The Worst Sports Fans
Is this you? I hope it’s not you.
Two things happened to me recently and they’re related in the most tenuous of ways.
One, I flew home to San Francisco next to a woman who was flying out for the “Cowboys game.” I informed her that it was the 49ers game and she laughed and we did have a good talk about sports and such. But it was her attitude about the Dallas team that stuck with me, because she stated as if it was a fact that the Cowboys were the more talented team, that they had the best offense and the best defense. She seemed to be genuinely shocked when I challenged both those viewpoints.
(Side note: I hope she’s recovered from the loss to the 49ers a few days after our chat.)
A few weeks later, on a message board I frequent, a Lakers fan argued that a) the Lakers were title contenders (current record: 25-29) and that disgruntled psychopath Kyrie Irving would of course want to go to the Lakers above any other team.
What do these incidents have in common? Arrogant delusion. Fans of the Cowboys and Lakers, as well as the Yankees, the Fighting Irish and undoubtedly some other franchises, share this DNA.
They’re accustomed to winning, even if none of them have done so recently apart from the Lakers via a COVID bubble. But they think their teams are not just elite but that it’s OBVIOUS that they are the cream of the crop. Any other opinion is confusing.
There’s been a lot of chatter after the NFC Championship Game as to whether the Eagles fans are the worst - this because they were apparently VERY hostile to anyone in 49ers gear, including and perhaps especially the wives and girlfriends of players. Certainly, the fans from Philly are … aggressive. But that’s not the issue at hand here. There isn’t a sense of entitlement with the Philadelphia crowd; if anything, they’re way too aware of their cities sports failures over the years. But with the teams I’ve listed above, those failures don’t even register. Here’s some quick math:
The Dallas Cowboys: They’ve been to 8 Super Bowls and won 5. That’s great! But on the flip side, the last time they even PLAYED in a NFC Championship Game was 1995. That’s bad!
The New York Yankees: Clearly, the cream of the baseball crop, the franchise has won 27 Championships. That’s great, and it includes one in 2009. But since then? They went for ten years with very few playoff wins, and since then have lost five ALCS in the last 12 years. JUST for reference, my San Francisco Giants have three rings in that timeframe, and I wouldn’t be bragging on them whatsoever. Humility, folks.
The Los Angeles Lakers: The NBA is a weird thing because you can buy your way to a good team in a way that’s easier than the other major sports. And certainly, the Lakers have tried to do that. Aside from their weird COVID title, you’d have to go back to 2008 and 2009 for any championships, which coincidentally is the last time the Yankees won anything. Nobody is asking, but the Warriors have won four rings since then.
It’s worth addressing that Warriors, 49ers and Giants fans (of which I am one for all) can be incredibly obnoxious! So can fans of every team, including whoever you root for. Indeed, you may be one of those fans! That’s fine as long as you or others are respectful enough.
Dear readers, I’m reminded of a fellow Warriors fan who said that because the team was now a keystone franchise in the NBA, they had a responsibility to the league to be good and to win, etc. That’s sort of bonkers, they owe nothing to the league - if and when they need to tear things down and rebuild, they will.
There’s one special wrinkle to all of this. There are a non-trivial amount of sports fans who are Cowboys, Lakers AND Yankees fans. This is, in no uncertain terms, disgraceful. There’s obviously no geographic overlap here, and what it suggests is a fan who wants to root for “winners.”
Apparently, folks can add Duke and Alabama football to this list as well. These are, in fact, the very worst of sports fans.
It ain’t me!! I swear it!