| In ancient societies, athletics and especially competitive | | | | increase? Or does the heightened public attention and |
| contact games always have been rough, but | | | | media focus on sports violence reflect not an increase |
| aggression in the past was tempered by an insistence | | | | in the incidence or severity of aggression, but greater |
| that playing hard, playing to win, did not countenance | | | | public concern with moral issues and political |
| playing to cheat and to hurt. One of the very first | | | | discourse? |
| nations that expressed athletic ideals, were the | | | | Contrary to popular belief, there appears to be |
| Greeks. As enunciated by Pindar, the athletic ideal | | | | growing dissatisfaction with sports violence. Changes in |
| incorporated courage and endurance with modesty, | | | | sports rules, developments in the design of equipment, |
| dignity, and fair-mindedness, those elusive qualities the | | | | and even the physical characteristics of modern |
| Greeks called Aidos. As sports became more | | | | sports arenas evolved in an effort to reduce violence |
| specialized, the general populace increasingly withdrew | | | | or its consequences. But still, among athletic |
| into spectatorship. Sports history reveals that although | | | | management teams, government officials, fans and |
| Greek sports had increasingly marred by corruption | | | | athletes themselves, there is an ambivalence attitude |
| and bribes, nonetheless they flourished in an era which | | | | towards sports violence. The ambivalence takes the |
| witnessed the rapid expansion of stadiums and arenas | | | | form of justifying the existence of violence in sports, |
| under the Roman Empire. During the Roman Empire, | | | | but not taking personal responsibility for it. Coaches |
| violence in sports became the generally accepted | | | | and managers tend to blame fans, saying that violence |
| principle and spectators not only endorsed it, but also | | | | is what attracts people into stadiums, as the risk |
| embraced it as a social norm. | | | | entailed makes the game more "interesting". Athletes |
| In recent years sports violence has become to be | | | | frequently admit that they are opposed to violence, but |
| perceived as a social problem. Commissions have | | | | it is expected of them by coaches. Fans justify it by |
| been appointed in Canada and England to investigate | | | | attributing aggressiveness to athletes and to situational |
| violence among hockey players and soccer fans. | | | | aspects of the game. Spectators view violence as an |
| Numerous examples of violence in professional sports | | | | inherent part of some sports as one cannot play |
| exist today, as counties like the United States, Canada, | | | | games like hockey or football, without accepting the |
| Greece, Italy and Germany, report court cases have | | | | necessity of violent action. |
| been heard which concern the victims of violence | | | | Nevertheless, public opinion tends to focus more and |
| perpetrators. Newspapers, magazines and television | | | | more on sports violence as major advances in the |
| programs portray bloodied athletes and riotous fans at | | | | technologies used have increased media coverage |
| hockey, boxing, football, soccer, baseball, and basketball | | | | making information available to a vast global audience. |
| games with what appears to be increasing regularity. | | | | Thus, contemporary critics tend to consider sports |
| But are sports violence incidents actually increasing, | | | | violence as a worldwide phenomenon with highly |
| and if so, what is the reason of such a negative | | | | disturbing future course and social outcomes. |