Future of Sport

In class on November 21st, 2013 in my American Sport in the 21st Century class we had a discussion about the future of sport and what changes will be made. The future for the sporting industry seems to be very bright, but a few obstacles may stand in the way of prospective students who will be searching for a job in the sports industry in the near future. With advances in technology, the demand for fans to want to attend sporting events is predicted to decrease. This is due to large, high-quality televisions and options such as the NFL Network which allows you to watch multiple games at one time. Another item of concern is that low and average income level fans are being priced out of attention because of rising prices. As discussed in class the following are predictions for various levels of sport:

Professional Sports
- They will become increasingly global (e.g., NFL team in Europe)
- Point-of-view on demand from any player on/off field
- Second tier sport properties will collapse
- Longer seasons (more T.V./ gate revenues)
- Stiffer salary caps
- Smaller crowds (smaller stadia)

Intercollegiate Sports
- Dominance and continued growth of the "super conferences" (ACC, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, PAC 12)
- Demise of the NCAA
- Number of varsity sports will be cut with priority given to revenue producing sports
- Academic accountability will continue to be a problem
- Payment to college athletes

High School Sports
- As budgets become tighter sports will be cut
- Increasing emphasis on generating revenue (gate receipts/ fundraising/ donations)
- Pay to play
- European model of youth sports (club systems will replace High School Sports)
- Schools and programs will seek corporate sponsorships

Youth Sports
- They will become increasingly privatized (elitist)
- They will grow most in middle and upper class (income) communities and neighborhoods
- Coaching education and certification programs will become more popular, as parents demand excellence and accountability
- Many youths will respond by seeking alternative sports
- Continued growth of "virtual sports"

In Coakley's text on page 571 he discusses and summarizes the main concept of the future of sport and that alternative sport is the main area that will grow. "Sports at all levels of participation will be sites for struggles over who should play and how sports should be organized. Current trends suggest that pleasure and participation sports are supported by concerns about health and fitness, the participation preferences of older people whose influence will increase in the future, the values and experiences brought to sports by women, and groups seeking alternative sports" (2010 Coakley p. 571). A Forbes staff member, Tom Van Riper wrote an article called, The Future of Sports on March 4th, 2009 which he discusses the expansion of sports around the world for the future. Players are becoming faster, stronger and quicker. This will likely lead to more injuries, but with the advancements of technology they are developing safer and better equipment to prevent injuries. In the article he goes on to mention that he predicts NHL and NBA are two sports that are most likely to develop true European and Asian branches over the next decade or so (Riper 2009). In my opinion I feel as though the NHL will slowly drop in fan support and possibly will not be a common played sport in 50 years. I agree with Coakley that alternative sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding, and other extreme sports will show the biggest growth. These newer forms of sport are growing with coverage of the X Games and other competitions. For more information on the article by Tom Van Riper you can follow this link : Future of Sports