Professional Sports Industry Faces Multiple Challenges
The professional sports industry generates a lot of passion and money, but in addition to the deep crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it also faces another problem: the most important leagues in the United States have faced a boycott due to racial intolerance.
The sports industry worldwide is suffering economic losses, and in order to save the business, actions have been reactivated under strict sanitary controls and without the presence of an audience. These losses were inevitable and have been monumental because, when talking about the United States, the absence of an audience results in a decrease in revenue from ticket sales, souvenir sales, restaurants, internal advertising, parking lots, and other marketing sectors.
- The gratifying memory of the intercollegiate basketball title won by San José in 1977
Television broadcasting rights are the strongest source of income for competitions like the NBA, MLB, and MLS when sacrificing the audience's presence to avoid the spread of the coronavirus. "From unhappiness comes a hat," says an old saying. In these circumstances, audience levels have increased significantly, and we will have to wait for the figures from advertisers and more sponsorships.
But when it seemed that the social tension due to racial discrimination had reduced after the murder of African-American George Floyd – which occurred in Minneapolis on May 25th, after police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for almost eight minutes. Three other former police officers are also accused of complicity and incitement to unintentional intentional murder and complicity in involuntary manslaughter. Jacob Blake's case occurred, a black citizen who was shot seven times by a police officer in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in front of his three children. This sparked massive protests and caused basketball and baseball players to suspend several games.
The NBA led the protests when the Milwaukee Bucks players, precisely from the state of Wisconsin, boycotted the fifth game of the first round of playoffs. The NBA and the player's union supported the move, which was followed by other teams. Later, the action returned to the Disney World complex, the so-called 'bubble,' where the playoffs of the best basketball in the world take place.
Personalities such as LeBron James, Michael Jordan, and former President Barack Obama suggested creating "a social justice committee to ensure that the actions of the boycott become a serious commitment that leads to prosecutions of criminals and police reform.
- After basketball, soccer and baseball join: The sport of the United States shows support for protests against police brutality
The coach of the Los Angeles Clippers, Doc Rivers - of African descent - said: "They're hunting us, they're shooting at us. We love this country, but this country doesn't love us." And with tears, he added: "I believe in good police officers, my father was one of them." There were also protests in the WNBA (governing body of women's basketball). The players wore shirts with images rejecting the seven shots fired at Blake.
In MLB, several commitments were canceled by the firm decision of the baseball players. It happened in an unprecedented way when the Miami Marlins and the New York Mets took the field, did the warm-ups, the first player appeared in the batter's box, but immediately the players from both teams lined up outside the benches, made a bow, greeted each other, a player placed a shirt alluding to the attack on home plate, and they left.
In the MLS, all the matches were postponed and only Real Salt Lake owner, Dell Loy Hansen, showed his disagreement. "My sails have taken a lot of wind away from how much I want to invest, buy players, and build the team. The disrespect was profound for me," he said. The Players' Association responded quickly, describing his statements as "repugnant."
The boycott actions reflected the frustration of a large part of U.S. society, which feels that nothing has been done to improve the situation and end racial discrimination and violence. (O)