The most important factor in fan-hood is the emotional connection that captures us: a generational love affair with a team, or an obsession since one's youth; a heart-rending documentary or piece on an athlete's storied life; perhaps nothing works better for us than a superstar who seems similar to us, just a good, spirited guy or working man (old-Favre or Aaron Rodgers) glinting in the tangle of "overpaid" and apparently unrelatable athletes.
Whatever makes us, we watch because we care. And we argue because we care. Sports generates an emotional fervor within us, and this kindled care propels us into a community, one not unlike the "religious" one. Not to diminish anyone's beliefs, but where else do you find an army of zealots, but in sports and religious debates (and every two or four years in the briefly romantic political chatter)? But unlike the informing adage (about not talking religion or politics), sports lends itself to argument and discussion because it isn't as serious, we think--which is arbitrary, because the things that take our time become important, become serious.
And the serious thing about sports is this community it incites and services and ultimately sustains. Whether you are invested in the record numbers and history from baseball, in the excitement and culture of superstars from basketball or in Tom Brady's hair, you care. And that's a good thing.
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