So another weekend of football came and went and found myself thinking about this topic, sports.
I spent the weekend rooting for the Houston Astros over the New York Yankees, a I have been an Astro fan for a long time. I’ve been to a few games, including a double-header in the Astrodome.
But this wasn’t about baseball, no, it was watching sports on Sunday.
Five years ago I can recall eagerly waiting for the sports analysts to begin on Sunday morning. I’d tune in and watch as they went over the teams, the players, who to watch for, who they thought wasn’t doing so well. Their predictions of who would win and why. Even going over how players were performing on the field.
During the week I’d flip on ESPN, or the NFL Network, or the local guys and listen as they talked about this player, or that team. They’d argue who was better, or why they sucked.
This year. I flipped on the TV in time to catch the opening kickoff and tuned it to background noise while I did other things. And as I sat with the TV on, playing World of Warships a thought struck me.
I still enjoy watching the game. Exciting catches thrill me, terrific plays enthrall me, and great defensive stands leaving me breathless.
So what changed? Politics!
The commentators, ESPN, sports analysts, and more have all shifted from pure sports, to the politics of the day.
No longer do I eagerly await the time on Sunday when the sports analyst come on. My TV now sits quietly, silently turned off until I know kickoff has come. I skip the politics, and when they announcers start talking politics, I flip the channel.
Sports is a refuge for all sides, or at least was. It was a spot where left and right could come together and root for a common, united goal. I guess we can no longer even try to find a common ground, everything must be politicized in this day and age.
The more political the NFL becomes, the more people stop watching, stop going, stop paying for it. And instead of realizing the mistake, it appears the NFL is doubling down on the stupidity.
So, dear NFL, please stop the political stupidity during the games. Analysts please, stop being political. All you’re doing is killing the game. Take political out once more, make it a political free zone. Make it a place where everyone is welcome, because we want to root for the sport, the players, and the team.
Sadly from comments all over, the NFL has already caused themselves severe financial harm for the future, and many of the fans they brush aside will not come back.
Basic business is you don’t piss off your customer base. But then again, it appears the left-winger don’t seem to understand that concept.