by Cody Hodge

Created on: June 24, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

American professional sports will always continue to exist in one form or another. The problem with making statement such as this is that the term professional is so broad. Technically any person making money to play sports is a professional. So although the NFL, NBA or Major League baseball could die off, it would not be the end of professional sports.

Will the major sports leagues ever die off? It would take a minor miracle for that to happen. One could point to the NHL and say that hockey was a major sports league that is slowly becoming less relevant. However, hockey was a sport that seems to only thrive in cold weather markets, and with hasty expansion into the southeastern and western United States, the ratings plummeted. Even with low ratings, the NHL has had increasing numbers of fans watching the games live, and the recent Stanley Cup finals proved that a team with an intriguing cast of players could win a television audience over.

Major League baseball has also suffered from lower rankings, and a loss of its status as our nations pastime. With baseball though, it is so steeped in history that most fans will still continue to come out and watch, as it is a game that is passed on from generation to generation. Baseball is a game that gives a father a chance to introduce a sport to his son, and that child to introduce the sport to his son and so on. Due to this, baseball will never really ever leave the soul of America. Also, one of the great thrills of America is to say that you went to Yankee Stadium, Fenway, or Wrigley, and that alone will keep people flocking to the ballparks.

The NBA will never die because it is not just a sport, but an outlet for millions of kids in the inner cities. While basketball, like hockey, is a regional sport and its ratings do depend a lot on who is playing, it will always have plenty of people willing to play in its league. To be scene with an NBA player, or to have any basketball skills at all is certainly a status symbol in this country. Side projects such as AND1 reflect this, and the marketability of basketball as entertainment is unquestionable. Also, the surge of international competition will continue to drive American players to get even better, and help the NBA thrive as a league.

The NFL will never die because it is right now our unquestioned pastime. Ratings for the Super Bowl, and the prices of thiry second ads during the games are sky high. NFL games are routinely sold out, and television audiences for a regular season game are usually quite steady. Labor peace, while a bit rocky at this moment, has been historically steady over the past fifteen to twenty years. Player salaries are controlled, yet not restricted, and the experience of going to a football game is unmatched. Whether it be a warm weather game in September, or the cold and snowy December game in Buffalo, the stories, and memories of that three hours on a Sunday afternoon will never go away.

Even if these leagues did die off, the explosion of minor league professional sports is unreal. There are two pro leagues just for Arena Football, with several other smaller indoor football leagues. Even in a small town like Rochester, NY, there are two basketball leagues, an indoor football league, two lacrosse teams, Triple-A baseball, a soccer team and an AHL hockey team. Those leagues alone can attract thousands of fans per game, and have made a profit as well. So to answer the question, no professional sports will never truly die in America.

Learn more about this author, Cody Hodge.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.