Such a Thing As World Sport?

If I don’t do this very carefully, it’s going to sound parochial, nationalistic, protectionist and generally negative. Which I honestly do not intend. For I think the second year, the BBC is broadcasting the Superbowl live on Sunday evening from 11 p.m. onwards. I’m sure a minority of Brits and a huge number of American expats will be very pleased at this, and those individuals who are not are likely to be on their way to bed at that time anyway.
I enjoy sport myself, although not obsessively so. I may even watch a little of the opening quarter of the game as I have in previous years.
The only objection I have to the BBC’s (and previously Channel 4’s) coverage of the event is when they try to put forward the idea that it’s a World Game and that we should all suddenly become American Football fans.
I’m not particularly blaming American Football. In previous years various sports have attempted to impose themselves on us, either from another country or, as in the case of Rugby League, by elevating what is essentially a regional game to a national level. One cannot help feeling that money is the motivating factor, rather than a desire to spread interest in the sport itself.
In 2003 I was lucky enough to spend a month as driver for a friend who did the famous Camino de Santiago across Northern Spain. Just beyond Pamplona we passed through a number of villages that each boasted large handball courts, sometimes in the centre or town square. In one I noticed a statue dedicated to one of their most revered handball players. Just as we began to expect a sight of one of these little sporting arenas, they stopped appearing. All the undoubted passion and tradition end enthusiasm given to that game was limited to a particular corner of Northern Spain.
So, while allowing the sports which can engender a genuine national or international interest to do so, let’s also celebrate diversity in sporting activity. Let us be pleased that as we move around our beautiful planet we can still see a huge range of athletic endeavour that can be admired while not necessarily being televised.