Impacts of Rumors in Sport Teams
In recent times, the development of technology in communication and information sharing has significantly revolutionized proceedings in the sports world. Sports teams can now communicate virtually with their fan base through social media, which makes team squad news, regular updates and other information easily accessible to the fans. However, the development of online communication channels, which facilitate the instant spread of information by anyone, has its negative effects. The instant and often an effective spread of rumour in the sports realm has had significant impacts on different sport categories, each in their own right. This paper seeks to highlight and describe the various impacts brought about by rumour spread in soccer as a sport. Rumours in sports have been greatly attributed to the development of technology in communication.
The internet has been, throughout the years, an effective conduit for the spread of rumours involving and concerning players. The information spread, whether true or false, has had significant impacts on the soccer environment. These impacts are both positive and negative, depending on the affected team and its opponents.
First, the spread of rumours can greatly affect the concentration of players, whether individually or as a team. In cases where the information may be personal concerning a player, the effects of the spread may cause the player to lose focus, resulting in a possible decline in performance and confidence. There are also the instances where false information about players may surface online, causing a stir on social media, this information, along with the spread, can have significant effects on the mental/emotional state of the player, which is an important asset of the player, in readiness for successive matches (Sutton, et al., 1021). A good example would be Joe Hart, who is the former goalkeeper for the English National Soccer Team. Hart was at the top of his career just a few years ago, but started declining in performance, due to the constant rumours which stated his lack of ball-playing ability on the pitch. The constant interactions regarding his weaknesses on social media massively affected his mentality. The result was a significant drop in performance, led by costly errors that he made on goal. After numerous poor displays, the Englishman was axed by the National Team, while also being left out of the Manchester City squad by Coach Pep Guardiola in 2017.
Secondly, the spread of rumours can tarnish the reputation of prominent players. Most people online tend to believe the information that they receive or view on their feeds. Rumours, as a result, hurt the players and teams, especially in the case of false information. Numerous players have had the dreadful experience of having their names and reputations ruined after false rumours and allegations concerning their professional and personal lives surface online for everyone to see. The result has been the abrupt end or decline to an otherwise potentially successful career (Sutton, et al., 1021).
Thirdly, relationships between players can easily get ruined due to rumours. The spread of false information involving two or more players can cause friction between them. Rumours have also been known to develop vicious rivalries between teams and individual players, which can be a good thing. However, when the reason behind the rivalry is attributed to false rumours regarding the teams, then the situation can easily turn sensitive. Relationships between players of the same team have also been ruined due to the information passed around regarding their performance and personal lives, which is a negative factor that challenges the chemistry between the players.
The spread of rumours in football has also significantly affected the transferred business in various football leagues. Whenever a player gets left out of the starting line-up in successive matches, rumours concerning the player’s dissatisfaction with the club start streaming in. Numerous media outlets, as well as individual bloggers, initiate rumours regarding the ‘fall-out’ between the player and club coach, which have the potential of inducing friction between the two where there wasn’t any. The result could be a real fall-out between the players and the manager, leading to the eventual transfer of the player to a different club.
A good example is a situation regarding Mesut Ozil, a German international, who plays for Arsenal FC (Bransen, 100). Despite his exceptional playmaking and technical abilities on the pitch, he has received a lot of criticism for being uninvested in the team efforts (Bransen, 102). For the last month, since football matches in England resumed, Ozil has not featured in a single match for Arsenal, and this has sparked numerous rumours regarding his omission from the squad in recent matches. These rumours have been attributed to the uncertainty concerning his omission from the squad, and the player has recently proceeded to post a statement on his social media account, saying that he intends to remain in the club, despite his lack of recent playtime.
The spread of rumours has the potential of affecting player selections, performance, as well as results of fixtures. In the situation where a player is affected by the onset of rumours regarding their personal lives, the coach can rightfully decide to omit them from the starting squad. A move like this would be for the benefit of the team, since the affected player may experience reduced levels of concentration, thereby costing the whole team in the process. In numerous situations, the affected player would often be a massively important player to the team, and their omission from the squad would leave the team at a great disadvantage. Christian Eriksen, a former Tottenham FC player, had a similar experience last year, where word got out that he was not happy at the club anymore. The reports appeared to be factual, although official confirmation from the player’s agent was never released. The team coach decided to leave him out of the squad selections for the following games since it was evident that the uncertainty was evident in his performance on the pitch. He ended up leaving the club at the end of the season, to join Inter Milan, an Italian football club based in Turin.
Soccer teams could use information gained from rumour spread to gain an advantage against their opposition, during the build-up towards matches. During weekly training sessions, players may encounter unexpected injuries, which may hamper their progress towards squad selection for the incoming match. Information may be shared concerning the issue, through the spread of rumours. The opposing team may use this information to gain an advantage by restructuring the team to infiltrate on the weakness of the affected team, that is now brought about by the sudden injury. This situation has opposite impacts on each team involved. The affected team would perceive the rumour spread as a negative factor since it would gift the opposing team with valuable insight that can be used at their disadvantage. However, the opposing team would marvel at the news, as they would use the information to gain an advantage over their opponents.
There are numerous ways through which the spread of rumours in sports can be regulated. First, the use of smartphones and other smart devices could be prohibited in the training grounds. Though the enaction of such a regulation would be significantly difficult, it can be effective towards the minimizing of the negative effects of rumour spread. Secondly, sports journalists and bloggers can be prohibited from accessing the training grounds, since this is where they often film and take content that could be used to spread false information (Coombs, 419). A similar regulation is currently in practice in European Soccer, where journalists and bloggers are only permitted to stay outside the training grounds during training. However, strengthening of these regulations would help in the reduction of the negative effects brought about by rumours.
Thirdly, there is the case of media responsibility and accountability, where the information sources and agencies can be held fully accountable for the validity of the information they share (Coombs, 418). The bodies which govern different sport categories could initiate regulations which seek to hold all the information sources accountable for the information they put out. In this regard, any information that is put out, concerning the players, has to be valid, as well as non-intrusive to the concerned players. Fourth, laws and regulations can be put forward, which prohibit the intrusion of privacy where players are concerned. Sports personalities are usually famous, as sports have a large following. The fans, therefore, would want to know more about they’re favourite players, from professional to personal information. Laws should, therefore, be initiated to protect the players from situations where personal and private information is spread without their consent, as it is an infringement of their rights (Storey, 86).
Finally, one of the most important steps to take towards minimizing the effects of rumour spread in sports is to focus more on strengthening the player’s attitude and mental strength (Adcroft, 20). With the current advancement in the communication channels such as the internet, the spread of rumours is always bound to happen. It is very difficult to contain the spread of rumours since every one globally can share the information they want, provided they have the means to do so. Smartphones are cheaper than ever, and connection to the internet is rapidly developing around the globe. It is almost impossible to maintain a situation where the spread of rumours is non-existent. Therefore, it would be more worthwhile, to focus on preparing the players to be in a better position mentally, to deal with the onset of rumours concerning them, as it is almost an inevitability. Today, sports personalities should always expect and be ready for such a situation, for this is a better way to shield one’s self from the negative effects of rumours.
References
Coombs, Danielle S., and Anne Osborne. “Sports journalists and England’s Barclays Premier League: A case study examining reporters’ takes on modern football.” International Journal of Sport Communication 5.3 (2012): 413-425.
Bransen, Lotte, Jan Van Haaren, and Michel van de Velden. “Measuring soccer players’ contributions to chance creation by valuing their passes.” Journal of Quantitative Analysis in Sports 15.2 (2019): 97-116.
Adcroft, Andy, Jon Teckman, and Nnamdi Machine. “Management implications of foreign players in the English Premiership League football.” Management Decision (2009).
Storey, David. “Football, place and migration: foreign footballers in the FA Premier League.” Geography 96 (2011): 86.
Sutton, Laura, et al. “Body composition of English Premier League soccer players: Influence of playing position, international status, and ethnicity.” Journal of Sports Sciences 27.10 (2009): 1019-1026.