The Future of Every Major American Sport
What the future holds for some of our favorite sports is something that wasn’t all that much talked about until the Coronavirus pandemic shut everything down last year. All major sports were shut down in the U.S. last year which resulted in a loss of revenue, loss of employees, and in the MLB’s case a loss of teams. Various question marks arose and many fans wondered if and how the sports industry would recover. The MLB, for example, lost billions of dollars as a result of their shortened season and empty seats. Major League Baseball was struggling with popularity before the pandemic so the shortened season certainly didn’t help anything. Many league and team employees lost their jobs as well as players as the minor league system was reshaped before this season. The MLB was the most notable example of the effects of the pandemic but the other major leagues suffered as well. Today, I will be looking at the future for each of the four major sports leagues in America. From the effects of the pandemic to star players of the future, there are many uncertainties and bright spots for the future of the sports industry which will all be discussed in this post.
The Future of the MLB
Out of the four major sports leagues, the future of the MLB might be the one that is most in question. The MLB was having trouble appealing to a younger audience before the pandemic and was trying extra hard to do so. After how well the NBA did finishing their season in the bubble in Orlando last season, the way the MLB handled a season during the pandemic wasn’t quite as good. Sure, it would almost be impossible to do a full season in a bubble. But, there were constant violations of the health and safety protocols that forced teams to play a majority of their season through doubleheaders. Commissioner Rob Manfred has also been highly criticized throughout his short tenure so far. From the Houston Astros sign stealing scandal to the crackdown on foreign substances this season, Manfred has faced backlash for many of the decisions that he has made. It often times seems as if Manfred is just trying to play nice with the owners to keep his job when he should be trying to fix baseball. The way he handled the pandemic and all of the disagreements between him and the MLB Players Association really put a dark cloud over his name.
As far as players go, the future looks bright for the MLB. The assertion of young players like Fernando Tatis Jr. and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as top players in the league is a good look for the game. Guerrero Jr. became the youngest player in MLB history to lead the league in all-star voting this season while Tatis Jr. puts on a show for fans every single night. What Shohei Ohtani has done this season cannot go unnoticed either as we haven’t seen the likes of what he’s done since Babe Ruth. Ohtani has been mashing home runs at an incredible rate while also putting up solid numbers from the mound. These three players seem to be the future of baseball which is a good sign for more than one reason. First of all, these guys are each super exciting to watch and play a game that is appealing to younger fans. Also, having these three players as stars of the league shows how wide-reaching baseball really is. The MLB having some of their top players from various countries and cultures is a good thing for the MLB in my opinion. While the future looks bright on the field, the tension filled relationship between Rob Manfred and the MLB Players Association is not good for the future. We’ll have to see how big of a future it is in future dealings but baseball is on the right track if they can encourage this more exciting type of baseball.
The Future of the NBA
The NBA’s future seems to be brighter than the MLB’s for a few different reasons. For starters, the NBA finished most of their regular season before the pandemic put a stop to their season. That helped the league out enormously because even though the playoffs were held in a bubble, the league received most of their revenue that season and they certainly made a lot more than the MLB did. The NBA also doesn’t have a soured relationship with their players association which helped them reach agreements quicker than the MLB did. In my opinion, the NBA did their absolute best to hold the playoffs and finish the season during a pandemic while also maintaining the health and safety of all of their players. It seems as if the NBA truly cares about their players and their commissioner isn’t just doing whatever the team owners are doing so that he can keep his job. The NBA also did a good job this season as they allowed each team to adhere to the guidelines put in place by their local government officials and now both the Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns have packed arenas for the NBA Finals. NBA ratings were down this season, as were other major sports leagues besides the MLB, but it still remains one of the most popular sports in America to watch. One of the advantages that the NBA has over other leagues is the fact that the teams have a good relationship league’s leaders which will pay huge dividends in the future.
While the days of LeBron James leading his team to the NBA Finals each year might be over, the league still looks to be in good hands for a long time coming. While in other leagues it might take more time to develop, when a player gets drafted they should be ready to help that team out right away. This has led to an explosion of young talent such as Trae Young, Luka Doncic, and Zion Williamson. Players such as Giannis Antetokounmpo and Devin Booker have each helped lead their respective teams to the NBA Finals this year and will be top players in the league for years to come. As players such as LeBron James, Chris Paul, and Kevin Durant near the end of their legendary careers, many new faces are bound to make memorable moments for years to come. There are already quite a few superstar players in the league while there are also many players in high school and college that will be stars someday too. Talent wise, the NBA looks built for the future and the player-friendly environment that the league has created will help the NBA continue to succeed for years to come.
The Future of the NFL
The NFL had an advantage over other major sports leagues during the pandemic in the sense that their regular season doesn’t begin until the fall and by then the country was starting to return to some sort of normality. The NFL did a good job during the 2020 season and it was nice to see Tom Brady win his seventh Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The NFL has always been one of the most evolving games and that will continue in the coming years. One of the biggest rule changes that is scheduled to come into effect in 2021 is the regular season going from 16 games to 17 games. The preseason would also be reduced one week while the potential for another bye week is also on the horizon. Commissioner Roger Goodell and the league are also making rules that could come into effect in the near future that would focus on player safety. As many of you know, football is one of the most dangerous sports to play and the safety of the players should be one of the top priorities of the league. Fines and suspensions have already been put in place for dangerous hits that might cause severe injuries. The league has also worked on better concussion protocols and safer helmet designs are also something that I wouldn’t be surprised to see in the future. Roger Goodell is one of the better commissioners that I can think of that truly cares about the players and their safety.
The NFL has a nice, balanced mixture between veteran superstars and young superstars that are top players in the game. Just this last season, the age difference between the two starting quarterbacks in the Super Bowl was 18 years. Tom Brady, 43 years old, led his Tampa Bay Buccaneers over Patrick Mahomes, 25 years old, and the Kansas City Chiefs. Mahomes already has an MVP and Super Bowl win under his belt and is one of the top players in the game even at his young age. Star quarterback Drew Brees has already retired from the NFL while Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Ben Roethlisberger’s time might be coming to an end soon as well. Football is an exciting sport to watch on a normal day. But when you have young and exciting quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, and Lamar Jackson, it certainly helps your cause. The Super Bowl is also something that almost every American household watches regardless of if they’ve watched a single snap of an NFL game prior to it. The NFL has a way of connecting everyone in a sense and even though we’ll be losing some of the best of all time, young players are ready to leave their mark on this league and promote a new type of football.
The Future of the NHL
Out of the big four major sports leagues in America, I would say that the NHL is more than likely the least popular. For one, the NHL isn’t as talked about or easy to watch as the other three leagues which makes it hard to watch for most Americans. There are zero NHL games that are televised by ESPN which makes it hard to follow for the average sports fan that doesn't have access to those teams. Even still, hockey is one of the most exciting sports to watch, and I assume play. There is constant action and I feel like if more people had access then it would become a lot more popular. The NHL has a rich history but that isn’t something that is going to help you out in today’s world. For starters, the NHL Draft is the least publicized now that the MLB Draft has made its way to ESPN. One suggestion that many people around the NHL have made is to have the unrestricted free agent signing period before the NHL Draft to make the draft more exciting and possibly have bigger moves during free agency. The NHL has other various rules that have been talked about to improve the game but whether or not they will get approved is still up in the air.
It’s always a good sign when the top player in the league is a young player and that is exactly the case with the NHL. Connor McDavid has been electric ever since he reached the ice and already has two MVP awards under his belt. His teammate, Leon Draisaitl, is also one of the best players in the league and neither players are above 25 years of age. The NHL has had an emergence of young talent and players that you should see at the top of the league for years to come. Veteran players such as Sydney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are still putting up solid seasons but their best years seem to be behind them. In my opinion, the amount of talent in the league isn’t going to do that much if the NHL can’t become more appealing. A deal with ESPN was a step in the right direction and hopefully, it will help this league thrive for decades to come. The NHL has one of the more uncertain futures strictly because of the amount of exposure they get in comparison to the other major sports leagues.
