Understanding sports fan behavior

Burger King’s Wynne Arboleda has issued a public apology for attacking a Smart Gilas fan, Alain Katigbac, during the PBA Philippine Cup game between the two teams Friday last week at the Araneta Coliseum. In his apology, Arboleda maintained that his action was “provoked by the incessant name calling and cursing uttered by the said fan particularly to me each time I was within hearing distance”. In the same statement, Arboleda said that “even as I apologize to Alain Katigbac and his family, as well as the PBA fans, at the same time, I raise an appeal on behalf of other players to the PBA to recognize that provocations and invectives directed towards specific players unnecessarily test our limitations”.

The Arboleda incident is surely not the first of its kind in Philippine basketball. There have been other incidents in the past, as early as the MICAA (Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association) days, when basketball players vented their ire on over-aggressive and even, uncouth, spectators who, in some instances did not really pay good money to cheer for his or her favorite team but, as Arboleda said, to taunt specific players. Leagues in other parts of the world can also cite many instances of fans being attacked by players either inside or outside the playing venue.

For its part, Burger King, through Lito Alvarez, stated, “provoked or otherwise, it was wrong of him to go after a PBA fan, and I, as chairman of the Board of Governors and Burger King team manager, sincerely apologize to the offended spectator.”

The whole episode creates opportunities to once again reflect on fan decorum.

The United States’ National Football League (NFL) has formulated, according to USA Today, its first “Code of Conduct” for patrons in its stadiums and parking lots. The Code says that the NFL and its teams are committed to creating a safe, comfortable and enjoyable experience for all fans, both in the stadium and in the parking lot. We want all fans attending our games to enjoy the experience in a responsible fashion. When attending a game, you are required to refrain from the following behaviors: behavior that is unruly, disruptive or illegal in nature; intoxication or other signs of alcohol impairment that results in irresponsible behavior; foul or abusive language or obscene gestures; interference with the progress of the game (including throwing objects onto the field); failing to follow instructions of stadium personnel; and verbal or physical harassment of opposing team fans.

NFL executive vice president Eric Grubman, in elaborating on the Code, said, “Here’s the standard. Enjoy yourself, come root for your team - but don’t infringe on the enjoyment of another fan. If you want to come root for another team, that’s OK. But we don’t want somebody pouring a beer over your head”.

NBA spokesman Brian McCarthy said, in the USA Today report that the policy, similar to the one imposed by the NBA in 2005, evolved from a growing number of fans complaining to league and its teams about their experiences at games. McCarthy said, “We are committed to improving the fan experience in every way we can – from the time fans arrive in the parking lot to when they depart the stadium. We want everyone to be able to come to our stadiums and enjoy the entire day.”

How NFL plans to disseminate the Code is instructive and could very well be emulated by officials of Philippine leagues at various levels, collegiate, professional, community-based, etc. The NFL’s 32 clubs will be charged with implementing and enforcing the code, McCarthy said. That will give teams the opportunity to add their own rules to the league’s Code. All NFL clubs are expected to spell out the rules to season ticket-holders and fans through news releases, mailings and stadium-area signs and announcements. Each club will have a front-office employee designated as being in charge of the policy.

For league officials, venue owners, team owners and companies catering to the consumers of sports products and services, it is certainly worth the time and effort to understand the sports fan. Researchers have examined a number of factors that influence a variety of fan behaviors. Rich Lieberman, an avid sports aficionado in the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Area, says the avid sports fan is a well-recognized “breed” and a pervasive part of our culture. Michelle Capella in Southern Business Review, Spring 2002, refers to the work of Neal J. Rose and Sameep Maniar who state that for many people, sports spectator represents “one of the most passionate and intense of human endeavors, utterly dominating affect and cognition for short periods of time”.

Next week, more on fan behavior in sports events.