UNIT 7: SPORTS
My name‿ is Hank. Football‿ in my country is not‿ a spor(t) so much‿ as‿ a form‿ of‿ identity,│ an(d) the wor(d) following does not really describe‿ it. A following can be changed;│ this cannot.
The tribal‿ aspect‿ is the part‿ I fin(d) both beautiful‿ an(d) troubling. My son supports‿ our club's rivals,│ which‿ is‿ a joke‿ at home‿ an(d) genuinely awkward‿ at his school. The loyalty is‿ inherited,│ and‿ it survives‿ every rational‿ argument. Meanwhile,│ the professional game has become‿ a commodity:│ broadcasting rights‿ an(d) sponsorship have turned the bigges(t) clubs‿ into global brands,│ an(d) the ticket prices‿ at those clubs‿ exclude the very people│ who created the atmosphere.
What keeps me interested‿ is‿ everything below the elite level. There‿ is‿ an‿ amateur league in my cityci-dy with twelve teams,│ an(d) the standard‿ is poor,│ an(d) the matches‿ are wonderful. When my daughterdau-der plays volleyball for her school,│ nobody is being sold‿ anything. Participation‿ is the part‿ of spor(t) that no sponsorship can capture,│ and‿ if‿ I had tohadda choose between the two,│ I would keep the twelve‿ amateur teams‿ an(d) lose the broadcast‿ entirely.