The history of sports is, in many ways, the history of balancing tradition against profit.
One of the great paradoxes of sports is that the games we love are often built upon tradition, yet the people who govern them seem constantly determined to change them. Whether it’s expanding the College Football Playoff, conference realignment, legalized sports gambling, jersey advertisements, or the transfer portal, nearly every major decision in modern sports seems to begin with the same question:
“Will this generate more revenue?” (If the answer is yes, the change usually follows).
At what point does financial growth begin to undermine the very thing that created the value in the first place? The pursuit of maximizing profit often destroys the traditions, relationships, and authenticity that made sports valuable in the first place.
Traditions vs profits
There is nothing inherently wrong with making money. Professional and collegiate athletics are businesses, and businesses need revenue to survive. The concern arises when the pursuit of financial growth begins to overshadow the traditions, rivalries, and experiences that made sports valuable in the first place.
At what point does financial growth begin to undermine the very thing that created the value in the first place? The pursuit of maximizing profit often destroys the traditions, relationships, and authenticity that made sports valuable in the first place.
College sports offer perhaps the best example. Not long ago, conferences were built around geography and regional rivalries. Today, schools routinely travel across the country because television contracts make it financially worthwhile. Historic rivalries have disappeared, student-athletes spend more time traveling than ever before, and fans are left trying to remember which conference their favorite team now belongs to. The financial gains are obvious. Whether the overall fan experience has improved is far less clear.
The same pattern appears elsewhere throughout sports:
- The College Football Playoff continues to expand.
- Professional leagues increasingly partner with sports gambling companies.
- Uniforms feature more corporate advertising than ever before.
- Streaming rights have fragmented broadcasts across multiple subscription services.
- NIL and the transfer portal have created unprecedented athlete movement, making it increasingly difficult for fans to develop lasting connections with their favorite teams.
Each decision makes sense when viewed independently. Together, however, they reveal a larger pattern: more games, more television inventory, more advertising, more subscriptions, and ultimately, more revenue.
Psychologists have long recognized that people quickly adapt to success. Once a new level of income or reward becomes normal, we rarely remain satisfied for long. Instead, we begin pursuing the next increase, believing that just a little more will finally be enough. Psychologists refer to this phenomenon as the “hedonic treadmill.” Once people or organizations achieve a new level of success or wealth, that new level quickly becomes the baseline. Rather than feeling satisfied, they begin pursuing the next increase, convinced that one more television contract, one more playoff team, or one more revenue stream will finally be enough. Perhaps sports organizations are no different. Every successful television contract creates pressure for an even larger one. Every playoff expansion sparks discussions of expanding it further. Growth becomes the expectation rather than the exception.
Ironically, the pursuit of maximizing revenue can gradually erode the very qualities that made sports so meaningful. Regional rivalries become corporate transactions. Tradition gives way to television scheduling. Loyalty is replaced by free agency. Fans become customers, and games become content.
None of this suggests that sports should never evolve. Change is inevitable, and many recent changes have produced genuine benefits for athletes and fans alike. The real question is whether every change should be driven primarily by financial gain? At what point does healthy business growth become something else?
Final thoughts
Perhaps greed doesn’t always destroy sports overnight, but changes sports so gradually that we hardly notice until we look back and realize something important has been lost. Hometown pride and traditional rivalries are no longer priority #1, as fans have become customers, and games have become content to sport leaders and decision-makers. The next time college athletics announces another conference realignment, playoff expansion, or billion-dollar television agreement, perhaps the most important question isn’t how much money will be made—but what will be sacrificed to earn it?
drstankovich.com
