Sports+Fans

**Sports Fanatics: Obsession or Passion?**

 * By: Joel John**

 Many people have the perception that if one watches any sport then they are considered to be a sports fan. That happens to not be the case at all. Sports fans go through a rigorous daily life that involves analyzing up to date sports news and how the news will affect the future of the sports world. Although many sports fanatics can be obnoxious and rude towards those who show favor to opposing teams, sports fanatics are the motivation and drive the makes their team better.

Becoming a sports fanatic is not easily achieved. It takes many requirements to be considered a sports fanatic. First off, a true sports fanatic watches at least one hour of sports broadcasting every single day of the year. Sports fans need to know what is happening in the sports world at every second. There are sports anchors out there such as [|Mike Wilbon], who rarely go home due to their continuous research of current events in the sports world. Secondly, sports fans need to know what is happening in sports all day, every day. This includes watching sports broadcasting daily, but there will be times where fans cannot get to a TV to watch broadcasting, but a true, dedicated fan would have already bought the “ESPN Scorecenter” application for their smart phone. The mere purchase of this app shows the determination some fans have in making sure that they are able to know what is happening in the sports world at every second. All sports fanatics know the history of sports. When it comes to sports fans knowing the history of sports, it cannot be as little as knowing the greatest player of each sport. Fans are expected to know the best teams/players of each decade and the achievements that the team/player has achieved during their time of being the best. Finally, all sports fans watch every sport. Not just the sports they like, every sport. Many people believe that since they like watching basketball all the time, they are considered sports fan but that is incorrect for all they watch is basketball and nothing else. In conclusion, sports fans are found in all countries and they show the same devotion as other sports fans, but trying to become a sports fanatic is not as easy as people think.

There are certain negative incidents that are occur with sports fanatics. For instance, sports fanatics tend to show disrespectful gestures to those who oppose their team. This act was shown by a small [|toddler] who was a fan of a greatly admired soccer team. The toddler then gives “the finger” to someone. This fan makes all sports fans seem that they all are rude and obnoxious towards everyone. Sports fanatics also show various acts of violence towards opposing sports fans. For example, during a big football game that has happening back in August of 2011, two fans who were rooting for different teams got in a huge quarrel in the stands during the match of their two teams. This act of violence can give off the idea that all sports fans are too competitive since they start small, pointless fights with opposing fans. Not only does this make the fan look bad, but also makes the team look bad, as well. An example of this fan violence can also be seen on the hit TV show, //Family Guy //. During Chris’ soccer game, Peter gets in an argument with a soccer mom on the same team because media type="youtube" key="mBLDBDFRp6E" width="338" height="280" align="left" of how bad Chris plays. Peter then proceeds by punching her in the face, thinking that it was a male. Sports fans can also be very desperate at times. A good example of this is a certain picture that was floating around the internet a while ago. This picture was of a man holding up a [|sign] that said, “I will give you my sister for one ticket.” This is a negative connotation of sports fanatics because it makes fans seem as if all sports fans are so desperate for sporting event tickets that they will even sell their own family members. Sports fans can also show public indecency at times. This is shown when a grown man paints his whole face and body [|green] for a football game and arrives at the stadium like that. This is bad for sports fans because people tend to think fans like the man in green are crazy by painting their whole face and body. This could in turn make people think that all true sports fans are indecent enough to paint themselves for a sporting event.

Sports fanatics are a huge part and influence of worldwide sports. The fans help their team by giving them a reason to win. For example, in the hit comic book series, Dragon Ball Z, the fans of a highly anticipated martial arts tournament cheer for their favorite contestant, Hercule. Even though Hercule was the worst contestant there, the fans went nuts for him and that is why he stayed in the tournament, even though he was the worst contestant there. Many can also see this cheering by a crowd at any sporting event, whether it is high school, college, professional, etc. The fans are why the teams and players play their hearts out: if the fans are pleased then so are the media type="youtube" key="uu9fwYttyyA" width="338" height="280" align="right" players. Also, true sports fans cheer for their team through prosperity and recession. A good example of this is a video clip that was seen on YouTube of a couple of Dallas Mavericks fans chanting , “Let’s go mavs!” after a close defeat to the opposing team during the playoffs. This chanting shows the devotion and commitment certain people have for their home team. Also, the mere fact of fans selling out tickets to sporting events shows the dedication one has in witnessing their home team play live instead on a TV. A good version of this is seen in the hit TV show, //Pokemon //. Fans come to pokemon tournaments just to see pokemon trainers in action. This support gives the trainers a reason to perform with their pokemon. This can also be seen in the famous Harry Potter movies. In //Harry Potter Goblet of Fire//, thousands of fans come to support their favorite quidditch teams. The audience can see that the enthusiasm created by the audience creates a positive vibe for the quidditch players. Also, true fans will do anything to help make their tmedia type="youtube" key="hQlJrYV4cs4" width="339" height="280" align="left" am win. For example, during this year’s NBA season, fans have been attending games more often due to the compressed season because of the NBA lockout that occurred. Due to this incline of attendance, the games have been closer than ever. When a game comes down to the wire, some away teams might have to shoot free throws because they got fouled. While the player is preparing their shot, the crowd holds up [|numerous signs] that say many different things in order to distract the away player. This is seen many times during the last quarter of a basketball game with less than 5 minutes left to play. This proves that fan will do anything it takes to make sure that they aid to their team’s success in any way possible.

Overall, the role of a sports fanatic is a hard one to play and people follow this role all over the world. Many negative aspects come with this archetype, but the positive aspects over weigh the negative ones by far. It may be hard to become a sports fanatic, but it can be achieved with just some effort.

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