Sports and money

This subject has been broached increasingly over recent decades. The amount of money in sport. This includes not only the pay, salary, or whatever it is called, but the sponsorship, advertising, personal appearance add-ons.

We are talking about previously unimaginable amounts of money now being commonplace. Sportsmen and women, earning in excess of 50-100 million pounds before they are 25 years old.

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Sharia football

David Luiz worshipAn intriguing title you might ask. And you would be right. What is the meaning behind it? All will become clear shortly.

There is an increasing connection between religion and football?

Well. In this world of mass sporting investment and expansion worldwide, certain things have crept in which are altering the face of certain sports.

 

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The Greatest.

Young AliAli Liston

To mark the 3rd anniversary of his passing, this rhyme is dedicated to ‘the man’

A tribute to the late great Muhammad Ali,
by way of a poem. 

The Greatest.

He beat the rest
Then he beat the best.

Then at his peak
They tried to make him weak.

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Sport

 Formula 1 carFor thousands of years sport has been considered as activities for people to: enjoy, relax with, do for fun, bond people(teams), for exercise, for health, among others.

Sport now has taken on the mantle of big business. Listen to the words used today to describe sport, and you might be mistaken for thinking that you are at a business conference. Franchise, Brand, CEO, merchandising, label, image rights, advertising, floatations. In America sports such as the NFL, and the NBA are unashamedly called franchises. Read more

It’s just for security purposes.

In today's world, understandably there is the need for different types of security.  Home security, government security, online security to name a few. However, this article is focusing on the security which has quietly crept into our lives under the 'pretext' of the above.

I watch a lot of sport on TV, and occasionally go to live events.

I can understand security due to the threat of terrorism. It is a constant in our lives now (mainly due to government actions), and we have to live with it. But the number of officials, the separation, of the fans, and the competitors, and the celebrities who now seem to be joined at the hip to sporting events.

My 1st point is about the incredible growth in the number of security companies and the presence of security guards at events nowadays. The companies themselves are begining to have their own agenda about how security should be handled, and in most cases the word 'intimidation' is floated around.  Big, often bald, or shaven headed men standing facing a largely passive crowd who are trying to enjoy the entertainment being provided.

People get excited, people get emotional, people get upset. And more. But the idea that security companies decide the level of the fans Concert security??emotions, and where 'they' draw the line and take action, has become laughable.

The picture on the right showing a 'human wall' of security is a classic example of how this industry has lost the plot regarding crown control and crowd interaction. I was always under the impression that security should be visible but not intrusive. It should make you feel safe but not make you feel intimidated. Unfortunately in this day and age, the 2 latter points are being a priority rather than the enjoyment of the fans.

I read a great article while researching ideas for this blog. It is from a website called Altpress.com

They are only chasing safety

This article exposes the culture of what I call 'thuggery' disguised as security. The issue here is surrounding concerts which bands perform, which mainly attract young crowds. In some of the incidents being recalled, fans were being pepper sprayed and maced simply for getting on the stage. But the rub is; the band wanted them on stage, in fact one of the singers interview said explicitly that this action is an integral part of their concerts, but the security decides the opposite, and basically 'attacks' the fans.

Going back to the issue of general security. 2 years ago there was the bomb at an Ariande concert in Manchester. This incident, as regrettable as it was, was Islamic terrorism, which is a part of society today, so I understand that concertgoers need more scrutiny when attending concerts, but the regular fans who go to see concerts do not want to be faced with a wall of thugs, whose sole purpose seems to be to seek out offenders so they can either feel justified in earning their wages, or for the simple pleasure they derive from manhandling people with no consequences.

In my past, I regularly attended concerts with 20+ thousand concertgoers (Queen, David Bowie, Bob Marley, The Police, and more...). These events had security, but one thing I never saw was rows and rows of security personnel standing facing the crowd, staring out at them. They were there, and visible, but they did their job, which was not to detract from your enjoyment.

Even at relatively small venues such as the one in the picture, the presence, as you can see, distracts the fans attention from the stage. Most fans are well behaved, if a little over enthusiastic, but I think this is an issue which has been imposed on us, and the defenders of such actions trot out the usual lame excuses such as 'it's for your own protection.' Really? But where will it end? Will we end up going into concert halls either naked, or in suits provided for us to wear, and will we also have to wear devices (which are used in America) which deliver 50,000 volts (a la Taser) to anyone who gets overexcited, or look at security in a threatening manner (their interpretation. It is never yours)?  When will the abuse end?

I remember several years ago returning to New York, after my 1st visit many years before, where I had been to the top of the Statue of Liberty and stood in the head and looked out at Manhattan. An amazing feeling to be inside an worldwide iconic landmark. However, on my last visit things had changed. I arrived on the Island where the statue is, got off the boat and was met with numerous signs, and numerous personnel, requesting that we observe the security measures, posted everywhere, and open our bags several times. This was all before we got to the X-ray machines. After over an hour I arrived at the foot of the statue hoping to retrace my original footsteps. Disappointment. The staircase has been closed to the public (since 911), so the nearest you can get now is to stand in the foyer and take pictures of the old torch (which I already have). In my mind this is what is known as 'complete overkill', but unfortunately our friends across the pond believe that this type of action is necessary in every aspect of our lives now. Whatever happens there seems to have a cascading effect in other countries, including my own.

Enough with the security!!!!

Footballer or rich?

Park footballBeing English, I grew up playing football. Nothing unusual about that. Millions of boys were the same as me. Playing in the park, playing for teams, supporting a team(usually a top team, if you were from a small town. I supported Liverpool, and I am not a Liverpudlian).
This was what most boys did(girls did not play then, for all you PC brigade). It was life. Driven by 2 things; desire, and positive peer pressure. The thought of being left out was not something anyone wanted to experience. What were you to do when all of your friends were playing? This is how serial killers are made!!!!(my attempt at humour).

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Eye Candy

Grand prix girls

 

 

Eye Candy The necessity of “Eye Candy” has never ceased to amaze me. The presence of sexy girls to sell products, and to attract males to events, goes back a long way. From the early days of cinema to the fifties, when ‘men were men’ and women were for for display purposes and to be admired, lusted after etc..,

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The impending encroachment

This blog is in recognition of a trend which is becoming more and more prevalent in sports. This is the presence of

Will & Roger
Will & Roger

stars from the world of entertainment being present, or taking part in sporting events (not as competitors, but as attractions). I am a big fan of the sport of tennis. I watch the matches. I do not follow the player’s lives outside of their matches. I have no interest in their private lives, who they are dating, what clothes they wear, etc…, (my
personal view). There are millions of fans who for them, this is a major part of the reason they follow the sport, which I fully understand.

 

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Robotic sports stars

RonaldoSport is one of the major attractions, hobbies, businesses, and endeavours in the world.When it comes to the playing of sport, whether it is a game of football in the park , a local town league match, or the Premier league, people play with passion and for enjoyment or love of the sport.

 

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The Fast & Franchise.

Have you noticed that the words ‘sequel, ‘trilogy’  team, squad, are no longer being used, just as the word ‘series’ (except the world series)  and episodes are being phased out. If you are unsure what i am referring to, I am referring to the world of TV/Movies, and sport.The new buzz words are ‘franchise’ , which used to be exclusively for business chains such as KFC, McDonalds, Rolex, etc…, is now being used to describe movies and sports teams.‘The Harry Potter Franchise’, ‘The LA Galaxy Franchise’ and the latest one which is doing the rounds, ‘The Fast and Furious franchise’ We also have the new formula for TV dramas of all kinds. ‘Season’

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