Happy New Year and welcome to the 60 Minutes/
Vanity Fair poll for January 2014.
This month's poll centers on sports in America. What is it about America's
fascination with sports? The word fan is short for fanatic, and some people
think that sports in our society might be changing from a national pastime to a
national obsession. The revenue that sports generates has fueled a large rise
in 24/7 media attention and coverage, and with that comes the inevitable
excesses and scandals that are all too familiar. But sports also builds bridges
and is a big part of America's cultural DNA. Over 100 million people from all
walks of life gathered together to watch the Super Bowl on CBS last year. It is
something that we can all talk about.
In the end we love sports not just for the exciting games we watch, but also
for the compelling human stories that go along with them. Telling those stories
is one of the reasons 60 Minutes
now produces 60 Minutes Sports on Showtime. Whether you're a casual fan or a true fanatic, we are interested in
your answers to our questions. And now the results of our poll...
Comfort Zone
Fifty-five percent of Americans would rather watch their favorite sport
from the comfort of home. Thirty-five percent would rather be there in person
to hear the roar of the crowd and experience first-hand " the thrill of victory
or the agony of defeat." Ten percent said they don't watch sports. It is
said that being there is twice the fun, and more than half of those under 35
would rather catch the action live, however that does not appear to hold true
as people get older, two out of three of those over 55 would rather stay home
to watch.
Goal To Go
If
they could attend only one major sporting event in their lifetime, 35 percent
of Americans would go to the Super Bowl. Nine percent have a goal of attending
the World Cup, seven percent would race to see the Monaco Grand Prix, and five
percent would drive a fair way to watch the Masters in
person.
But the gold medal, with 38 percent goes to the granddaddy of all sporting
events, the Olympic Games. It's pretty hard to compete with a history that
dates back to circa 776 BC and was said to be created on the advice of the
Oracle at Delphi in order to stop eternal wars and devastating plagues.
Money well-spent?
An overwhelming number of Americans (84 percent) say they are not swayed
to buy products or brands that are endorsed by professional athletes that they
admire. Eleven percent said are more likely to buy those products and five
percent say they are less likely. So why do companies spend so much paying
athletes to endorse their brands? Maybe because 21 percent of those under the
age of 30 say they are more likely to follow the advice of their sports idols,
that's a pretty lucrative slice of the market.
Sports Scandals
The two sports where Americans think the most cheating occurs are boxing
(21 percent) and horse racing (18 percent). It's probably because of their long
and checkered histories of shady characters throwing fights and fixing races (or
is it fixing fights and throwing races?). In football (16 percent), baseball
(14 percent), cycling (13 percent) and track and field (three percent),
cheating usually means doping or using banned substances like steroids. After
enduring baseball's steroid era and plenty of other scandals where cheaters
evaded punishment for years, one of the sad truths in today's world of sports
is that no one can be sure that the result of any given contest is ever 100
percent legitimate.
Arch-Enemy
Remember the old adage "everybody loves a winner"? Well that
may be true if it's your hometown team, but past winners like the Yankees 16
percent, Miami Heat 14 percent, Patriots 13 percent, Red Sox nine percent,
Alabama Crimson Tide eight percent, and the Duke Blue Devils six percent are
disliked elsewhere. Many people tend to dislike their home team's arch rival
but far from everyone, 34 percent could not think of any team they disliked, a
nice nod to civility among fans.
Bad behavior
From the list of sports provided, one out of four Americans think that football
has the highest percentage of players that are jerks. Twenty-two percent chose
basketball followed by hockey 15 percent, NASCAR nine percent, polo five
percent, lacrosse four percent and horse racing 4 percent. Fourteen percent did
not know. Sports is a microcosm of life, there are plenty of jerks to go
around. In the everyday world most of them get little notice but in the world
of sports where there is constant attention and coverage, a much higher
percentage of complete jerks are bound to be exposed.
The Gridiron
Forty-seven percent would describe football as enjoyable. Nineteen percent
said thrilling followed by boring 13 percent, confusing nine percent and
barbaric nine percent. It's not surprising that two out of three Americans
described football as either enjoyable or thrilling. The game has never been
more popular, ratings for the NFL are through the roof and college football has
a big following as well. Even with all of it's inherent danger (or maybe because
of it) as far as ratings go, football has become America's game.
Pee-wee Leagues
Sixty-two percent of Americans would allow their school-aged child to
play tackle football and 36 percent would not. Men (70 percent) are more
inclined than women
(54 percent) to say yes. With more information coming out about concussions and
other serious injuries and their long term effects on health, these numbers
will probably change in the future. Players at all levels are getting bigger,
faster and stronger, not a good fundamental when you're talking about the
potential for traumatic injuries.
My kid, the Olympian
Twenty-seven percent of Americans
would like to see their child compete at the Olympic level (who wouldn't?).
Twenty-two percent would be happy if their kid played in college, 21 percent
would like to see their son or daughter "go pro", 18 percent would be
content if their child made the high school team and five percent would have
them stop after grade school. This is an increasingly difficult issue in our society
with some parent's aspirations and expectations being out of synch with
reality. Suffice it to say that from high school on sports in America is still
a meritocracy and only a small percentage of kids play in college and a much
smaller number make it to the Olympics or the professional leagues.
Rubber Sole-d
When the rubber hits the road half of all Americans admit to owning
between two and four pairs of running shoes or sneakers. Twenty percent said
they have only one pair, 16 percent said they own five or more and 13 percent
said none. Eighty-four percent of Americans that make over $100K said they own
more than one pair. Now you know why those sneaker companies are running (and
laughing) all the way to the bank.
Goal-oriented
From an eclectic list of choices, 21 percent said the athletic goal they
are most likely to achieve first would be catching a fish big enough to keep (in
New England they call that a "keepa"). Eighteen percent said
completing a 3K run would make them feel like a winner, 17 percent would
"step up" and get through an hour of aerobics, 14 percent would take
their cue by winning a game of pool at a bar, 13 percent said getting on a pool
float without spilling their drink would float their boat and eight percent
said winning a round of golf would "putt" a smile on their face.
