Though I think we will remain a football school, football will have to adapt to new realities. These realities which I will share later will force changes in attendance which produce a good part of colleges/universities revenue. I dare say pro football as well. Which appears to be already happening. Fans buy tickets to be there, as well as food, beverages, and souvenir items. A major decline in attendances and its accompanying revenue generating aspects will make the sport unsustainable to operate especially large stadiums. We may see them downsized, replaced with smaller ones, or pressed into varied shared non-football uses. Some smaller or less financially stable schools may drop the sport altogether.
Why?
A variety of reasons. The sport is already in danger of being over-regulated with rules intended or claimed to protect the players. And in more cases, frivolous rules that just take the fun out of the sport.
Fan behavior is getting progressively worst. Verbal sparring is now evolving into fights. Some that are beyond ridiculous like Vols fans fighting each other at that Nebraska bowl game a few years back. But now we have conceal and carry mixed with doped up nuts, people who’re just plain nuts, and folks who just like killing. It’s only matter of time we have shootings at games just because someone looked at you the wrong way. Or some thrill kill nut job out to do just that. We already have had fans dying from fights at games, and confrontations at parking lots where the same has happened.
Terrorist acts whether domestic or foreign. It’s just a matter of time before some factions using drones to deliver a weapon package onto a crowd at a stadium. Whether one capable of firing a weapon or dropping a bio-weapon, explosive, corrosive or other threat. Or someone planting a bomb of some sort at a venue and activated by a timer or remote trigger device. It happens even once and fans are less likely to congregate at stadiums.
Large screen TVs with amazing clarity already have people forgoing gas costs, long drives, traffic hassles etc. So streamed games are going to become an even bigger option than now as colleges seek to offset revenue losses due to reduced attendance.
I know I’m painting a bleak picture but times have changed and sadly not for the better. Colleges/universities and pros will adapt because money remains a great motivator. So we will remain a football school in some form or another.
