Possibly my favorite weekend of the year is the opening rounds of March Madness. This particular weekend happened to coincide with my birthday this year, so when my dad suggested spending this weekend in Las Vegas, I seized the opportunity. While I did not spend my days there dazed, confused and incoherent, a la Hunter Thompson, I did take advantage of my “of ageness,” which complemented (or caused) my rowdiness when yelling at the television screen quite nicely.
I spent much of my trip drunkenly yelling at the TV, covering my face in disgust. That weekend, at any one time, within a one-mile radius, there were probably 30,000 people replicating my actions, e.g., belligerently admonishing an 18-year-old (who happened to be 1,200 miles away) when he missed his free throw that would have covered the spread. After losing our life’s savings, or at least all of the winnings from our last wager, we would huddle together in the fetal position, simultaneously going on personal diatribes.
During my sober moments, I got to philosophizing. The sports industry is one of the most dominant, and perhaps one of the few stable institutions that we know will never falter. From Formula 1, to the NFL, to the MLB, ESPN has become one of our country’s most prominent media for turning on, tuning in and living vicariously through the stars on screen. My question is, what is it about the sports world that is so mesmerizing? Why is there either a game or pregame coverage of a game on at every bar, fitness facility and airport around the country?
I will try to tackle a few possible answers, but if you, dear readers, would like to chime in to the discussion, please feel free to leave a comment on The Daily Cardinal website or send me an email.
I think that there are several major reasons why we can sometimes see Tom Brady throw a 40-yard touchdown on the inside of our eyelids.
One reason: We like to feel as if we’re a part of a community. Many of us remember the warm, fuzzy feeling we got when John Clay passed through the end zone time and time again against No. 1-ranked Ohio State in 2010. I can honestly say I will probably never hug so many complete strangers again in my life. As utter debauchery ensued on the field following the victory, the Badger community was united as one.
Secondly, sporting events are current events and offer people a way to hold a conversation when there is nothing else to talk about. Everyone likes to talk, and nobody likes awkward pauses in conversation. Therefore, you can always avoid those pauses by asking your friend if a pitcher who is less than two years removed from Tommy John surgery could ever be worth $100 million. Because sports are numbers games and numbers can be interpreted in different ways, interpretive and analytical dialectic can always be had when sports are in the mix.
But most importantly, sports are epic. There is so much money to be made on them that the corporate world has significant stock in making them epic. This is because the louder the bells and whistles, the brighter the lights, the hotter the cheerleaders and the more popular the half-time performers, the more viewers there will be. And the more viewers there are, the more moolah franchises take in. I suppose my top answer to my question is that the sports industry is above all, an industry. And as long as there is money to be made in making sporting events of epic proportions, in those proportions they will stay. And we will oooo. And we will ahhhhh.
How many strangers have you hugged in your life? Tell Zac at pestine@wisc.edu.
