Changes in Sports over Time: Through the Ages Project Part 10 of 10

By Jacob Lindbert

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Introduction of early sports

Sports have played a monumental role throughout history, serving as a source of entertainment and fun all over the globe. They have evolved through time, reflecting changes in culture and advancements in technology. These changes have increased accessibility to both watch and play, as well as observing improved athlete performances. This paper will examine the historical development of sports and how they have transformed and taken over the globe.

The playing of sports is evident in some of the earliest known civilizations. One of the oldest documented sports that still exists today is boxing. Boxing originated as a form of combat or entertainment as early as 3000 BC in Mesopotamia, with early clay tablets showing depictions of fist-fighting (SportsGeeks, 2023). Additionally, Ancient Egyptians, Ancient Chinese, and Ancient Indian civilizations engaged in a variety of different physical activities. These included archery, wrestling, martial arts, and chariot racing. In Ancient Egypt, archery was a skill that was revered, with Egyptians believing that the god Horus had the eye of a falcon. In Ancient China, wrestling was popular and seen as a way of developing strength and discipline. Martial arts were developed and popular in Ancient India, created and influenced by Hindu philosophy and spirituality.

Other influential sports like cricket and field hockey have their origins traced back centuries. Cricket originated in England in the 16^th century as a game played by shepherds and farmers. The game continued to evolve, adding the hitting of a set game ball with a club or mat. As time went on, cricket developed into a sport that was widely popular amongst the upper classes, where it was played in schools and on large estates. As time went on, cricket continued to develop and is played by many across the globe. Field hockey originated in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Persia, with players using curved sticks to hit balls made of wood or leather (SportsGeeks, 2023). As the game went on, advancements were made to the sticks and balls used. It was not until the 1800s that England created the first rules and regulations around the sport, generating set expectations for all involved.

Soccer

One of the most well-known and popular sports today, soccer, has its origins traced back to Ancient China. Here, people would play a game called ‘cuju’ using a leather ball and a net. This evolved and was adopted by other civilizations, who added their own rules and variations to the game. In the 1800s, England developed the sport into much of what it is today and has continued to attract billions of players and viewers.

The codification of soccer by England in 1863 through the creation of the Football Association (FA) was a monumental moment in the sport. This established common rules and objectives for the game, as opposed to the wide variety that were previously experienced. Over the next few decades, soccer rapidly grew, with the first international soccer competition, the British Home Championship, taking place in 1884 (Kovacs, 2023). Several decades later, in 1930, the FIFA World Cup was created, solidifying soccer’s role in global sports and entertainment. The World Cup continues to be played every 4 years, showcasing the best teams from across the entirety of the world, bringing in billions of viewers. As soccer became more developed, the rise of club football followed, and by the mid-20^th century, many leagues started popping up. Some of the most popular include the English Premier League in England, La Liga in Spain, and Serie A in Italy, all of which are still in place today and generate some of the best teams in the world. International and club team rivalries have brought massive excitement and anticipation to these games. One of the most popular of these matchups occurs every year between La Liga teams, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, in a match termed El Clásico. As a whole, the reach that soccer has across the globe is largely unmatched, as it remains one of the most viewed and participated in sports each and every year.

Olympic Games

The rise of the Olympic Games represented a monumental change in sports history. With the creation of the games in Ancient Greece in 776 BCE, the rise of organized sports continued to grow. Early Olympic games allowed the Greeks to showcase physical form, largely through events like running, wrestling, and chariot racing. These games had both social and religious significance to them as they were both a form of entertainment as well as a dedication to Zeus, the king of the Greek gods (Sports History Network, 2024a). As the games went on, sport in Ancient Rome moved from honoring the gods to creating spectacle and entertainment. Animal hunts, gladiator events, and chariot races took place in large arenas, most notably the Colosseum. Ancient Romans were focused on power and control, while the Ancient Greeks wanted to showcase fitness and athletic ability.

In Ancient Greece, the Olympics would be held every 4 years, where athletes would come safely to Olympia and compete in a range of competitions. This continued for centuries until Roman Emperor Theodosius I banned the games, attempting to suppress pagan traditions (Sports History Network, 2024b). This lasted many centuries, until 1896, when Pierre de Coubertin, a French educator and historian, was inspired by the Greek traditions and brought the games back. The first modern Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, featuring 241 athletes from 14 countries who competed in 43 events, with the emphasis of the games being to promote peace, friendship, and understanding through sports (Sports History Network, 2024b). Since their return, the Olympics have continued to grow each year, adding new events and growing in size and popularity. The addition of the Winter Olympics in 1924 added an entirely new aspect to global competition as sports like hockey, skiing, figure skating, and more were included.

While a great sporting event experienced on the national stage, the Olympics have had a much greater impact on the world than just entertainment. They have served as a platform to promote political, economic, and social change. Significant political and social statements were made during the 1936 games in Germany and the boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. From an economic viewpoint, although the games are a massive financial undertaking for the host country, they provide an avenue for transformation. The potential benefits include increased tourism, job creation, and global exposure with prior Olympic cities like Barcelona and Beijing using the Olympics to transform their urban landscapes and boost their international profiles (Sports History Network, 2024b).

Basketball

The sport of Basketball was created in 1891 by James Naismith. To better understand its creation, a deeper dive into Naismith’s background is beneficial. In 1888, Naismith graduated from McGill, where he was awarded a gold medal for best all-around athlete. He then went on to pursue a graduate degree in theology from Presbyterian College. During his studies, he would regularly attend local YMCA’s, pairing his interest in theology and athletics. After finishing his degree, he moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, and began working as a physical education teacher at the YMCA International Training School (Basketball.org, 2019). As he worked through the repetitive games of the time, he grew bored and sought to create his own game that others could play. Using the equipment available at his disposal and drawing from his childhood experience in a game called ‘duck on a rock,’ Naismith created a game with a peach basket and a soccer ball in which the goal was to lob the ball into the basket (Basketball.org, 2019). As he implemented the game in his own YMCA, it soon began to spread to other colleges, YMCA’s and local areas. As the game continued to grow, so did Naismith. In 1895, he moved to Colorado to become the Physical Education director at a YMCA there, and in 1998, he obtained a medical degree from the University of Colorado Medical School. From there, he left Colorado to become the assistant gymnasium director and basketball coach at the University of Kansas. Although his time as a basketball coach at Kansas was largely unsuccessful, he continued to be involved with education and growing the sport in a variety of countries around the globe.

Rowing

One sport that has experienced major transformations and developments is the sport of rowing. Rowing was first known as a means of transportation in the ancient cultures of Egypt, Greece, and Rome (Olympedia, 2024). It was not until the 17^th and 18^th centuries that rowing turned into a sport that was competed in across the globe. Early races were heavily bet on and were a popular Olympic event. The first Oxford-Cambridge race took place in 1828, and Yale and Harvard first rowed against each other in 1852 (Olympedia, 2024). This rich history of the sport has led to many well-known races and competitions across the globe. Some of these include the Head of the Charles Regatta in Boston every year and Henley Royal Regatta in England. These events host a variety of races, including 8-person boats, 4-person boats, doubles, singles, and more.

Football

Early versions of the sport of football existed in the 19^th century, with the game being a mix of rugby and current football rules. These games initially had few clear rules, with groups of students forming two sides and competing against one another (Lambrecht, 2021). The game also lacked much of the protective gear and rules to protect the players that are evident in today's game. This led to many schools and areas banning the sport. In 1869, things began to change when Rutgers and Princeton played what became known as the first intercollegiate football game (Lambrecht, 2021). This game began setting rules for the sport with coaches, established positions, and tactics for playing the game. While the game had much more room for development, these early games laid the foundation for more to come.

By 1876, an association of Harvard, Columbia, and Yale formed a group that formalized rules. This early group relied on kicking to score all of the points, and it was not until 1881 that the touchdown became more valuable (Lambrecht, 2021). By 1906, the National Collegiate Athletic Association was formed and began to organize the game on a nationwide level. The sport continued to grow, moving teams into over 400 cities.

With the growth of the sport and development of the playing rules, there emerged an importance in generating player safety rules to ensure athletes were not seriously harmed or killed while playing the game. Regulations for throwing the football and the introduction of the line of scrimmage helped establish better rules for safety, reducing some of the violence that previously existed in the sport. This was furthered with the creation of the National Football League (NFL).

The National Football League was created in 1920 with 14 founding member teams. As years went on, more teams were added to the league and more modifications were made to improve the sport. Rules were passed to turn football into a more pass-heavy game as opposed to running and kicking. This created much of the foundation for the game as it is played today. A championship game was added in 1932, and in 1958, the championship game was broadcast live on TV (Lambrecht, 2021). As the sport grew, the NFL merged with the AFL, forming the NFC and AFC conferences that are seen in the sport today. As the game continues to grow, the 32 teams that make up the league continue to produce stars and generate billions in revenue with millions of viewers.

Pickleball

One of the fastest-growing sports in the United States and around the globe is Pickleball. Although its rapid growth has recently happened, the sport was created over 50 years ago in 1965 when Joel Pritchard and Bill Bell were seeking a source of entertainment (Brandt, 2024). They used a random assortment of sports gear, playing around and making changes until they eventually created the game that is now known as Pickleball.

Conclusion

Although the sports mentioned throughout this paper are important, they are not a complete sum of all sports. Other sports like Baseball, Hockey, and many more have also changed the world and the way sports have taken over the world. Advances in technology, changes in methods of training, and increased inclusion in the global world have all reshaped how people participate in sports. As the world moves forward, sports are expected to move with it, with new sports potentially being created in the future to engage more people around the globe.

Sources

Basketball.org. (2019). Dr. James Naismith Biography – Inventor of Basketball. Basketball.org. https://www.basketball.org/history/dr-james-naismith/

Brandt, J. (2024, February 2). The history of pickleball: From 1965 to today. The History of Pickleball: From 1965 to Today. https://www.playpickleball.com/the-history-of-pickleball/

Kovacs, A. (2023, August 3). The History of Soccer: Tracing the World’s Beautiful Game - Metro League. Metro League. https://www.metroleague.org/history-of-soccer_soc/

Lambrecht, E. (2021, September 21). How did American football develop - DailyHistory.org. Www.dailyhistory.org. https://www.dailyhistory.org/How_did_American_football_develop

Olympedia. (2024). Olympedia – Rowing. Www.olympedia.org. https://www.olympedia.org/sports/ROW

Sports History Network. (2024a, August 2). The History Of Sports Explained. Sports History Network. https://sportshistorynetwork.com/multiple-sports/history-of-sports-explained/

Sports History Network. (2024b, August 2). The History of the Olympic Games: From Ancient Greece to the Modern Era. Sports History Network. https://sportshistorynetwork.com/olympics/history-of-olympic-games-from-ancient-greece-to-modern-era/

SportsGeeks. (2023, July 26). The evolution of sports: From ancient times to modern-day. SportsGeeks. https://sportsgeeks.net/the-evolution-of-sports-from-ancient-times-to-modern-day/