Written by: Adam Newcomer
Foreign College Athletes Changing the Game
Recently, the NCAA has become part of trend that is taking over sports in America. International athletes. Over the past 10 years, international athletes have become a large part of college sports, and have become integral to the NCAA, and more generally, to the United State’s economy. The increase in foreign athletes has made audiences across the globe tune into American sports.
The first international college athlete that slowly started a trend of foreign players coming to play in America was Hakeem Olajuwon. Hakeem grew up in Nigeria, but was recruited by the University of Houston and went on to have a very successful career there, taking the team to several Final Fours, and eventually Hakeem became an NBA superstar.
Two decades later, athletes are coming from abroad in droves to participate in NCAA athletics. According to Online Athens, the number of male and female athletes from other countries more than doubled from 1999 to 2010, as they increased from 1.8 to 3.8 percent and 1.5 to 4.3 percent, respectively (Lewter). All of these athletes have friends and family in their hometown and country that are either watching sporting events from home or actually coming to America to spectate the events, increasing their demand.
One recent example of this is former Gonzaga basketball player Przemek Karnowski. Przemek is from Torun, Poland, with a population of about 200,000. (Schroeder). When Gonzaga faced North Carolina in the national championship game, Przemek’s dad was in attendance, and many of his friends and family were likely watching at home too.
The impact that this has on the American economy is monumental. Most sports fans in America know what they are interested in and tune into those events, so there isn’t a very large audience for the NCAA to grow domestically. But there is a much greater opportunity to spread awareness and increase viewership by involving other countries, and recruiting athletes from those countries is a great way to do that. This large increase in viewership really bolsters the NCAA’s revenue, which in turn is helpful to the American economy. In a way, this increases the net exports of the country due to the increased viewership. In conclusion, the increase in foreign athletes in college sports has greatly helped the NCAA, and the United States.
Works Cited
Lewter, Mariya. “International athletes seek NCAA for development, better competition”. Online Athens, 28 Mar. 2015, http://onlineathens.com/sports/2015-05-28/international-athletes-seek-ncaa-development-better-competition.
Schroeder, George. “Gonzaga's Przemek Karnowski will be huge factor in battle of bigs vs. UNC”. USA Today, 2 Apr. 2017, https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaab/2017/04/02/gonzaga-przemek-karnowski-huge-factor-north-carolina-national-championship/99962264/.
I really liked how you talked about how the game has changed thanks to one person. This is similar to a company producing a new product in a new field. Once someone decides to enter a new market there is a very good chance that that market will expand. That's what happened with Houston recruiting Hakeem The Dream.
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While I do think the recruitment of foreign players may increase the demand to watch these sports, I do not think that this increase is that instrumental. Although it does gain a few viewers here and there, just the recruitment of players is probably not the best way to tap into the foreign market. On another note, although Giannis Antetoukounmpo did not play in the NCAA, his Greek background has followed him to the NBA as he is now called, 'The Greek Freak'.
ReplyDeleteI think the foreign market isn't too much of a factor in most conference's TV deals, specifically in the power 5 for football and power 6 for basketball. However, a smaller conference like the West Coast Conference with many foreign players at school like the aforementioned Gonzaga or St. Mary's could get a much more lucrative deal because of international interest. So, no I don't think this will become an NCAA wide thing, but it will have an impact on a couple conferences.
ReplyDeleteThe importation and recruitment of foreign players provides a niche in the economy while boosting your favorite team. However in the current market the niche doesn't make much sense for college sports. American colleges strive for diversity and when they gain it in international players they don't really advertise it, whereas in the pros such players are shoved down audiences' throats. The point I'm trying to get across is that colleges don't really benefit from this niche as they strive for it.
ReplyDeleteWhile foreign players don't affect America's economy, it does affect the college's economy for international students that is slowly increasing for past few years. This benefits the college's that do accept international students to have a more well rounded student base that will increase their number of students.
ReplyDeleteThis piece got me thinking about all of the costs it would take to scout these international products. Yes they seem to have a positive impact on the economy because along with new talent, they bring new types of fans onto the college athletics scene, but I feel that the positive impact may only be fractional. In order to really scout these players, scouting agents will now have to travel across the world in order to see them play. The costs of flights, hospitality fees, and other international costs are bound to increase dramatically. Although scouts could just use internet sources and video to gather info on the player, there is nothing like facing the prospect face to face to better understand what they are like as a player and more importantly as a person. The addition of the international scene also makes competition much more difficult to earn scholarships and spots on teams. This is both a positive and negative because now homegrown talents may find it harder to earn spots on prestigious teams, but it overall adds a general increase in the level of play. Whether you argue that American college sports should only be for Americans or that international prospects should also be accepted, I feel that the costs in order to thoroughly analyze a prospect could end up costing much more than what positives this could bring.
ReplyDeleteJaeger
This was very interesting to read and think about all the athletes that are not from the United States but are participating in collegiate, and professional sports. Not only is this greatly helping the NCAA and professional organizations that these players are playing but the United States and the countries these players are from. Plus, most of these athletes that are coming to the United States are doing very well and are fun to watch so it is worth it.
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