Oil Should Not Mix With Water, Politics Should Not Mix With Sport︱Sports
By JackOnReality
Last evening, I finished watching The Dynasty on Apple TV+. The show told the story of the New England Patriots’ 20-year domination of the National Football League, and ended with, well, the end. In the season finale, the Patriots had completely fallen apart. So, how did their decline start? Well, egotism, for one. And for another, politics.
A day before Donald Trump became President in 2017, he held a rally in which he read a letter that Bill Belichick, coach of the Patriots from 2000 to 2023, apparently gave to him. In the letter, Belichick revealed his strong support for Trump. Now, this is only interesting because up until then, Belichick had told his players to never discuss politics. And here was the authoritarian, always frowning, Belichick openly revealing his political beliefs. This created a tension in the Pats locker room that lasted for the entire season.
Nowadays, politics are closely tied to sports. Every sporting event must represent some cause. You see Liverpool fans, for example, wearing hats supporting Ukraine. It’s fine to support Ukraine. Just don’t bring such political beliefs into sports. Because, as The Dynasty shows, politics and sport should be kept separate. Not only for the good of the teams, but also for the good of the fans.
Politics alienate fans. When players come out and say, “I believe in this,” those who don’t agree will feel left out. They obviously won’t see the player in the same way. And this a pretty sad thing. Sports are supposed to be fun, a break from all the trials and stresses of life. One of these trials and stresses is politics. So when politics mix with sports, sports become a lot less fun, and when people have nowhere to escape to, no place to relax, then life becomes darker. And who wants that?
Sports do not need to be a fountain dedicated to the expulsion of the soul-crushing waters of politics. Something in this world, something, can still be fun.