Choosing favorite sports teams based on geography
I was out in Ottawa last night while "the game" was on, and it got me thinking about why it is that sports fans so often like the sports teams based in the cities they live in. The game was on in 100% of the stores I was in while I was out, and 100% of the people who expressed an interest in one of the teams prefered Ottawa.
This rigorous statistical analysis suggests two possible explanations:
1. A large number of people move from city to city based on which sports team(s) they like.
2. Sports fans generally do not tend to select their favorite teams based on individual freedom of choice.
I remember a stand up comedian (I think it was Seinfeld) made a gag about why people root for home teams. It was something to the effect of: "Teams change, coaches change, players change... you're basically out there rooting for a bunch of jerseys."
Any ideas on why so many people like the home team? Is it a form of "fitting in" to your community? Do you think a professional sports team actually somehow represents or speaks for your community? Do you enjoy the local economic benefits of your team performing well in the playoffs? Is it a freakish co-incidence that people end up liking the teams which are close to where they live?
Do we enjoy having our decisions made for us? Do we need them to be?
[dramatic pause]
Scary.
Well, with all that said...
Go Sens Go.
8)
ScottyZ
This rigorous statistical analysis suggests two possible explanations:
1. A large number of people move from city to city based on which sports team(s) they like.
2. Sports fans generally do not tend to select their favorite teams based on individual freedom of choice.
I remember a stand up comedian (I think it was Seinfeld) made a gag about why people root for home teams. It was something to the effect of: "Teams change, coaches change, players change... you're basically out there rooting for a bunch of jerseys."
Any ideas on why so many people like the home team? Is it a form of "fitting in" to your community? Do you think a professional sports team actually somehow represents or speaks for your community? Do you enjoy the local economic benefits of your team performing well in the playoffs? Is it a freakish co-incidence that people end up liking the teams which are close to where they live?
Do we enjoy having our decisions made for us? Do we need them to be?
[dramatic pause]
Scary.
Well, with all that said...
Go Sens Go.
8)
ScottyZ
Comments
Psychologically speaking, I believe we tend to prefer familiarity. That is, in most aspects of life, we feel more comfortable with experiences with which we can relate to.
That said, given the media attention given to a local team, one tends to be much more familiar with the players, news events, etc of said team, and thus, the individual feels more 'connected' in a personal way.
Not necessarily automatically to be considered disassociative, those who cheer against the 'local' team pose an interesting case-as-study.
There are so many levels of possible evaluations here, that I can only offer up some possibilities...and some questions furthering the thought on this topic:
-Is cheering for the local team a manifestation of some type of a natural underlying associative yearning?
-Does rooting against the local team demostrate an individual's disassociative tendencies? Are they cheering for another Canadian team (a different level of connection)?
...ooooooor, do people just like the colour of a certain jersey/sweater?
Go Habs Go!
Go Habs Go!
As I became interested in other sports, the local team was the most accessible. I can watch every Blue Jay game on local TV. I can attend the games. I become familiar with the players. You tend to root for people you "know".
With the emergence of the internet, satellite TV, etc other sports teams are more accessible, so I can watch a Chicago Cubs game, or read the Chicago Tribune online to get the more intimate stories about their team. So it's easier to keep in tune with distant teams. Still I think that we'll always have the majority of fans favouring the home team. You get a lot of casual fans too (especially in Toronto...) people who aren't huge fans of the game, but fans of the team...
oh, and "Go Leafs!"
hork.
Oh, I can believe it. We've got a lot of those flags here too. <sarcasm> At least people are smart enough to realize that a cheaply made construction of flimsy plastic and fabric can stand up to 400 series highway speeds. </sarcasm>
To be honest, I'm probably the mostly Wings fan right now, since I tend to focus on liking single players more than teams. CuJo is my favorite player right now, and I think it's great to see him get the chance to play after all the craziness he has faced this year. Yes, this means I was sort of rooting for Toronto at one point too...[shudder].
However, I'm not really immune to the "home team bug", since I really began noticing Joseph while I lived in Edmonton and he was there. One thing I really like about him is that he has won several awards from his various teams based on his contributions to the community. These are the sorts of things you rarely hear about, but I personally have a lot of respect for celebrities (sports and otherwise) who contribute in this way, and I think they should be recognized more in the "mainstream" sports coverage.
I do like Ottawa too though, probably partially because I'm here, but also I really appreciate their style of play and skill. Another thing that might contribute to this whole home team thing is that you have a better chance to see your home team live. I don't go too often to the games, but the one game I have seen so far really changed my opinion of Daniel Alfredson. It really helped when I could see the whole ice to see both how smart and fast this guy really is. I also think Ottawa is the best team out there as passing, and more generally, the best at playing together as a team.
Another confounding factor for me in all of this is I picked Toronto (and not Ottawa) in a hockey pool I am in.
ScottyZ
The main reason why people identify with the home team has to do with "safety in numbers". Who would you rather be - the kid that cheers for the Leafs along with most of his other classmates, or the loner off in the corner cheering for the Habs?
To think of this issue in another way: when the olympics are on, who do you cheer for? Do you go an cheer for Mexico? Only if you're from Mexico.
Good point. I'm sure conformity has a *lot* to do with it.
Okay, so now I can focus...
GO WINGS GO
I also sort of have mixed feelings about Ottawa losing, since this probably significantly improves my chances in my Ottawa-based hockey pool.
ScottyZ