True Fans: Drivers of the Game
For some people sports is a way to fit in, and people cheer for teams just to look like they belong. Other times, people cheer for a team because they happen to live in the same town. Some people, on the other hand, are the true fans.
While I am not trying to take anything away from the people who root for teams as a hobby or just because, it is the true fans that I relate to, and it is the true fans that take sports and transform them into something bigger than a simple competition.
The joy of victory and the agony of defeat. The heartbreak of a last second loss and the madness of a last second win; these are the things that make sports what they are today.
In honor of the world series beginning today, I’d like to share an anecdote of something I experienced the other day. The Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday to clinch a berth in the world series for the first time in 71 years. For those who don’t know, the Cubs have experienced much heartbreak and there is a long-standing belief that they are, “cursed.” Needless to say, it was an emotional time for many cubs fans.
Chicago Cubs Fans celebrate during their historic playoff run. The Cubs will begin the World series tonight against the Cleveland Indians, hoping to end a 108 year world series drought. (Photo/WGNTV)
Seconds after the game ended, I texted my friend Mike, a big cubs fan who I knew was watching the game. I did not get a response and was kind of surprised at first. Two minutes later, however, Mike comes sprinting down the hall and begins literally jumping on me and my roommate, screaming obscenities and praises about how the Cubs won. Minutes later, Mike was in literal tears, realizing what this victory meant and what had just happened.
That is a true fan: someone who gets taken over by the emotions brought out by the game and the team they love, and who sticks with their team through thick and thin. You don’t necessarily have to know every fact about every player, but you do have to care. They are the 90-year-olds who have been waiting for 71 years, still going to every game. The 15-year-olds screaming after a nice play and not talking after a loss. Any age and any type of person, emotions brought about by sports do not discriminate.
These fans drive the games. They make the actual games more exciting, they have increased the sports industry as a whole, and have now become a large part of the industry.
So if you watch the world series tonight, I encourage you to pay attention to the fans of both teams, or watch the aftermath of the Cubs victory last week. Pay attention and see in the faces and responses of the fans just what the sport and the team mean to them. I can tell you now, it will not be hard to find the true fans in the crowd.
