Sports Sponsors

I was lamenting the spread of crass commercialization in amateur and professional sports.

Do athletes and teams play for their home towns or their corporate sponsors?

Company logos and slogans cover uniforms, equipment, and playing surfaces.

The grandly named stadiums and events of old have been replaced by commercial messages like… “The Continental Tire Bowl at the Bank of America Stadium”.

It’s disgusting.

Then I remembered playing little league baseball in the mid 60’s.

The first team I played for was the “3 Vets”. Our sponsor was a local clothing store, and we had a big “3 Vets” logo on our uniform.

The second team I played for was “The Texans”. Our sponsor was a local fast food restaurant, and we had a big “Texan” logo on our uniform. Whenever our team won a game we could go to the Texan restaurant for a free hamburger and pop.

Whenever our team won a game we'd receive a coupon for a free hamburger and pop at "The Texan". I wasn’t playing baseball for my team, my neighborhood, or my town… I was playing for hamburgers.

Perhaps things haven’t changed after all.