I didn't understand it either, until BattleBots got rebooted and I got really into it. I was catching the episodes live, talking with people online as the episodes aired, talking about ideas and strategies, etc. Now I understand.
My take away from this is that you want me to start building a killer robot.
What, you haven't built one yet?
It's just to be part of something. To be part of a story. Same reason people do anything.
Until someone has solved the philosophical problem of meaning, all we really have is storytelling, and the stories that happen in sports events can be easily understood.
Microcosm of the human spirit, innit.
I watch Formula 1 because cars goes vroom vroom fast around the track and that gives my brain happy chemicals
I feel like this can be applied to anything. People enjoy what they enjoy. Lots of things I don't understand like reality TV. My girlfriend loves Big Brother. I don't get it. But I don't need to. She just needs to enjoy herself like I do with things I enjoy.
It’s when they move the thing to the other thing that’s really what gets me all excited.
pick a team and start watching tho, it's super fun and it gives you something to do every day
Pick whichever team is most likely to win and feel great. When they inevitably regress to the mean and start losing games, pick another winning team. Rinse and repeat for great success!
That’s easy mode.
Want to try hardcore mode? Be a fan of someone who barely ever wins, or never wins. Then when they DO win the payoff is enormous.
I like to watch sports because of the skill level and coordination you have to do to win, no matter if it's physical sports or eSports.
Although having some context on what the athletes really do can help you appreciate the kind of skill level the top level pros have.
I didn't really have the appreciation for motor racing until I tried doing simracing.
The added benefits of having stuff to talk about with others is a good bonus tho :D
You watching on television has 0 bearing on the outcome of the game.
What’s the deal?
No one thinks they have an impact on the game while watching from home..? People follow sports for a lot of reasons, some sillier than others, but I'll just list some of them:
Gives a sense of community. If you've ever lived in a college town there's something really cool about everything in the city stopping in it's tracks because everyone has this common interest.
Gives some nostalgia. If you grew up going to games with your family or friends it reminds you of that time.
Just to have some stuff to talk about 🤷 you know everyone at work is going to be talking about whichever sport is popular near you so it's nice to be able to talk about it too.
To watch an impressive show of athleticism similar to the Olympics.
To play fantasy. I'm not really into it, but a ton of people love the competition of fantasy sports.
Because they bet on the games. It definitely ups the stakes when there's money on the game.
And a sad reason that's somewhat common is that some people who don't have anything good going on in their life like to latch on to a successful team to feel more successful themselves.
Most people who watch sports or follow a specific team recognize that it's a little silly, but who cares because it's fun and a whole lot of people are doing it with you.
I feel like I should chime in. Ball sports mean squat to me, but to each their own ya know..
I like watching wheel sports though, and I don't mean car racing. I like watching BMX flatland sports, as every rider has their own unique style and those different styles inspire my own flatland style.
TL;DR - There's more to sports than just dudes playing with balls.
Comradery, mostly. Impressive athletic achievement too.
It’s like any hobby. It’s fun to meet other people who like it.
