Those who originally wanted to get involved with the businesses side of sports normally did so because of the simple fact that that they love the game. The majority of the people in the industry were at one time athletes themselves but quickly found out that there was a slim chance that they could make a living out of hitting a baseball or shooting a basketball. So now what were these individuals suppose to do whose lives constantly revolved around sports? Well I guess for them there was only one other option; it was time to join the business side of the industry.
When asking others the primary reason of why they wanted to get involved in the sports industry, the number one response is passion. People love sports and will do anything get themselves involved. Growing up, these individuals constantly were playing ball in the yard, revolved their Sunday afternoon’s around football games, or even had yelling matches with the television over blown calls by the referees. Rather than living their lives and participating in sports, it is not uncommon to see people live through sports and participating in life. For many, sports are a lifestyle, which is why many describe passion as the reason for getting involved in the sports industry.
Here’s an example of what it could be like. you graduate high school and finally enter college, and you even decide to enter into a sports management program. Life is good. You start getting into some of your course work and find most of the information fairly interesting. Learning about the history of the Olympics and getting your first taste of how to conduct a S.W.O.T. analysis makes the beginning of college seem pretty cool. Then, it is time to get involved with some more hands-on activities with the sports department at your school, and you are told you need to help out with men’s soccer games. Wow, this seems like an awesome opportunity to finally get to see your team in action. Then you arrive a few hours before the start of the game and the Director of Game Day Operations starts explaining some of the positions available for the day.
“I need someone to sit in the ticket window and monitor attendance … I need someone to stay in the locker room area and make sure the teams have access to their facilities… I need a few of you to act as ball runners … I need a few of you to stand on the far west side of facility and act as security … I need someone in parking …”
As the director goes on and on with the responsibilities for the day, it dawns on you: “wait a minute how in the world am I going to be able to watch the game when I have to be doing all of these other things?”
Newsflash, if you think getting into the sports industry will only consist of you getting free tickets for all the events while you get to sit and watch all the action with your friends and clients, well I guess you had another thing coming.
Although the atmosphere changes once you actually get out of college and into the “real” sports industry, many of the principals remain the same. Sure there are some perks included when working with a sports team or company, but the thing to remember is that in the end it is considered a business. That being said, many people enjoy working in this particular niche, and they very well should. But in the back of their minds,the most successful people in the sports industry understand that they may not be the person in the seats but rather the person responsible for putting others in them.
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About Matt Clark
Matt Clark is currently an intern for Sports Networker, studying sport management and public relations at York College of Pennsylvania. He has an extreme passion for learning about new trends in social media and technology and how it is revolutionizing sports. He has contributed as sports editor for the York College newspaper, been an event manager for collegiate sporting events, intramural supervisor, contributor to the sports information department, and executive board member on the Sport Management Student Association. Matt is heading into his third season as part of the game-day entertainment with the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees. Connect with him on Twitter @mattgclark
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Guys, Great article and very very interesting blog. That’s one thing I’m really looking forward. Looking forward to reading more from you next week.
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