
declare themselves as better nation. As the athletes were all representing their nation the
fan fascination began with the fact you wasn't only supporting one athlete but as he was
the one representing their nation; which gave birth to international competition which
makes fans even of people that would normally be interested in sports. This is a
phenomena that can be seen even today during major sports events as Olympics or
football or hockey world championships. During that time it's as if the whole country
discusses the athletes and their performances and gather together as one to cheer and
celebrate these athletes.
We can even see through historical recordings that the role of these games were
immense for these nations involved. There was pressure for the athletes to win so much
as the history books would not record a Greek that even took second place. The athletes
that won multiple events or won in successive Olympics would not only be praised but
their names would be inscribed on temples in their home cities and statues would be
build of them. (Mandell,1987,p.4). This national and local creation of ¨heroes¨ and
building them statues as was only previously build for gods started the fascination
about the athletes and about the values they represent. These athletes then are suppose
9
to represent the values of the nations , their grit , their hard work and to represent the
best of their nations citizens, and the way the Greeks represented their victors in statues
was the idealized as illustration of physical and spiritual harmonies(Mandell,1987,p7).
Throughout history we see many instances where sporting events were used as a tools
of propaganda as this power that sports have of nations can be used as a tool for a
political agenda.
1.2 Fandom in Ancient Rome
The next era to look at is the era of Gladiators in ancient Rome that lasted nearly
thousand years from the 1st century BC till late 6th century AD. This era is important
for us in understanding the role that fandom has on people as it brought into picture two
big topics onto the picture that would bring in more fans; which is the violence aspect to
the sport and how the use of arenas helped created the theatre like entertainment
experience. As Roger Dunkle wrote in his book gladiator fights started as a form of
munus which is the Latin word for ¨duty or gift¨ as a form of celebration after funerals.
These men were chosen amongst citizen to perform for the dead and celebrating them
by putting on a spectacle. These gladiators were chosen to put on a show to the masses
and where better to do it than in arenas where only theater was taken place before.
As much as it started as a celebration for the dead it turn on life of its own as the
gladiator shows became a violent spectacle for the masses that was used a tool for
10
politicians to get power. The fandom here could be seen as people started to cheer for
their favorite gladiators or even ¨stables¨ of fighters that belonged to different high class
members. This can be viewed as first time that masses would go watch these
competitions live to these arenas that could fit up to 40 thousand spectators on regular
basis which paved the way how millions of fans around world go even today to the
stadiums to witness their favorite athletes performing live. It became a routine for
people during that time to go to the arenas to view all the different events and cheer on
for their favorite fighters.
Big theme that was raised during that time was the effect that violence has on bringing
fans to sports competition. As gladiator fights were violent to the death duels it was a
thrill for the people to go see it. The violence is a theme in sports fans appeal that will
be discussed in more detail later in this paper and while today the thrill seekers can be
fans of boxers or MMA fighters during that time in Rome when you as fan wanted to
experience a competition that included violence between the contestants going to see
the fights was a special event that was celebrating the raw power of these fighters.
There is something about seeing two warriors face each other in an arena and fight to
death which brought in tension , gore and spectacle to the lives of common people of
ancient Rome. Here can be seen the difference that sports took here than opposite the
Olympic Games as the Romans gladiators were separated more from the public as they
knew they were entertainers rather than athletes ( Mandell , 1986 ,p.9).
11
This entertainment aspect brought onto by Romans can be seen as one of the biggest
reasons for fandom and general fascination with athletes as in the end we take sports as
entertainment. There is a saying that going to stadium to watch match is like going to
theatre without knowing the outcome of the story. During the gladiator fights the
showmanship of athletes started to show more and more as the bigger show they put on
the more cheers they got(Mandell,1986, p.13). Even thou their shows had brutal endings
they knew that showmanship was important for the crowd as in the end they knew they
were doing this for them , the fans .
The fact that the government was sponsoring these events and the fact that many
politicians were sponsoring their own gladiator rings during that time they knew that the
violence was one of the big pulls for them. This violent entertainment was perfect for
the low class as it was simple brutal experience while many high ranked officials and
thinkers off that time refused to participate in viewing this as the intellectuals took this
as low brand of entertainment ( Dunkle,2008, Ch1 ) . This is in parallel how often
violent sports even now attract the simple minded and lower class as it is simple form of
entertainment that involves adrenaline and action all put in one.
The acceptance and even pleasure in watching this lethal violence is described by
Hannah Arendt's thesis about normality of evil as a banality(Dunkle, 2008,p.86). She
explains that brutality of the games don't express the brutality of civilization but rather a
social truth of the time which was that violence is ultimately a part of every day. Her
idea explains well why fans are attracted to violent sports as they want a outlet where
12
they can view a certain level of violence that is appropriate in the society. As during the
times of Ancient Rome lethal fights would satisfy the fans need for visual gore or
representations in today's era we have other forms of entertainment such as movies or
video games to represent these violent fantasies while the socially acceptable forms are
boxing or other fighting sports.
Ancient Rome is the birthplace of the first grand sports events that are spoken off even
centuries after happening such as the Maxximus gladiator event he put on after death of
his wife that was written about throughout the ages and is spoken of as one of the
biggest spectacles of the arenas history(Dunkle,2008,p.96). This aura surrounding the
origins of this transformed into today that every final or big game is represented as
biggest event of the athletes lives or the town's biggest achievement and this can all be
pointed as starting in Ancient Rome as this essence of trying to put on the best
spectacle possible for the fans and to create a special moment for all those fans to
cherish and to discuss for future times to come.
1.3 Fandom in Nazi Germany
Next historical era that is important to look at in the context of the role of fandom is the
year 1936 during which the Olympic games were taking place in the Nazi Germany. As
during these Olympics it was only quite recent that the Nazi party got the power in
Germany and Joseph Goebbels who was one of the highest officers , minister of
propaganda and one of the closest advisors to Hitler understood that ¨having power was
13
only half the problem ,you also had to win the hearts of the people¨ , and sports was
one of the ways to achieve this (Kruger-Murray,2003,p.20).
Because Goebbels understood what power sports could have on people he used it to
control the thinking of the people , insisting on mass participations of them as to show
the unity and power of the new political system. He understood that sports create sense
of self-sacrifice , of courage while displaying the elitism and elite physical traits that the
nation was trying to represent (Kruger-Murray,2003,p.22). These are the core reasons
why people become fans , why they are interested in sports as they represent values they
believe in and which they cherish and praise. This elitism especially is a factor that is
manifested throughout the times as people always want to see the best perform against
each other to determine the real champions among us.
At the time the president of American Olympic Committee Avery Brundage stated ¨The
very foundation of the modern Olympic revival will be undermined if individual
countries are allowed to restrict participation by reason of class , creed , or race ¨
(Mandell , 1986 , p.120). He was at the time very vocal about questioning the morality
of supporting Olympic games that were being hosted by the Nazi regime and
specifically about the treatment of the Jewish athletes. What these games brought were
lot of controversies as the values that Olympic sports were meant to represent were in
danger while being held by the evil regime. He was not the only outspoken about this
issue and many were calling for the movement of Olympic games into another country ,
but after the inspection of the sporting facilities in Germany there was proof that the
14
Jewish athletes were treated fairly. Goebbels understood that for the propaganda to
work they would have to abide to all the regulations as to not rise any suspicions at the
time.
As event such as Olympic games are such a global event that is watched by millions the
discussions around the world was raging about how these games should be treated and
how the political system could affect them. Many politicians at the time didn't want to
comment on the issue as not to create negative atmosphere , such as American president
Franklin D. Roosevelt which despite warnings that the Nazi regimes was using these
games as tools for propaganda decided not to involve himself in the issue as the
Olympic committee wasn't under presidential influence (Mandell , 1986, p.128). These
politicians understood that it was not a good time to create tensions between nations
during the time of the games which were suppose to represent the exact opposite of that.
This massive global appeal of Olympics was the way that the Nazi propaganda could be
shown globally and be seen by all those fans watching. The global outreach of sporting
events such Olympic games or football World Cups and similar event is one of the
reasons that during that time it could been used for propaganda while now this global
outreach is used by advertisers and marketers to access us the fans , in similar fashion
they did during the 1936 Olympics.
There were some boycotts that came to life across the Europe mainly throughout
France , Sweden , United Kingdom , Netherlands and Czechoslovakia that were calling
for not attending the games and instead to create ¨peoples Olympiad¨ that was supposed
15
to be hosted in Barcelona but because of the Civil war that broke out in Spain at the
time was canceled (Kruger-Murray,2003,p.159). These nations were worried about the
dealings of the Nazi regime but ultimately didn't want their athletes to lose out on a
chance to compete in these historic games in a chance to gain glory while at it maybe
also defeat the German athletes at their own turf. Ultimately it was on the individual
athletes to decide if they wanted to participate or not. While most accepted there was
large number of Jewish athletes that decided to boycott the games in fear of their safety
and as statement against the treatment of Jewish people else.
The global outreach of these games was massive. As Germany wanted to make sure to
make better Olympic games than the previous ones that were held in Los Angeles they
built a 100,000 seat track stadium and mostly they were the first games that were
televised and radio broadcast to 41 countries ( Kruger- Murray , 2003 , p.165). This put
up with the success of the German athletes that won most medals overall(89) and most
gold medals (33) was taken as success to the Reich as the image of steel efficient
nations full of superior individuals was the way that the Goebbels wished for these
games to go. The German fans were ecstatic of these historical victories and the regime
was satisfied as it helped to create even stronger image for the Nazi party as the truly
superior nation at the time created by efficiency. Even during later years Germany kept
using sports as very efficient tool of propaganda as they believed the role sports could
have on people and found a way how to use it as a powerful tool in strengthening their
regime.
16
But why is it important to look at the history of public and sports ? Because as with any
kind of history we can learn from it and understand many different aspects and appeals
that it can have on people. Sport is one of the oldest traditions of our recorded history
and there is a reason for it, as people always seek outlet either physical or as passive
viewer observing them. Sports create situation where there is a chance for victory equal
for both sides that is determined by the performance of the competing parties. It
supports physical excellence and superiority amongst your peers and rewards success in
those areas. History also teaches us that not only the athletes are important but mostly it
is meant for audience viewing as in the end in a way it is a sort of entertainment and us
the people , the fans are one of the reasons sports are being played. Sports throughout
history were used mostly as propaganda tools for the regimes at the times to help
support their areas and to give some form of entertainment to the public. While today
the propaganda aspect is not seen as prominently in global sports the praising of athletes
and religious like support of certain teams or athletes can be seen strongly in today's
world.
17
Chapter 2
Rise of Radio and Television and its impacts on fandom
One of the main reasons that can be accredited towards today's sport obsession and fan
support can be seen by the rise of two biggest mass mediums of past decade , which are
the radio and televisions. In this chapter we will examine radio and TV in order to
understand the rise of fandom as global phenomenon. As we can seen throughout
history the only way for people to observe sports were to go and watch them live in the
places where these events were being held at the time. While during those times that
was the only way to watch it , and you only heard about victories of athletes from
another countries by word of mouth and myths these two inventions were crucial in the
star rise of professional sports and would change the way we perceive and consume
sports forever. These two medias were crucial in the rise of popularity of sports and
establishing as one of the prime time entertainment events. Before 1920s sports results
would be often only published in news papers and often many days later which didn't
really create content that would get the public interested in it much unless you were
directly involved with the sports , but what these two mediums done for the field can't
be denied as they were able to deliver live sporting events to the mass public and
anyone with radio or television anywhere around the nation . Radio and television
allows people from different cities , across globes forming tight, long lasting bonds with
athletes and teams that allows them to cheer on them anywhere in the world and makes
us feel as if we are somehow connected to them.
18
2.1 The Rise of Radio
For the first signs of radio broadcast we can look into the 1920 United States during
which time the first radio broadcasts started launching around the nation and quickly
became a massive hit. Radios success can be accredited for it being a product of mass
market as the large demand by the customers made it such a powerful medium for
years to come. Just since its mass release launch in 1920 , over 60 percent of American
families owned a radio by 1930 (Himes , 2002,p.23). Listening to radio became a
everyday thing for the people and they gathered at homes to listen in the evening to the
broadcasts at the time. While even during the 1920s over 600 stations were broadcasting
at the time which were all competing for the listeners and to gather audiences. Most of
the programs at the time were usually only spoken word ones or news reports and that's
why all these competing radio stations became a search for diversification in their
programming(Lenthall,1992,p.15) . This is where the symbiotic relationship and sudden
rise between sports and radio happened. While the radio stations were searching for new
exciting content it was right under their noses and it took them some time to realize. The
following success that sports broadcasts would have couldn't been predicted , but what
in few years one broadcast of college football game did changed the industry and the
role it would have on society.
Before the mentioned college football game there was one instance of sports appearing
on the air and that was a broadcast five months after the launch of radio in 1920 which
was a blow-by-blow report on Johnny Ray-Johnny Dundee prime boxing cup ( Smith
19
,2001).This was the first recorded sports even in radio history and the success it had was
trying to be recreated by the future broadcasts. While it took almost a decade to kick off
, during the 1921 the broadcasting of ¨backyard bowl¨ which featured West Virginia
University and University of Pittsburg football teams. While during the decade before
college football broadcasts were usually just aired locally in towns or states only , this
was first national wide live sports broadcasts and with that came many changes. While
before the audiences were small with national broadcast it showed the potential of
success which quickly followed and as Smith (2001) states ¨Radio had made itself part
of the nationalization of football , by making interregional competition immediately
available to masses through airways¨(p17) which shows us that the demand for
watching teams compete anywhere , at any time was one of the reasons for rise of sports
fans and interest in following sporting contents.
At the time radio has strongest impact on sports and the audience. It was broadcasting
college and professional sports to athletics , boxing and car racing. One of the biggest
appeals and strengths of radio were that there was a connection between the broadcaster
and the audience. While watching television we seen what is happening , while with
radio we are listening and we are painting a picture in our head and it creates a more
intimate feeling for us as audience. We are pulled in by the words and the emotions that
these broadcasters deliver and they try to create atmosphere where we feel like we are
at the stadium watching with them(Smith , 2001 , p.56). This was a very valuable
entertainment tool and one of the reasons that people became fans as they felt that they
were part of the action. Another big strengths and reasons that both radio and sports
exploded so much was the reason that no other medium could match its ability to be
20
watched or listened to anywhere ( in car , at work , at store ) while others at the time as
television required you to assemble at certain place. The impact of the outreach of radio
can't be denied even today as studies shown that radio is still even today leading
platform in reaching end customers. We listen even today to radio on way to work in a
car , in a store in some random place and we consume this medium during most of our
lives even without actively seeking it.
This outreach allowed for sports fans to rise all around nation to listen to broadcasts
during match days and follow and support their favorite teams even without the need for
travel. While team owners were worried and were against the rise of broadcasting of the
games as they were worried that it would hurt the attendance. While in States mostly the
teams from the New York market such as Yankees , Giants and Dodgers didn't allow till
1938 for broadcasts of their games due to being worried about filling seats , it proved
otherwise as attendance rose , while the general interest in the teams increased and the
large demand for team related merchandise started after(Belanger,2004, p.6). What this
success has brought was the recognition of sports as one of the most sought after
entertainment fields and the demand of public for more content. People started to seek
more and more content and were the ones that started the trend of modern sports fans
and the close following of athletes and teams while the teams and radio stations used it
as a powerful tool for advertisement.
While the first nationally broadcast sports events had advertising , they became integral
parts of this field as the owners and stations understood that the audience numbers that
21
these events were pulling allowed them to use it for advertising. The commercialism of
sports has only continued on during the following years as sports became a big part of
modern pop culture , while large amounts of money started being invested in the field as
the media understood that people became fans and became invested in that and they
were willing to invest their own money into it. But what these fans invest wasn't only
their money or time they invested feelings in these teams. During the 1930s broadcasts
of Boston Red Sox games whole city used to gather at common places to listen on and
to cheer on their team(Brown ,1998,p50). These fans were cheering on as a whole city
rooting for their team that was representing the rough and gritty nature of the locals and
this unity in supporting their local teams created a strong bonds between the cities and
locals as it allowed for their cities be represented and compete against others. One of the
aspects this brought was the rivalry between cities and individuals professional sports
brought as it gave the locals a way to support their town against heated rival town ( In
States best example any major league teams from Boston vs New York teams) which
supports a friendly and fair competition between them. This patriotism aspect will be
discussed more in depth in next chapter.
2.2 The role of Television
While in the 30s the radios popularity was exploding another medium came into
spotlight and that was television. As first television sets were sold to public in 1928 in
United States it wasn't long till its popularity became nationwide and the large customer
base turned into it as their primary form of entertainment. While the programs in the
22
beginning were similar to those as radios in its first stages mostly news and spoken
words were the primary form of entertainment it wasn't long till the networks realized
that sports events resembled news programming on TV as they were being reported on
as they were happening (MacDonald,1993,p.112). Because of this and because the
networks found that the Americans were more interested in the sports rather than
current events the networks decided to invest heavily into developing high quality
sports programs. It's surprising that people didn't want to pursuit current events as they
were often very bleak during the times and they rather sought after safe place and
entertainment in following sports. This was one of the big reasons the sports industry
became so big as it created a entertainment for the people that could distract them from
everyday problems , just as in ancient Greece or Rome at the time but now because of
the reach of these mediums it was put on much grander scale. People don't want to listen
to all the bad stuff that is going on in the world and in their free time they often seek a
distraction . Live sports create that kind of distraction and create different scenarios
every time and that is one of its biggest values and allures. No other entertainment has a
format where not one game has the same content and outcome is always different. There
is saying that in sports on any given day anyone can beat anyone and that is the reason
why people turn in to watch as they know anything can happen.
What television offered was a visual content of these sporting events and you could now
watch the athletes perform rather than just listen about it and hear scores. Now sports
teams and athletes really got face to them that people could recognize and cheer for. The
fact that people could watch these athletes compete anywhere without need to going to
the stadium created environment where the athletes and teams were getting more
23
recognition as the performances could be seen and with it came more fame towards
them. Kids could recognize the athletes they saw on television and seeing them perform
made them to look up to them which creates young fans as they would then take these
athletes as their role models. Just as with any famous actor or actress at the time the best
athletes would become celebrities and one of the things about being celebrity is that you
will have fans . Fans are interested in following their person of interest as they want to
know more about them and want to support them in some form. What television did for
the rise of sports fans is that it gave the perfect platform that allows them to follow these
events and athletes on screen and it created one of the strongest branches of today's
entertainment fields as major sports events are even today the most watched programs
in the world ( eq. Super Bowl being annually most watched broadcast event in United
States , and FIFA world cup final being the globally most watched event)
There was another reason for rise of sports fans as television brought many different
sports broadcasts ranging from team sports , athletics , tennis , boxing to racing or
wrestling. While the first broadcast was just like radio ones a college football match in
1939 on NBC in United states it wasn't long till all these sports made it to the screens as
one of the appeals for broadcasters was the cheap costs of production and fact of being
able to fill it in as content during off broadcasting hours (MacDonald , 1993 , p.115).
This wide range of sports coverage meant that the interests of most sports fans would be
satisfied in some way as each person could find a sport they are into and to follow it in
some shape or form. This meant that the diversity of fans would been much greater as
some sports such as tennis might been followed more by upper class while boxing was
largely followed by the working class , and each group could find different sport to
24
watch that matches their values or interests. This meant that now sports weren't only
taken as entertainment for the low class , a distraction to the masses but rather as a
valuable form of entertainment for anyone. While in the early 1920 teams were worried
that these new mediums would make them loose business it actually created the
otherwise as now it gave them national coverage and allowed these teams and athletes
into the peoples living rooms as to say so and to make the people feel like they were
part of the moment as they were watching(MacDonald , 1993 , p.117).
Sports advertising became norm as the broadcasters realized that exactly the target
audience for their products were the adult males at the time and that allowed for these
broadcasters to create more high quality sports content as it satisfied the customers and
brought in lot of money throughout the advertising (MacDonald, 1993 , p.117). This
advertising money brought into the sports would impact that sports would have on the
viewers as the money they invested heavily into advertising turned out into creating a
multibillion dollar industry that it is today. It is important to realize just what kind of
impact the advertising money had on the evolution of sports entertainment in the
modern media. Because of the money advertisers paid , the broadcasters became to air
even larger variety of sports that would create even more fans as larger variety became
available to the masses. As professor MacDonald states , the target audience for
marketers covered the adult male which made it attractive for the manufactures of beer,
tobacco products and automobiles and that is why even in 1967 CBS had no problem
selling minute of air time during national football game for 75,000 dollars which was
even for that time quite large amount(1993,p.119). This proofs that the following of
sports was very large since the explosion of these new mediums and that there was large
25
demand by the people for sports related content and because that it proved that there is
large market gap. As much as we might dislike advertisers and advertisements today
,we can't deny that because of their money and their influence sports wouldn't have
been as big and influential as they are today. They allowed for creation of quality
content based on the consumer demand , which ended up creating more interest in it and
eventually to helping bring in fans as sports became integral part of the popular culture.
One of the important aspects that television brought to sports industry and fans was the
technology that it brought with itself. As broadcasters didn't just want to simply present
the games as some kind of show they started implementing technology into the sports
broadcast. The invention of instant replay or slow motion videos created unique content
as the viewers could now enjoy the special moments like never before. This allowed for
true enjoyment of the special moments of victories and became one of the reasons that
there are many sports fans even today as often someone falls in love with certain sports
after seeing special moment during a match , and now with video technology and instant
replays even larger masses could instantly enjoy these moments of brilliance to be
inspired upon. The biggest technological advancement that the television brought was
that after launch of several communication satellites into space in 1960s there was a
way for 1964 Olympics to be broadcasted all over the globe (MacDonald,1993,p.124).
This globalization of broadcasting changed sports even more as now there was a large
interest in international sports competition broadcasts all around the world .This could
be attributed to the aspect of the different fans we can see in our society even today as
there are the everyday sports fan that follow their own teams or athletes based on
preferences while there arises many sports fans during international competitions as the
26
nationalistic pride takes over and you are drawn to watch your country compete against
other nations. This worldwide airing of Olympic games in 1964 proved that when
audience was presented with this content , even if they might not be fans of the sports ,
they tuned in large numbers to root for their nations. This patriotic feeling and sense of
pride that supporting national teams brings is quite unique and is the reason why there is
so many sports fans across the world as they might in fact just really be supporting their
nation , and will be discussed in next chapter.
One of the biggest effects that television had directly on sports is actually because of the
demand of the fans for it. Because of the exposure that television broadcasts brought
there was many changes in major league sports as in 1957 referees in the National
Football League were allowed to call two commercial timeouts( one during first and one
during third quarter ) that didn't exist in the sport before and were direct reason that
advertisers were using the time to attract all the fans watching at the
time(MacDonald,1993,p.140). These specially dedicated commercial breaks are part of
major league sports even today , and they bring the broadcasters more money to create
more content , and even today the most expensive air time to air commercial is during
NFLs super bowl half time. We can see here the power that the fans had as the audience
here became the most important aspect as it was meant for their entertainment and
became the target audience to satisfy while directly having effects on the actual sport.
Another thing that changed was the other effects this television exposure had on the
image of the athletes and teams. Before the national exposure the uniforms were baggy ,
the athletes dressed very leisure and didn't care about their appearances. But now it was
important to present itself in good light as the public and the fans were watching and it
27
was important for the athletes to maintain good image to keep the audience and bring in
the fans and viewers.
The final impact that television had on the sports industry and fans was because of the
way their programming scheduling worked at the time. Because of the fact that
broadcasters at the time had quality programming for Friday and Saturday nights they
dedicated Sundays and Mondays as days dedicated to sports broadcasts. These football
Sundays actually became tied in the culture to watching football on the super Sunday
that the broadcasters were promoting at the time and create a whole day where the
sports fans could be immersed in the action(MacDonald , 1993 , p.142). In states this
became such a part of popular culture that Sundays are always recognized as the
football days all around the nation , and this is the kind of impact that the fans have as
their behavior can become the norm. While the athletes at the time were complaining on
changed schedules , the broadcasters realized that they need in to fill in their times and
to deliver the events to audiences at their convenient times. This created a routine for
the fans to follow and to know when they can watch their favorite athlete.
While many say that today radio is dead and television is slowly dying because of all
the new technological advances and internet , it is undeniable the crucial role that these
two platforms played in creating such a powerful fan culture in our modern society.
The global outreach helped integrating sports into our modern culture as it made it part
of the pop culture. There is no denying that the audio and visual content that these two
platforms provided was at the time unheard of , and allowed for sports to become
28
integral part of these entertainment industries which would end up creating many sports
fans all around the globe. How many times do we hear stories when talking with
someone about sports discussing some historic moment of match you have watched in
the past , something that caught your attention or was the reasons why you fell in love
with sports with. Television and radio brought in many fans just by being able to
present the audience the spectacle that can be to their liking. These moments of glory
are the reasons there are fans as they are able to witness the greatness and feel like they
were part of it.
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Chapter 3
Digital media and its effects on fandom
3.1 Convenience
The Internet has transformed the concept of fandom , bringing the scope of it to entirely
new level. With invention of internet came another big game changer to the industry as
now the fans could seek their own requested content at any given time. Today we can
see all around us people checking news scores on their phones , watching matches on
their tables or laptops , or checking their favorite athletes facebook photos or twitter
posts. The modern fan is surrounded exactly by the sports content he requires and seeks
and has easy access to it anywhere and at any time. The convenience factor can be
pointed to the larger amount of sports fans as now more than ever we can even watch
online some under 16 tennis tournament that's taking place in Hungary or Australia.
Whatever bizarre sport we might be interested in there is a way for us now to instantly
get access to it and observe which allows for even larger fan base to arise. Important
factor for the fans interest is also the fact that it is now more than ever easier to get more
information and gossip about our favorite athletes because of all the technology and
recording devices we are surrounded with. People like to observe others , and by
observing athletes their obsession doesn't feel weird but they just as they are their fans.
We can see even in pop culture you can mention name of Beckham , Messi or Ronaldo
and even people that don't follow sports know who they are as they are huge celebrities
30
that have millions of fans and followers online. This shows what big effect fans have as
their objects of praise become brands of themselves.
Just to understand how fast the internet spread amongst the civilization can be seen by
the official internet statistics by 480 percent to over two billion people in 2009 , to over
three billion users in 2015 and that is quite the coverage. Internet helps us to access any
information or content at speed of click of a mouse , it cuts out the unrequited content
and simply focuses at what that one unique person is searching for. We can divide the
uses of internet into several branches for most search after forms of content online.
While social communication and online video are the kings in online popularity , sports
are one the main branches and sought after content ( Hutchins , 2012, p.4). Before with
television holding all the rights for sporting events it meant that the broadcasting
executives would decide what games would be shown and they were ultimately the ones
that decided what content would get to the fans, while now its other way that the
customer decide what content he wants because of the abilities to stream online from
anywhere. Internet is a tool that allows the fan to be surrounded by information , clips
and news about their favorite team at all the times and helps them establish the identity
of a true passionate fan. And because of the short attention span of today's society the
entertainment aspect of short sports videos we can find online is very valuable because
it is creating and maintaining fans by the massive exposure they can get online and on
social media.
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3.2 Participation of the audience
There are many technological advantages that internet brought that allowed to even
more content for the fans to consume. These innovations included the ability for
viewers to view and post comments and participate in real time discussion , advanced
instant replay with many digital improvements to help with explanation of coaching and
referring decisions , access to real-time statistics and updates on athletes injuries to
behind the scene videos and interviews to the multi angle view on replays of the favorite
moments ( Hutchins , 2012 , p.75). These were just few of the many new innovations
that internet brought for sports fan but it gave them a opportunity to communicate to
each other before , during or after the event which could help gather the like minded
fans and create stronger relationships to the teams because of the fact you can now
easily communicate with like minded fans about your team and feel even more like part
of the team as you discuss the sports with other likely minded people. Internet gave fans
a powerful tool to them as fans with giving them voice on this platform where they
could become an active viewer of the sport , not just passive consumer. This is
important for the fans as it helps them with strengthening their fan identity by showing
initiative in trying to be part of the team and part of the experience at least in some
shape or form.
With internets rise and its aligned rise of smart phone devices and tables the outreach is
even larger as we can literally be surrounded by many different matches , statistics and
reports all at same time just at the comfort of your own living room. There is a
relationship between sports and all these different kind of screens we are surrounded
32
today whether it be television , laptop , tablet or mobile screen they each serve us for
different purpose as they can be used for different kind of sports content ( Hitchins ,
2012 , p.76 ).This is then used by fans for their needs as they desire by themselves.
While during the 1930s the norm might been to gather around a radio or television at set
at home at the time and fully focus on that one match today the modern day fan will
watch the game on his laptop or TV , while having the live-time statistics opened on the
tablet and checking twitter during the game on comments about the game. We are now
living in a world where we are constantly looking to be entertained at any second and
that is why the presence of many screens plays important role in life of sports fan as it
can help him feel more involved in the game and being able to observe every little detail
about it. While this trend of staring at multiple screens at once isn't something that will
go away soon as the technology is moving forward quite fast and peoples demand for
more and easier acces will create more platforms for sports fans to become part of.
While it might be not good trend for the society as whole , it is quite good for the sports
fan as it creates even more diversify content that they might be interested in. There is no
denying in saying that these devices are there to make our lives easier and to give us
large access to different sort of entertainments and there are the perfect platform for fans
to stay up to date with their admired athletes.
3.3 Sports figures as celebrities
Social media are the last subjects of all the different mass medias that were discussed in
this paper in relationship to their effects on sports and fans/fandom. Cambridge
33
dictionary describes fan as someone who admires and supports a person , sports or
sports team ; which shows why social media are the perfect breeding grounds for the
athletes and sports fans as these are platforms that are directly designed to allow us to
show our admirations towards others and to be allowed to follow them online at any
given time. It wasn't long that athletes weren't on celebrity status as movie stars but
because of these social media the global outreach these athletes and teams have because
of all the different social media is not reached by many ( Hutchins , 2012 , p.72).
Cristiano Ronaldos 110 million combined fans on facebook and twitter makes him the
most followed athlete in the world and only three other celebrities - musicians at that
were able to beat his numbers which shows us that the power of sports fans is big and
one of the reasons it's still so powerful today is because of the power that social media
can have on the fame of these athletes. The fans are today more than even connected to
the athletes as now they can get tweets from them right before or after the sport events ,
can give them more insight into their personal lives and make them more approachable
to the people and the fans. This aspect is quite unique and new as athletes lives used to
be quite private outside of the athletic field , but because of all these inventions now we
can see what our favorite athlete is having for breakfast , where he went shopping and
how he went for dinner with team mates.
We can see that just in the past twenty five years the sports industry has changed and
became even more profitable because of all the new innovations , specifically internet.
While forty years ago the best athletes would be known , but their wages would be on
par with mine workers the exposure that the athletes get today is astronomically larger
because of all the platforms that allow us to follow them. That is why the fandom in
34
past twenty years can be seen on a steep rise into larger public , because of all the
abilities of the internet. We can just observe how we consumed sports in past twenty
years , while in early 2000s we would still watch big sports matches on televisions only
and maybe check the sports paper for more details ; today in 2016 we put on two
different streams from games at same time on the laptop , when at same time checking
the live game statistics on our iPads and commenting after any big play on twitter just to
show the world that we are in fact really watching this game. The way we consume
sports changed immensely in the past few years and the exposure on these athletes is
now even bigger than ever. The fans have lot to be thankful for as all these
technological advances bring even more detailed content to us the fans , and gives us a
platform for possible two way communication with the athletes. And yes something as
your favorite athlete from your favorite basketball team retweeting you on your birthday
to wish you all the best can create a very special memory for sports fan. Internet , Social
media and all these smart devices are just the current examples of the ways fans can
follow their interests easier than ever before and they gave us a instant global
connection to them like never seen before. The reason that we now feel closer than ever
to our favorite athletes or teams is that we can feel like we understand them because of
the fact that we follow them online , read about them and their practices or injuries and
keep up to date to the events happening in sports within seconds of them happening ,
and it is no surprise that during big sport events the athletes or teams names are the most
trending topics worldwide on social network sites as twitter and that is because of the
sheer amount of people that can now watch these events globally at touch of their
fingertips
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Chapter 4
The Sociological aspects for fans interest in sports
While we seen how the digital media has changed our consumption patterns respect to
sports is there something to be agreed upon when saying sports has became the new
opiate for the masses ? While societies turned into religion in the history as their
primary source of distraction there is a valid argument to be made about sports slowly
taking its spot in the recent times. Let's just compare at the amount of churches are build
in the last decade as opposite to new sport facilities and stadiums to see what a big
influence sports are on the society today. There is many social aspects that watching
sports covers as it taps into the emotions and identities of many people today. There is
no denying that the psychological effects that supporting a sports team can have on the
person and there is many different functions that being a sports fan can mean to one
person. Even when we use the opiate of masses as analogy it isn't physically addicting ,
but psychologically addicting ( Earnheardt , 2012 , p.X ) . This psychological addiction
is one of the biggest impacts and reasons why there is so many fans and such a big
interest in sport as it is easy to get hooked on watching it and becoming part of that
world to escape the reality of everyday . In this chapter we will examine the
sociological role that sports play in everyday lives of sports fans.
4.1 Connection and Identity
One of the biggest reasons that sports create such an affection between the fans is
because of the social connections and the communication between the fans. Today the
36
communications scholars study the connection between fandom and mediated sports as
they create very unique form of communications in many different forms : interpersonal
, intergroup , family , organizational , intrapersonal and interpersonal communication (
Earnheard,2012,p.3). What sports create for the fans is a new forms of communications
as they create new dynamics within those groups. There is unique communication
between the different groups of sports fans helps create more diversify audience that
founds a common interest and helps them with identification with their own team. This
sense of identity is a crucial factor for fans as it helps to create a sense of belonging ,
which is a feeling that in today's digital world is easy to be found in as all these instant
connection actually is breaking the actual human connections. This sense of unity is one
of the aspects that people seek in past times such as these, and helps them to feel as
being part of some community. This is the role that religion brought heavily to people
throughout the history , but now there was a way to become part of something without
having to dedicate your life by specific set of rules. While in a way mediated sports can
be seen satisfying similar needs to the society, the fact that at the end of the day it is still
form of entertainment and not a chore is one of the reasons for the popularity that
professional sports have today.
In Adam Earnheards book about the sports fan and their identity he explains some of the
reasons for fans commitment towards particular sports team ( p.10) can be explained by
certain social psychologists today. The examples he presents are several psychological
aspects that attracts the sports fans which is BIRGing ( Basking in Reflected Glory)
which accounts for fan support of winning teams (Cialdini , 1976) which means to put
it simply the fans enjoyed being part of the team success and their following association
37
with winners would increase their self esteem as it would associate them with winners.
These psychological aspects can't be denied as one of the largest part for fan support is
their thirst for victory of their team as psychologically it means they are superior to the
other fans or cities ( as mentioned earlier the rivalries between Boston and New York
sports team created many fans because of this aspect and for the locals to have a
psychological effect of importance of these matches as a victory over the rival team
would raise the spirits of the locals for some time ). The psychological effect a sports
team victory can have on a nation is undeniable as it can strengthen the unity and create
sense of superiority. This possibility to align yourself to greatness is something very
important for the psyche of humans as often ourselves we do not reach our dreams and
don't have chance for greatness , we found safe place in following sports as it helps us
to have this feeling like we are part of the victory and we deserve the plaudits because
we support the team.
4.2 Narratives in sports fandom
There are three big recurring themes in the sociological aspects that are the reasons for
fans big interest in sports which are the idea of 12th man , the underdog story and the us
vs them themes. The theme of 12th man is the idea that the fans are the 12th player on
the field for their team and that they are as important as any other athlete in the team (
Einheart , 2012 , p.39). This is important for the fans as they really feel like they are
part of the reasons for the success of the team , and that really without fans the teams
and athletes would be nothing. The support that we are then willing to provide for the
team is even more exaggerated by the fact that we really feel like we can have impact
38
on the outcome. Another big pull for the fans is the presence of underdog story. People
have been interested in the story of David and Goliath since biblical times as it told a
story of a person with clear disadvantage that overcomes the huge obstacle in front of
him and because of the power of his wit and will he can come out victorious. One of the
most memorable moments in sports history are the underdog victories , when a small
nation defeats the largely superior nation as to show that they are not scared. This
narrative is big appeal to the public as it helps to create the special moments that the
sports fans will treasure for some time. The last big theme is the Us vs them aspect that
sports bring to society. This was well established during the cold war as both American
and soviet nations used the sporting events a platforms to get victories over their
enemies and to even deepen the dislike towards the opposite nation ( Earnheard , 2012 ,
p.41). This presence of animosity and rivalry that professional sports create is another
large aspect for the fans interest in sports as it creates unique environment where some
form of animosity toward opposition is taken as a social norm.
While we can see there is many sociological and psychological reasons for the large
interest in sports by the fans and that is why researchers now study this field more in
depth as they understand that the effects sports have on people are quite unique in its
field and can't be matched to tendencies of other cultural aspects of our lives. The
emotional aspect that mediated sports bring to the table is seen as the biggest factor for
its fame. These sporting events created a highly emotional experiences that can't be
matched by any other industry. The raw emotions that sports bring to the lives of every
day viewer are undeniable and are the factor that keep people interested in watching
sporting events every week and emotionally invest in their outcomes. Sports can play
39
such a large part in lives of every day fan as there is no limit to how invested you can
become emotionally in them. This is why we can see extreme hooligans that dedicate
their lives to ultra support of their team and their lives and emotions are based on the
fortunes of their teams. While the sense of unity and comradery that sports create for
fans is another factor that plays huge role in this as people tend to seek like minded
people when searching for company , and sports bring exactly this to the table. There is
just something magically about watching a historical sports moment as it creates life
long lasting memories and for moments that are tied to our lives. These moments then
live on for times and are shared within the society and became part of our history. You
can ask any person born here in Czech about the hockey team and their golden success
of times past and see for yourself what kind of passionate response you would get from
most people. The fact that sports became such a important part of our culture means that
sports are now not only followed by the sports fans but by the general public as they are
exposed to these events that aren't only simply a sports games but they are
representation of the national pride and the recognition that it brings to the victors.
40
Conclusion
To summarize the role that fans and fandom had on sports throughout history we have
to look at three main factors that were discussed in this paper. To start off was the
reason that competitive sports were a powerful tool that the government have used
throughout history in Ancient Greece , Ancient Rome or during the time of Nazi
Olympics to distract their own citizens from the political issues going on in the nations
at the time. These sporting events had a powerful effect on the societies at the time as it
was a primary source for most of their entertainment and this added flavor of
competition created an entertainment form that will be followed by millions of people
throughout the history. While these events helped shaped professional sports it wasn't
until the rise of modern media in the form of radio and television that really changed
our perception of professional sports and created a large market that would be filled by
the sports fans of the present. What these mediums brought to the fans was a way to
follow the sport events in real life at their own comfort of home which gave rise to the
sports fans in the popular culture as it became a norm to follow some kind of sport
thanks to all these technological advances and the entertainment value that these
programs would bring to the broadcast. The entertainment value is one of the big
aspects for the rise of the sports fans as now it was even easier to follow these sports at
the leisure of your own home. The most impact on the fans came with the internet era
and with its instant connection to any kind of information and content the demand for
sports related content rose even more than ever before. There was a way for the viewer
41
to have a two way communication with the team or athlete and created environment
where the fans are actively searching for the content based on their desires rather than
passively receiving and observing these events based on scheduling programming. Fans
today have all access to hug amounts of sports related content today that is just at reach
of their fingertips anywhere and anytime and that is why the fans feel more than ever as
being actively part of the team. While all these technological advances gave a platform
for the fan to pleasure his fan needs all they did is create a strong industry that has a
large public following. The reason that fans exist is because of our own societies
desires and in seeking like minded people and creating environment where we feel
included or as part of the glory.
Society seeks form of entertainment that is
unpredictable , and has a room for creating unique story lines every time out , and this is
why sports are the perfect form of entertainment because of that and is one of the core
reasons why there is so many sports fans out there globally today.
What I can conclude from my research is that there is clearly not one reason for
existence of sports fans in history and even today but because of all these aspects
combine the fan culture is such a big part of our society today because of the interest
that sports generate in the public. While historically the power of sports was used just to
create diversion for the public , the popularity amongst people was undeniable as sports
represented many core values that people value. While today the professional sports
industry is a multibillion dollar industry and there are large amounts of money involved
in it the core reasons for its appeal is the variety of emotions sports create. The unique
atmosphere and unpredictability of sports is also seen as one of the essential allures of
mediated sports as there is countless amount of scenarios that can happen during a
42
sports match. The fact that being a fan can create a sense of belonging to that certain
sports team affiliates which is very valuable in the modern digital world where it is
easier than ever to feel disconnected from the whole world while being surrounded
online by strangers.
This research is important as the power that sports have in modern culture is crucial to
trying to understand the whole world wide appeal to members of our societies. Its only
during the recent times that more detailed researches started to study all the different
aspects of sports , sport fans and the reason for its popularity and success globally .
While sports as industry is ever growing its clear correlation with the popularity of them
within the population. There is ever lasting need for more sports related content as the
technological advances of today allow for global outreach and the role of fans is
becoming more and more important in the sports entertainment as the fans are the final
customers and the ones that this content is being produced for. It's important to view all
the different aspects that interest the fans in their teams as it helps us to understand the
society we live in today and their behavior even more.
To advise future researchers of this topic id say to focus now at the digital era more in
detail as this is just a recent invention that clearly has strong hand in shaping the role
that fans have on sports and vice versa. All this new content brings in many new fans as
a result and is something that could be explored more in depth. The role that the
celebrity status had on changing athletes in the past twenty years could be also
interesting in the evolution of fans as there can be seen difference in perception of the
43
athletes after rise of the era of David Beckham , which started the era of athletes
becoming the main stays in the entertainment business and parts of the pop culture. The
status of viewing athletes as celebrities or icons is something that the future researches
could really deep more into and show as the real tipping point of changing the role of
sport fans.
For the future predictions of the role that sports fandom will have on our society is that
it will only rise in its importance and the money and coverage that is in this field, with
constant access to any information about the teams and athletes we are now more than
ever connected with these athletes and with new digital inventions will come even more
outlets to reach the fans and sports team both ways. This will even increase the fans
participation in viewing these sporting events and to use any possible medium to fulfill
their needs as a sports fan. With more new social medias coming up with new apps for
the fans to connect with the athletes there will be more demand for it as it keeps giving
the fans and the public even more ways how to really feel as part of the team or a real
supporter. I think in future we will see the role that sports events could have as it can
use its platform to raise awareness about global issues. Just the upcoming football world
cups that are to be held in Russia and in Qatar are raising awareness about the terrible
human rights records that these nations have and are starting a debate around the world
about how should we respond to that as nations. The global outreach that these events
could be used in the future to try to really take certain actions to really start a debate
about the crucial issues that are happening in the nations where these events take place.
I don't see there really being any drastically dropping off in the interest that the public
will have in it as sports transcend generations and are a unique form of entertainment
44
that brings on a totally unique form of entertainment. We can see even now how
athletes and the sports organizations are trying to be a bigger part of their societies as
they understand that they have to use the wealth they gain from performing for their
fans they have to give back to the communities not only financially and by motivating
the future generations. I can see this creating even tighter bond between the fans and the
sport figures as they will feel even more as the part of the communities they represent.
When I started this research paper I took it as a tool to explore the reasons why me as
many other people across the world become sports fans and why do they do it. I
understood the basic emotional aspects that were involved in becoming a fan but I
wanted to understood more about the history of the sports and what kind of relationship
there was between the development of that industry and the fans that this was created
for. Going through the major historical sports event I've learned that what a strong tool
this was for the political systems at the time as they used it as perfect for of distraction
during the bad times. While the governments understood that they can use it to their
advantage and as distraction there was something in it for those people. In the historical
times it was really one of the few forms of entertainments and it became a part our
history because of the importance and uniqueness of those events at the time. It doesn't
matter if it was in Ancient Greece or its today in Yankees stadium people seek this form
of entertainment as it creates a unique spectacle and the live aspects of sports were the
original appeals to the fans and to all the people at the time. What the radio and
television brought was a global access to the customer base which allowed for more
people to become parts of these special moments and to witness greatness at their own
pleasure. While these mediums brought global audience to the sport and started to
45
create global fan base all around the world the invention of internet really was the
tipping point for the industry and the fans as the different forms of communication and
the instant gratification with access to their favorite sports content in matters of seconds
made sports fans even more sought after commodities. This immediate and constant
access to the team and athletes creates environment where the fans can become even
more involved with the team their support and they feel like they intake all the content
there is for them. But while all these inventions make the life's on fans easier it is clear
that the main reason for fans there is throughout history is the emotional connection that
we create when we become fans of some team or athlete. We invest our emotions , time
and money into following our favorite sports team , to really show that we are the true
fans we aren't afraid to spend tons of money on merchandising just to be able to proof to
the strangers that you belong to this certain group of fans. This is that romantic part
about being sports fan , as when you see strangers on the tram wearing a hat with your
teams logo on it you can suddenly feel like you have a connection with that person
because of the team both of you support.
46
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