Posts by: League of Fans
League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast
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It is estimated that more than 5,000 fans have been injured, some seriously, by foul balls in Major League Baseball (MLB) and minor league baseball stadiums since 2012.
While significant improvements have been made at […]
By Ken Reed
My primary mission at League of Fans is to write about contemporary sports issues, and to try to find ways in which the world of sports could be better for all its stakeholders.
But my favorite part of this gig is finding little nuggets, stories that I call “Sport At Its […]
By Ken Reed
Recently, I was chatting with a group of sports fans about the state of sports. Each of them were disillusioned by SportsWorld today. And the primary reason cited was that they see sports being driven more and more by the chase for money, even at the youth sports level. To them, the […]
“Women aren’t born less interested in sports. Society conditions them.”
— Valerie Bonnette, Title IX consultant
By Ken Reed
Despite the tremendous gains brought about by Title IX, we unfortunately still live in a country in which female athletes continue to be treated unfairly and unjustly in the sports arena. In fact, the gap in […]
By Ken Reed
Flag football, in general, is very popular. There are more than 20 million participants in 100+ countries.
The International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and the NFL are leading a push to have flag football be part of the Olympics held in Los Angeles in 2028.
By Ken Reed
A fairly common view of athletes today is that they are all greedy “me, me, me” human beings who are more interested in building their personal brands than in doing anything that positively impacts society.
Those athletes certainly exist, but I think, overall, that view is more about the mindset of some […]
By Ken Reed
Over-the-top “adults” — parents and coaches — are driving game officials/referees to quit at unprecedented rates at the youth and high school levels due to the verbal and physical abuse they are increasingly receiving from parents and coaches.
As a result, many states are now having trouble finding enough qualified officials […]
By Ken Reed
I often say there’s too much “adult” in youth sports.
It’s parents and coaches that push kids to specialize in a single sport at age 9 or 10, which too often leads to overuse injuries and emotional burnout. It’s parents and coaches that bring win-at-all-cost (WAAC) attitudes to youth sports fields, courts […]
By Ken Reed
I’m an old guy. I remember when Title IX became law in 1972, opening the door — even if it was just cracked a little at the time — to more sports opportunities for girls and women.
Valerie Bonnette, a Title IX consultant, once pointed out, “Women aren’t born less interested in […]
By Ken Reed
The NFL salary cap is $224.8 million per team in 2023. That’s a pretty big investment for owners. Yet, for some reason, half of the NFL’s owners continue to use artificial turf fields that have proven to be more dangerous for players than natural grass fields.
Aaron Rodgers’ recent season-ending achilles injury […]
Sports Forum Podcast
Episode #32 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Prolific Author Joe Posnanski Joins the Show – Posnanski is one of America’s best sportswriters and has twice been named the best sports columnist in America by the Associated Press Sports Editors. We chat about his new book, “Why We Love Baseball,” his new Substack newsletter called Joe Blogs, and we cover topics including how baseball treats its fans, MLB’s numerous rule changes this past season, how the sport can become more fan-friendly, the greatness of Negro Leagues champion Buck O’Neil, and much more.
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Episode #31 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Foul Ball Safety Is Still an Important Issue at Ballparks – Our guests are Jordan Skopp, founder of FoulBallSafety.com and Greg Wilkowski, a Chicago based attorney. We discuss the historical problem of foul balls injuring fans and why some teams are still hesitant to put up protective netting in some minor league and college baseball parks.
Episode #30 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The State of College Athletics with Dr. David Ridpath: Problems and Potential Solutions – Ridpath is a sports administration professor at Ohio University and a member of The Drake Group, a college sports reform think tank.
Episode #29 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The Honorable Tom McMillen Visits League of Fans’ Sports Forum – McMillen is a former All-American basketball player, Olympian, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Congressman. We discuss the state of college athletics today.
Episode #28 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: A Chat With Mano Watsa, a Leading Basketball and Life Educator – Watsa is President of PGC Basketball, the largest education basketball camp in the world. We discuss problems in youth sports today.
Episode #27 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Kids’ Sports: How We Can Take Back the Game and Restore Quality Family Time In the Process – Linda Flanagan is author of “Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania Are Ruining Kids’ Sports and Why It Matters.” We discuss how commercialized and professionalized youth sports are hurting kids and their families.
Media
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
- Reed Appears on Ralph Nader Radio Hour League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, Ralph Nader and the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner discussed a variety of sports issues on Nader’s radio show as well as Reed’s updated book, How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan. Reed's book was released in paperback in February, and has a new introduction and several updated sections.
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Vanderbilt Sport & Society - On The Ball with Andrew Maraniss with guest Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director for League of Fans and author of How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
Books
