{"id":20747,"date":"2020-05-23T22:39:51","date_gmt":"2020-05-23T22:39:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=20747"},"modified":"2020-05-27T23:37:24","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T23:37:24","slug":"how-lingering-fears-from-the-pandemic-could-change-the-way-we-watch-and-play-sports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/how-lingering-fears-from-the-pandemic-could-change-the-way-we-watch-and-play-sports\/","title":{"rendered":"How lingering fears from the pandemic could change the way we watch and play sports"},"content":{"rendered":"

Josh Woods<\/a>, West Virginia University<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Taiwan\u2019s pro baseball league rebooted operations in mid-April with robot spectators filling the bleachers<\/a>. A month later, Major League Baseball dropped a 67-page document<\/a> outlining a plan for bringing back the game. No hugs. No high-fives. No spitting. No showering. No fans. And lots of testing. <\/p>\n

But the creative ways that leagues are trying to defibrillate their fanbases and keep money flowing in can\u2019t mask the fact that the sports industry is in a tailspin. Only about half of all sporting events that were originally scheduled for 2020 will likely take place<\/a>. <\/p>\n

And while play for some sports may resume in the foreseeable future, their long-term outlook remains unclear.<\/p>\n

To what extent will residual concerns about COVID-19 shrink participation and fandom in the months to come? Will some moms and dads think twice before sending their sons and daughters off to soccer camp? When the gates finally open, how many fans will prefer watching from the safety of their couch<\/a>?<\/p>\n

As a social psychologist<\/a>, I wonder if this might lead to a shift in the sports we watch and participate in, with high-contact sports taking a back seat to athletic activities more conducive to social distancing.<\/p>\n

Fears can linger long after a crisis<\/h2>\n

Even under the best-case scenario \u2013 a vaccine emerging by early next year<\/a> \u2013 many have been conditioned to worry about germs lingering<\/a> on just about everything involved with the once-ordinary experiences of playing sports and going to live sporting events. Bathroom doors. Bleacher seats. Ketchup dispensers. Barbells. Locker-room air. People. <\/p>\n

Concerns may persist even after coronavirus headlines fade.<\/p>\n

I reached a similar conclusion after studying the fear of terrorism<\/a> for more than a decade in the wake of 9\/11. When people worry about something long enough, new institutions and cultural patterns form, making it easier and more likely for them to worry about the same thing in the future.<\/p>\n

\n \"\"
\n Parents and athletes might have second thoughts about close contact.<\/span>
\n AP Photo\/Gene J. Puskar<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Before 9\/11, 24% of Americans<\/a> were very or somewhat worried about being harmed by terrorists; that percentage increased to 58% after 9\/11. Over the next two decades, though the U.S. experienced relatively few deaths due to terrorism, the level of worry never receded to its pre-9\/11 levels. In late 2019, the percentage of Americans who were very or somewhat worried about terrorism stood at 46%<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If the COVID-19 crisis persists or even surges again at a later date, it\u2019s easy to see how heightened concerns about disease spread could calcify into American culture, customs and institutions. <\/p>\n

You don\u2019t need an arena or teams<\/h2>\n

But not all sports are the same; some can be played without constantly coming into close contact with others.<\/p>\n

Outdoor activities like trail running, hiking, mountain biking, rock climbing, birding, fishing, kayaking, traditional golf and disc golf are perfect for social distancing.<\/p>\n

After years of decline<\/a>, will participation rates in these sports and activities see a spike?<\/p>\n

Many of them also depend on volunteers, grassroots groups, and public lands, parks and waterways, which may make them more resistant to the economic fallout from COVID-19<\/a> than heavily commercialized sports.<\/p>\n

For instance, disc golf \u2013 a no-contact, individual, outdoor sport that involves throwing plastic discs into metal baskets from varying distances \u2013 is played predominately in public parks, and many of the courses have been funded, constructed and maintained by local enthusiasts. The sport\u2019s physical infrastructure is surely more recession proof than a high-end, unused, private sports facility<\/a>. <\/p>\n

And some disc golf businesses appear to be prospering, despite the pandemic. <\/p>\n

On May 7, Jussi Meresmaa, CEO of Discmania, an international disc golf equipment company, told Ultiworld Disc Golf<\/a> that they were \u201cpretty much selling every disc on the shelf.\u201d Alan Barker, president of Infinite Discs, a large online disc golf equipment store, noted<\/a> that online sales were at all-time highs. <\/p>\n

Signs that the conversation is shifting<\/h2>\n

The sports industry isn\u2019t going to fall apart; it\u2019s not like the NBA will fold. But there is already some evidence of a shift. <\/p>\n

In an academic paper<\/a> published last year, I showed how the growth of small, emerging sports movements is reflected in traditional news coverage and social media use. A similar analysis reveals how the discussion of many sports has changed over the last four months. <\/p>\n

I recently searched for mentions of more than a dozen sports and outdoor activities in America\u2019s News<\/a>, one of the largest online news archives in the world. For each sport, I compared the number of article mentions from January 2019 to April 2019 with the number of mentions from January 2020 to April 2020.<\/p>\n

Newspaper coverage of baseball increased uniformly in the first four months of 2019. As spring training got going in late February, America\u2019s pastime filled the sports pages of newspapers across the country. Press coverage of baseball typically doubles from January to April.<\/p>\n