Rugby

After the class discussion on Rugby I have become a Rugby fan. I think I like it so much because it is like American football in many ways but it is still different. Rugby is a sport that is played all over the world, popular in a lot of places but not so popular in U.S. Sport globalization class has made me realize that the sports that are popular in other areas of the world are not popular in the U.S. such as soccer and rugby. The reason I believe the global sports are not popular in the U.S is because we are totally ethnocentric. In the U.S we believe that football, basketball, and baseball are at the center of the sport world. In reality, there are many other sports which are close to, if not just as popular as "American sports".  What I've learned so far this semester is that global sports are important because they are a means to establishing a connection between the U.S. and other countries.  It is evident that sports can be used to bring countries and ethnicity closer and closer together.  If we can find a way to embrace sports such as soccer and rugby in the U.S., this may help to establish a sense of "togetherness" which may help in other aspects as well.

Jeff Meeson "Octagon"

I really enjoyed the opportunity to hear Mr. Meeson's presentation about Octagon. From the presentation I learned how big global sports are and how the sports world is way bigger than the traditional sports here in the U.S. As a student approaching graduation this is important to me because I have been enlighten that globalization is the future of sports. What I like most about the presentation was the group activity. Mr. Meeson allowed the class to get a real life experience on what he does at Octagon.  In class we discussed the positives in globalization and one of the positives that Mr. Meeson explained was the growing of careers in the global sport industry. I see that globalization is important not only for connection and unity but also for the economy. The presentation opened my interest in pursuing a career with a sport agency. I think I would be prosperous in a career in globalizing the great world of sports.