Modern sports

I have made a number if posts where I have criticized the NHL for sacrificing entertainment value for marketability. Part of my reason for singling out this league is because it was the final entertaining sports league. All of the others had already seen the same problems.


This is not just about misguided rule changes. Sports culture in America has shifted in a way that I simply can't support.

Part of the problem with sports in America is that this is a highly desirable profession. You can make a lot of money if you can become an elite athlete.

What does it take to be among these elite athletes? You need to commit to a sport before you can try out other sports that you might enjoy more. You have to work on technical skills that are far less enjoyable to watch than creativity.

What doesn't it take to succeed at sports? A love of the game. Personally, I would much rather watch people have fun than to watch people work. It really is a shame that most elite athletes don't seem to enjoy the sports they play.

Modern professional sports are primarily about collections of highly paid individuals who don't care about the sport engaging in an ultra-bland technical approach to convince fans to love them. Hockey is a really good example of my concerns. I believe that Canada has the best national team around. It drives me nuts when they win, however, because they have perhaps the dullest national team to watch.

The problem with sports today is that we provide too much of a reward for being among the best and overemphasize winning. Being the best is more important than being watchable. For many people, discovering who is best is reason enough to follow a sport. To me, I am not going to waste my time just to suffer through sleep-inducing play.