PED 217 - Social Aspects of Sport

Chapter 12

Sport and Politics

In the 90’s many political incidents in sports occurred:

1. Country clubs were challenged to accept minorities.
2. Female sportswriters fighting for equal access to athletes.
3. The NFL threatened to move the super bowl from Phoenix after the Arizona voters rejected a paid state holiday for Martin Luther King Day.

Other examples listed on page 356.

Politics-a social process through which people and groups acquire, exercise, maintain, or lose power over others.

The discussion focuses on the process of power, a term denoting the ability of individuals or groups to affect others, even when these others oppose the goals or actions of the power holder.

There are many connections between politics and sport. Coach Bob Knight is quoted: “Anyone who thinks we can compete internationally without politics being involved is either a complete moron or incredibly naïve”

Politics are linked with sport for several reasons:

1. Athletes represent organizations such as schools, communities, employers, states, regions, and countries. Schools have fight songs, slogans, music (school songs), dress (uniforms).
2. As sports become organized: teams, organizations, and leagues emerge. The interests of one group are not usually the interests of the other. Players and management are never on the same page, thus conflict of interest, the struggle for power occurs.
3. Sports reinforce the larger social order (The National Anthem)

You would think that something like the Olympics would be exempt from politics entering into the picture, but victories in international sport are equal to war victories of one country over another.

1. In 1896: Greece’s Crown Prince escorted his marathoner across the finish line.
2. In 1908, the U.S. refused to dip the American flag to King Edward of England.
3. The games were cancelled in 1916 because of WWI.
4. In 1936 there was pressure to boycott the “Nazi Olympics”, and they were cancelled in 1940, and 1944 due to WWII.
5. In 1948, the new state of Israel was denied the right to participate because of a threat of an Arab boycott.
6. Spain and the Netherlands boycotted the games in 1956 due to Soviet invasion of Hungary. Their water polo teams played a game that was similar to war battle because of the bloodshed and violence that occurred.

More of these are listed on page 361.

(You will do a paper on any Olympic conflict other than the 1984 games)

Politics at the State and Municipal Level

In the early 1990’s, the Nebraska Legislature passed a bill to block the NCAA rules limiting the amount of financial aid student athletes can receive, and in 1985, several states (Texas), introduced “NO PASS, NO PLAY” legislation.

In the early 1970’s a budget reduction in Philadelphia lead to a preliminary decision to eliminate hundreds of teaching positions and all extracurricular activities. Local officials and the general public seemed to accept the loss of teachers, but the pressure to reinstate athletics was so great it became a campaign issue in city politics.

The Chicago Cubs management considered installing lights in lightless Wrigley Field in the early 1980’s. Citizens of Chicago living close to the park petitioned the city council to not have night games at Wrigley. In 1982 a law took effect prohibiting night baseball at Wrigley Field, considering it a violation of Illinois noise pollution laws. Eventually the profit motive won out, and lights were installed.

The state of Alabama had a mandatory retirement age of 70 for public employees. In the spring of 1981, football coach Paul Bryant prepared to pass the all time football victory record. Alabama’s governor signed a bill that exempted Bryant from the state’s mandatory retirement age.

Sport facilities: In the 1960’s the New Orleans Superdome was to be built at a cost of 35 million, however the final bill was 163 million. Who bears the brunt of this financial goof?

Should public monies be used for this purpose? (Paper to be written: page 368)

After a proposal to use the Wisconsin state lottery to fund the cost of a 250 million dollar ballpark for the Brewers was defeated, the Wisconsin State Legislature hiked the sales tax in a 5 county area around Milwaukee to underwrite the stadium’s construction.

POLITICS AND SPORTS TELECASTING

1. The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 granted by Congress permitted the leagues (NFL, NBA) to exclusively control the rights to national TV coverage. The leagues offer a package of games, which the networks bid for, and then the revenue sharing is practiced (each team receives a portion of the profit).
2. Outside of games in the national package, each home team has exclusive rights to telecast home contests of games in its home territory (a 75 mile radius).
3. In 1973 Congress said that telecasting a professional game could not black out if it was sold out 3 days before the event: Professional football is the only sport affected by the law.

Even the Little League World Series has been subject to international politics. Teams from Taiwan dominated the games during the 1970’s. During a 3 year period, Taiwan scored 120 runs and the U.S. only 2 in 9 games. When the Taiwanese teams were suspected of cheating, the little league’s board chairman announced that the series would be confined to 4 U.S. teams representing different regional champions. Because of criticism the ban was lifted a few years later.