A Look at the Past: Improving sports

  In studying sport based only on the present will just bring about an incomplete picture of sport as a social and cultural practice. Physical activities have existed in all cultures, they’ve just continued to change and adapt from past experiences… mainly, past mistakes. Coakley (2009, p. 87-88) states that “sports history does not just happen; it emerges in connection with the actions of people working with one another to construct sports to match their visions of what sports could and should be.” Recently there have been multiple changes in the NFL rule book in order to make the game fairer for both teams. An extremely important rule implemented in football just recently is that of helmet-to-helmet hits. Bleacher Report writer Todd McGregor exclaimed in his October 19, 2010 article “NFL Helmet to Helmet Hits: Hit on Ravens TE Todd Heap Helps Spark Major Changes,” that “with the incidents of concussions on the rise, the league needs to take a tougher stand on deliberate acts of helmet-to-helmet contact.” They’ve done just that as multiple players were fined greatly for their inappropriate hits this past season. Professional sports are taking big steps in order to keep the game fairer and safer for their players.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/495665-vicious-hit-on-baltimore-ravens-todd-heap-sparks-major-nfl-rule-changes

Sport: Why study it?

Our class lecture on January 20 consisted of the importance sport has on American culture and why we should study it. At this time, sports are the fourth largest industry in the United States with gross estimates totaling just over $210 billion. The National Football League is by far the most profitable professional sport, bringing in around $8 billion in annual revenue. That’s more than both the NBA and MLB put together. An article titled “The Most Valuable NFL Teams” published in the Forbes on August 25, 2010 stated that “national television revenue from CBS, NBC, ESPN and Fox increased $1.3 million per team to $95.8 million for each of the league’s 32 [NFL] franchises.” Sports generate a monumental positive cash flow even in our so-so economy today. Millions of people are greatly interested in sport as many of our conversations and readings deal with it. The only national newspaper in the United States, the USA Today, even has ¼ of its paper devoted to sports. Millions of people are obviously interested in sport as it is involved in most of our conversations, reading, and leisure time. Coakley (2009, p. 18) furthers proves this by stating that even “relationships often revolve around sports.” Clearly sports continue to make a steadily increasing impact on our society. 

http://www.forbes.com/2010/08/25/most-valuable-nfl-teams-business-sports-football-valuations-10-intro.html