Sports fans have changed a great deal over the past three years. At first, I thought it was just a temporary change. But now, I think it's a true reflection of how people feel about sports emotionally, mentally and as a part of their lives.
The first indication came at Super Bowl 32 in Miami between the Packers and the Broncos. In previous years, no matter which two teams were in the Super Bowl, fans across the country analyzed the match-up, talked about the players and argued about who would win the game. It didn't matter whether they lived in Fairbanks, Dallas or Boston, if they were Bronco or Packer fans, this was, quite simply, "the" football game of the year. Football fans loved the NFL and they loved talking about the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl was a sports talk show heaven. But I noticed that as I went through the week of broadcasts with players from the Pack and Broncos as on air guests, as well as other star NFL players, I noticed a lack of enthusiasm in their comments and questions. There wasn't the same fire and spirit I had seen in previous Super Bowl broadcasts. Yes, there was interest in the game. But, not the "Damn, I can't wait for this game to get started" passion I had always seen associated with this mega-sports event. What I didn't know then was this was the beginning of the end of sports as a passionate part of the sports fan's soul.
In the early days of the Super Bowl, Super Bowl Sunday was a novelty. It was, "Oh there's a game on today between the NFL and that other new league (AFL)". The NFL practically gave tickets away. The game was broadcast by two networks, CBS and NBC. I remember the league begging me to come to the commissioner's Super Bowl party and asking how many Super Bowl game tickets I wanted at 25 dollars a piece. That changed after Super Bowl 3 in Miami when Joe Namath, a brash, young quarterback with long hair and a rifle arm, predicted his Jets would beat the heavily favored Baltimore Colts. Until that time, the over confident and more established NFL teams considered the Super Bowl match-up an annual stomping party of the upstart AFL opponent-and that stomping would be an annual affair for many years to come. The Jets won and Namath's talent and brash prediction launched the Super Bowl as the premiere American sporting event.
The joke was: if someone wanted to beat the United States in a war, they should launch their attack on Super Bowl Sunday when all Americans were in front of their television sets watching the game. After Super Bowl 3, fans were mesmerized by the January event. It had a buzz and a feel like no other sporting contest I've seen. A year in one's life was wasted if their team was eliminated from Super Bowl contention. It was all a magical sports time: the NFL playoffs, the build-up, the hype, Super Bowl week. Fans couldn't get enough information. They were sports and football junkies looking for their next fix. And, they got it, usually the last Sunday in January. Fans around the country planned their game day around Super Bowl parties. It was the sports social event of the year. Crime even took a holiday as criminals watched the game, probably on stolen televisions. It was a time in sports that will never be again.
Fast forward from that time almost 3 years ago to today. Television ratings for almost every major sports event and championship continue to drop. Disinterest has even affected the so-called "amateur" sports championships like college basketball's Final Four and the title game. The only interest fans have in the NBA is the 7th and deciding game or what might be the final game of the NBA Finals. The World Series sucks! They start the games in the middle of the night and usually finish early the next morning. So much for kids watching the crowning series of America's Pastime. The Stanley Cup Playoffs has always had limited fan interest and still does. And the Super Bowl has become a corporate event that's so hyped and has such a long, mind numbing televised pre game show that you're catatonic by the time they play the game. If your cable went out, you'd think the snow on the screen was a live shot from the weather channel and the sad part is, you wouldn't care. No, today for fans, sports passion is DOA.
The question is why?
Like most things in life today, the answer is complex. All things have their time. Fads and fashions come and go. But sports, the competition, the warriors, the players, their successes and failures, the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, and a sports fan's passion should be enduring. Now, we know it's not. Suspects abound over who conspired to kill the fan's passion. Money and greed are the primary suspects. The media instigated the crime. Fan apathy allowed the crime to take place. The proliferation of games and pseudo sports events only made the fan's apathy a forgettable crime statistic. And, changing times and interest made attempts to resurrect the fan's passion an idealistic crusade rather then a realistic goal.
What can be done? Nothing is the most honest answer. What might be helpful, though, is a change in attitude. Fans should hold on to their sports passion, but refocus that passion on the game, the competition, and those who play it. It's the game we love, not the player who has left for more money or your favorite player who has run afoul of the law. Cheer, support and have passion for the team in front of you, not the one that used to be or the one you wish the owner could afford. Have your favorite team, but also be a good basketball, baseball, hockey and football fan. Love the game. And finally, don't let cynicism perpetrate the worst sports crime of all: robbing you of your passion and love for sports.
I feel better now.
I'm Ron Barr.
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