Directions: Read the summary, watch the video and answer the discussion questions. A transcript of the video is available here.
Summary: Last week, a group of wealthy owners of European soccer clubs announced plans to create a new, closed “Super League” of just the biggest and richest teams. But following global protests from fans, government officials and even members of the British royal family, the plan is now a super fail.
- The teams that were set to make up the new “Super League” included some of the most prominent professional teams from national leagues in the UK, Spain and Italy.
- The new league was established in secret, and on announcement fans across Europe blasted the idea for breaking up long-standing rivalries and league traditions.
- The breakaway teams seemed to be surprised by the negative reactions of their own fans, who enjoyed watching their teams play in their traditional leagues.
Discussion questions:
Warm up questions: Have your students identify the 5Ws and an H:
- Who was going to participate in the new league?
- Why did fans react so negatively to the idea of the “best” professional teams playing each other?
- What were some of the arguments participating teams made about the benefits of a new league?
- How did the league plans begin to fall apart?
- Where would the new league have played?
Focus questions:
- Why do you think fans are so passionate about the traditions of their favorite sports teams?
- If you could make one major change to a popular sports league in the U.S., what would you change?
Media literacy: Why do you think the producers of this show focused on a change proposed in a league outside the United States? What lessons do you think the interviewee, Roger Bennett, draws between sports in the U.S. and sports elsewhere?
Additional resource: This remains a challenging year for physical education in schools. Educators and students may want to check out this blog post on the value of physical education.
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