I have to ask why? During a time where we’re desperately seeking new ways to fund public amenities such as additional athletic fields, programs, parks, etc. we are going to be so short sighted to ignore a potentially large income source.
This past week I was a guest on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio’s NFL Move’n the Chains, with Hosts Tim Ryan and Pat Kirwan where Tim asked me how we can overcome the real possibility of school systems cutting entire athletic and interscholastic programs due to rising costs and poor economy. Apparently the State of California is strongly considering this as a way to cut costs. Now as ridiculous as that sounds, and the fact that we could debate forever why it’s a bad idea, let’s consider the fact that this may happen and what we need to do if interscholastic sports and athletics are cut.
Would it not make sense to consider legalizing sports betting to fund such issues? Let’s face it sports betting is a huge revenue business. Many people bet on sports either through Las Vegas, web-based sites, or illegally through bookies. It would not only allow the government to police it more effectively but it would produce millions of dollars in public funding.
But many will argue that major league sports will fight this in order to protect the integrity of their games. Yes, they will publicly fight it, but secretly they will support it. Football would not be a fraction as popular if it were not for gambling. Network television executives would also embrace legalized sports betting due to the fact that a point spread and an over/under score is just as important from a ratings standpoint as a close game.
The integrity of every sport might well be suited to admit and endorse legalized betting as a way to market their sports. As a matter of fact professional soccer in the U.S. could lead the way and actually produce genuine broader interest by making this happen. Take for instance that soccer fan in England can actually place a bet on a soccer match in the very stadium they are watching, similar to a horse track.
Professional sport league integrity would also improve if they championed legalizing sports betting to help support youth & high school interscholastic sports, public athletic facilities, equipment, etc. At the moment, professional sports don’t do nearly enough to support the very feeder system they so heavily rely on.
Now let’s consider the more likely fact that many states may never approve such a change in the law. Well with every storm cloud there may be a silver lining. Have high school interscholastic programs provided the best institutional experience for students? If you consider what’s going on in high school basketball with the creation of new prep schools, otherwise known as basketball factories, that play close to 50 games over the course of a season, traveling thousands of miles and playing sometimes 3 or 4 consecutive days at a time, or the continued growth of AAU basketball that create an experience similar to basketball prep factories, with limited qualified coaches that are more likely to be street agents for shoe companies and collegiate programs. And basketball is not the only sport suffering from alternative AAU programs. Football is now beginning to experience the same with 7 on 7 passing leagues, along with year-round baseball.
Would it not be better to stop AAU programs from robbing kids of any type of instruction as a result of only playing games and tournaments, and place kids in private after-school sports clubs with professionally trained coaches and personnel? The structured club system works well in Europe with soccer. But unlike European Club systems the United States could provide privately funded club access for a broader number of participants, not just pre-determined elite athletes.
The fact that there is even a threat of high school sports going away and we are not looking for alternative sources to support the future of sport programs for high school aged athletes is of great concern. But it we are to be so high and mighty and not allow legalized sport gambling then let’s be smart enough to offer a privately funded option that works better than the present day high school interscholastic sport program.
Over the next several weeks I’ll provide several solutions to fixing the ever-present threat of high school sports disappearing. Solutions that may well be better than what high schools offer today.
