Perhaps the most popular American sport today, American football has existed for roughly 150 years. The first official game took place on November 6, 1869 between two college teams, Rutgers and Princeton. As of 2012, nearly 1.1 million high school athletes and 70,000 college athletes play the sport in the United States. The National Football League has the highest average attendance out of all the sports leagues worldwide. However, this highly revered sport comes with many drawbacks. American football should be banned due to its immense injury rates and its negative impact on education. What if 1 in 100,000 participants of a sport died every year? The University of North Carolina found that 12.2 people die per year due to injuries from American …show more content…
However, the disproportionately high injury rate is not exclusive to college athletes. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, over 215,000 children ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for football-related injuries. This is higher than for any other youth sport or recreational activity. The damage done to the human body is more than short term, and although the common destruction of knee ligaments and cartilage is bad, the injuries tend to be worse. In a recent study, 87 out of 91 former National Football League players tested positive for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is widely believed to stem from repeated trauma to the head, and leads to memory loss, depression, and dementia. Former NFL players between the ages of 50 and 59 develop Alzheimer’s disease and dementia at rates 14 to 23 times higher than the general population, while former players between 60 and 64 are afflicted at rates 35 times higher than the general population. How could a sport shown to drastically increase brain disease rates have any place in …show more content…
For instance, in New England, Williams College charges $41,434 in annual tuition, which adjusted with inflation is 3.2 times what the tuition was 30 years ago. In the same vein, USC’s current tuition is $41,022, 3.6 times what it was in 1980. Much of this increased revenue is needlessly being pumped into American football programs. Currently, 629 US colleges have football teams, and only 14 of those colleges make money from American football. While people could argue that alumni donations increase during a school’s winning season, those donations are mostly designated to the same school’s athletic program, leaving the education programs in shambles. In some instances, colleges might even cut funding for more academic oriented parts of the school to further aid in the funding of their football programs. This increased funding, some might argue, is being used to subsidize students, and not the sport itself, but NCAA data show that only 16.2 percent of the spending in Division 1 schools with football goes to student aid. American football does not benefit education sufficiently to outweigh the costs of the
America’s newfound favorite pastime, football, came from a bizarre chain of events. Football started when a soccer player got fed up with just kicking the ball, so he picked up the ball and ran to the goal. His actions of picking up the ball and running with it fathered a new European sport, rugby, which was soon brought over to American shores, and was altered slightly, the shape of the ball and a few other small rules. The sport became organized into a league and produced the NFL(National Football League). The NFL had a slow beginning, but has picked up popularity, currently having a 9 billion dollar yearly revenue. Playing football comes with great costs, including physical and mental health deterioration, plus the amount of time spent prepping before game day. Which can pose several questions, “Why suffer for a game, Is it worth the money? Is it worth the fame? How great is the cost?” I believe that football, should have stricter regulations for the treatment of injuries, along with informing players of just how devastating a concussion can be, along with the other major injuries that commonly occur while playing football.
Football players can suffer from TBIs, which could ultimately lead to the development of CTE.... ... middle of paper ... ... It was stated in the Frontline episode, “As long as the NFL dismissed claims [of TBI and CTE] parents continued to [allow] their children to play football without knowing the repercussions.”
Some feel that by not paying college athletes that college institutions are thereby exploiting their athletes free of charge, which is unfair. However, this article feels that college athletes are paid very favorably by the large amount of money they receive for schooling through scholarships. Also, since college athletes don’t pay to play or go to school they are receiving a free college degree whether or not they decide to stay in school for four years or not. With the training that they receive from professional trainers and nutritionists for a professional controlled diet they save possibly thousands within the 4 years they attend school and perform in collegiate athletics.
In 2004, over 40 schools brought in more than $10 million, with 10 of them bringing in over $30 million. Several athletes around the nation are worth more than $1 million to their school (Brown). Both of these statistics are proof that while these athletes are essential to their schools, they are still kept out of the revenue. Even though these universities won’t pay their players, the schools still have no problem giving their coaches some money. In 40 U.S. states, the head coach of the basketball or football program is the highest-paid public official (Edelman).
If you have the brains when you start, you are aware that banging your head into people is not the best thing for your body,” stated Chris Cooley, tight end and a 2 time Pro Bowler with the Washington Redskins (Do No Harm, 2). Research over the years has gathered extensive data on the mental and physical illnesses of retired NFL football players. It has proved that players who accumulate numerous concussions are at a higher risk of health problems after their football career than players who’ve sustained fewer. This data is proven by various studies that have caused worry for many retired NFL football families. The examples of deaths resulting from past concussions are astonishing, and the stats that show high risks for the possible problems can prove why they possibly died. Countless retired players are now frightened by the potential hazard of destructive health problems.
In recent years, there has been an increase in research investigating the long-term effects of repeated head trauma on the brain, especially in athletes. Following his discovery of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), Dr. Bennet Omalu inspired a movement of research aimed at establishing better safety standards and protocols in football. It was not until 2002 that the initial connection between repetitive head trauma, such as concussions, and brain injury was suspected (Ott, 2015).
The American people not only love to win in anything, they live to win even when they, themselves are not the ones actually winning the game. The American people cheer with great enthusiasm when their team comes in first in a game, championship, or competition. To place anything less than first in any sport or academic competition is unfathomable, it is unappreciated, and frowned upon. Sadly, yet true the majority of all football players in the National Football League (NFL) see it this way as well. The USA is to blame for that. Football players throughout their careers during both on and off seasons, and practices are pushed to their breaking point, and most American people are unaware of the damage that is causes to their body mentally and physically, and the fear is that many of these players do not know the consequences of this brutally, dangerous sport.
Not many sports are as physically demanding on the human body as football. The physical toll that football players pay is almost impossible to comprehend unless one has actually played the sport for a significant amount of time. However, until recently any connection between the hits taken by football players and their health down the road was largely ignored. A common, yet difficult injury to detect in football is a concussion, the most common traumatic brain injury (Pearce). A concussion is defined as “a brain injury that is caused by a sudden blow to the head or the body. The blow shakes the brain inside the skull, which temporarily prevents the brain from working normally” (Heiner pa.5). Reports and studies have surfaced shedding light on just how much damage is inflicted upon the brain due to crippling hits. These studies suggest that NFL athletes who received concussions suffered lasting damage to the brain, which opens the gate to a multitude of other health issues such as dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and clinical depression (Pearce). This is an aspect of the game that not many are aware of and it is a serous issue that needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later. There have been too many heartbreaking stories such as that of Justin Strzelcyk who heard voices and died in a crash while fleeing police or that of Andre Waters who shot himself in the head after struggles with depression (Zarda pa.1). Many current and former players are suffering in silence; this shouldn’t be the case. The National Football League needs to extend a hand to former players debilitated by head injuries. The problem of concussions and other head injuries in the NFL is one that needs to be tackled head on.
Since the early 1900’s when college football first became a NCAA sport, it has had a history of paying its athletes as well as improper benefits. In around 1910, Walter camp was put under fire for having a fund for players of over $100,000. Camp was one of the early pioneers in football that brought the game where it is today. In the 1950’s, scandals hit the college of William and Mary for hiding its players poor grades to allow them to be eligible all season. (Branch 83) This is important because the University of William and Mary was contending with powerhouse football programs that season for a national title. This here all shows that even 50-100 years ago collegiate athletics had already been dealing with improper benefits for players.
Should college student-athletes be paid has become a much debated topic. The incentive for a student-athlete to play a college sport should not be for money, but for the love of the game. It has been argued that colleges are making money and therefore the student-athlete should be compensated. When contemplating college income from sporting events and memorabilia from popular sports, such as football and basketball, it must not be forgotten that colleges do incur tremendous expense for all their sports programs. If income from sports is the driving factor to pay student-athletes, several major problems arise from such a decision. One problem is who gets a salary and the second problem is how much should they be paid. Also, if the income from the sports do not cover the cost of the student-athlete salaries, tuition cost will most definitely rise. The flip side is that the student-athlete entered college, in many instances with a scholarship, chose to play a particular sport because they like to play the game and have therefore decided to participate and should not expect to be paid as a professional athlete. By paying student-athletes a salary would dramatically alter college life for student-athletes as well as non-student-athletes.
College athletes are undoubtedly some of the hardest working people in the world. Not only are they living the life of an average student, they also have a strenuous schedule with their specific sport. One of the most discussed topics in the world of college athletics is whether or not student-athletes should be paid money for playing sports. The people who disagree with the idea have some good arguments to make. Primarily that the athletes get to go to school for free for playing sports. Another argument is that if student-athletes were to get paid then it would ruin the amateurism of college sports. People who are against paying the athletes do not want to see the young people become focused on money. “Paying student-athletes would dramatically shift their focus away from where it should be - gaining knowledge and skills for life after college” (Lewis and Williams). This is very understandable because one of the biggest reasons college sports are so popular is because the athletes play for school pride and for bragging rights. They play because they enjoy the game, not because it is their job. Most people that disagree with the idea of paying the athletes fail to realize what really goes on behind the scenes. At most Universities around the country the bulk of the income the school receives is brought in through the athletic programs. In fact the football and basketball teams usually bring in enough money to completely pay for the rest of the athletic programs all together. To get a better understanding of how much has changed in the world of college sports a little history must be learned.
Football is a dangerous sport, in fact, retired NFL players are 19 time more likely to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease of any other similar memory loss diseases, found by a recent study by the university of Michigan. CTE a disease that Acura as a result of constant head injuries and contact, and has been growing rapidly in the NFL. The NFL has been denied giving the many claims that CTE has a direct connection with professional football, until recently. The NFL has been taken to court multiple times over the topic of CTE. Although the National Football League is preparing to settle a class-action lawsuit with players with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the League should do more for players because not only has it profited from
Financial aspects and profitability of college athletic programs is one of the most important arguments involved in this controversy. A group of people expresses that college athletic programs are over emphasized. The point they show on the first hand, is that athletic programs are too expensive for community colleges and small universities. Besides, statistics prove that financial aspects of college athletic programs are extremely questionable. It is true that maintenance, and facility costs for athletic programs are significantly high in comparison to academic programs. Therefore, Denhart, Villwock, and Vedder argue that athletic programs drag money away from important academics programs and degrade their quality. According to them, median expenditures per athlete in Football Bowl Subdivision were $65,800 in 2006. And it has shown a 15.6 percent median expenditure increase fro...
Football may in fact be a worldwide fad, but when will people ever realize that the lasting affects that football leaves on people is a dangerous thing? Nothing about the game of football will ever make up for the lifelong negative realities that come with playing the dangerous sport. Unfortunately, people do not seem to care about those negative things, because the love of football is unconditional. Will football ever be safe? Even though that question may never be answered, and the problems with football may never be solved, people will still continue to love and play the game, regardless of what may come. The only hope is that something will happen, and the excessive injury, trauma, and death will come to a complete halt.
Football, one of the most popular sports in the U.S., is also the most dangerous; it holds an astounding half a million injuries nationally due to the sheer violence and brute strength used against another player in the sport, and, although it is believed that these injuries can be prevented, there is nothing stopping another player from recklessly hurting another except their will-power, this is why football should be banned from high schools.