What Is the Most Common Form of Violence in Sports?

Sports are a great way to exercise and have fun, but violence is often present in sports. The most common form of violence in sports is fighting between players or coaches. Fighting can happen when someone makes an offensive comment, hits somebody on the other team, or if somebody takes their frustrations out on another person. This article will discuss the most common form of violence in sports.

Verbal Abuse

The most common form of violence in sports is verbal abuse. In a survey conducted by the National Coalition Against Violent Athletes, 81 percent of respondents reported experiencing some type of physical or mental abuse from their coaches. The use of profanity and humiliation were two forms that were addressed as being prevalent within locker rooms.

Punching Opponents

Punching opponents is a common form of violence in sports. In hockey, this often results from the players being angry towards each other and wanting to hit one another as hard as possible. Unfortunately, this sometimes leads to injuries even though no player wants them because it's so easy for someone to get hurt when two people punch at once.

Tripping Opponents

One of the most common forms of violence in sports is tripping opponents. For example, in soccer, players often stumble against each other to gain leverage or push an opponent out of their way so they can score a goal. Tripping usually results in a yellow card being issued by the referee, but it’s not considered one of the more serious infractions in the game.

Throwing Bats or Balls

Throwing bats or balls are the most common form of violence in sports. Many new rules make it harder for players to be violent on the field, but some argue this makes games less fun because there isn't as much contact. The 2016 World Series champion Chicago Cubs was one team who felt they couldn’t play their game style because of the new rules.

Borderline Violence

Borderline violence is one of the most common forms of violence in sports. It is different from the classic form of physical aggression, such as fighting and competing for a ball or puck aggressively with another player on their team. This type of behaviour can happen at any level, professional to amateur. Sometimes it's just about winning, while other times, this behaviour is more emotional than aggressive.

Criminal, Violent Behavior

Sports are meant to be a healthy way of being active and having fun. However, over the years, it has become apparent that there is an abundance of criminal violent behaviour in sports. According to recent studies, hooliganism- the act of engaging in violence against other people or property while involved with sports- is responsible for more than 200 deaths worldwide each year.

In the United States, violent incidents occur at a rate of about five per sporting event and even include one stadium death in 1989 during a college basketball game between Duke University and the University of North Carolina.

Body Contact

Violence in sports is when one or more people harm another person. There are many different types of violence; however, body contact is the most common form of violence in sports. This can be physical abuse by tackling, hitting with a fist or other object causing bodily injury, spitting on an opponent, and even scratching an opponent's face to cause them pain.

Conclusion

The act of violence that occurs in sports is often overlooked. One may think this form of aggression is just part of the game, but it can be highly damaging to an individual’s psyche and physical well-being.