Sports, in many ways, has replaced war in society. Now, we still have wars, and we still send soldiers to fight for their country, but when I say sports replaced war, I mean in the publics eye.
During WW1 and WW2 we faced many issues that caused war in the euphemism MAIN.
Militarization
Alliances
Industrialization
Nationalism
After the world wars much of the world focused on rebuilding, and preventing a WW3. Thus, as time passed, sports became more popular and more international. Instead of having the common people focus on militarization, we focus on new players, trades, and coaching. We want our teams to develop and grow to be better, which leads us to nationalism.
Nationalism is very much alive in sports, especially with the World Cup on. We all want our team to be better than the other countries, to beat them. Industrialization. Sports results in millions of jerseys being sold, sports equipment, and everything from shoes to hats.
The sports merchandise market is due to reach a value of 48.17 billion by 2024. This is the industrialization of the sports world. Alliances take form in second and third favorite teams. Everyone chooses a side in a sports event, even if their team isn't playing. As a Seahawks fan, I'll vote for any team thats playing the Patriots, just because I don't like the Patriots.
During WW2 everyone believed that fighting and dying for your country was a good cause, but today, people have lost that belief. Instead, we show our support and love for our nation through sports. We cheer on our team, hate the others, and buy our teams merchandise.
In many ways, sports has replaced war in society. To the people, we support our nation through our teams. Sports has become a very large industry in the United States and in the world, and it will continue catch the attention and devotion of billions of people across the world.
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Written By: Lenin O'Mahony
July 2, 2018.