While not all students are overly enthusiastic about collegiate sports, all students are extremely aware of their existence. It is hard to miss the excitement of fellow students when game time is approaching but it is even harder to miss the advertisements, not just around the college but in commercials and other areas. Recently collegiate sports have become exponentially more commercialized. It is understandable for sports organizations rely on sponsorships in order that they may function properly but commercialization has taken over the collegiate sports world.
In early higher education history, sports were created as a way for students to take a well needed break from their studies and have some fun. Both athletes and spectators were able to reap benefits from the sports world. The sports organizations were created and run by students themselves, however, during the early twentieth century the responsibilities were handed over to the faculty and eventu
ally specially trained athletic instructors. Brad Wolverton believes that “intercollegiate athletics… may have ‘crossed the line’ from an educational to a commercial endeavor.” The beloved college sports have shifted from their initial purpose of complementing education to becoming widespread money making machines. It is understandable that sponsorships are needed for the support of athletic purposes but when sponsorships and expensive ticketing are used solely for the purpose of making money, commercialization of collegiate sports really has gone too far. The role of collegiate sports in a university needs to be reexamined and evaluated in order to preserve the true intentions of a college sport.
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