Mcdonaldization of Olympic's Case

It is evident that hosting the Olympics games is no walk in the park. The countries trusted with this task have to spend billions to make the games a reality. Some people believe that the countries, even after spending billions of dollars benefit from the games, while others believe that the money can be spent elsewhere more efficiently. To reach a conclusion, one must study all of the different impacts in all of the different sectors the games have.

Before the 1968 Olympics, the world was in chaos. Countries had internal and external problems that were carried on to the Olympic stage. Issues like the Cold War, South Africa apartheid, and the Civil Rights movement took part in forming the games and taking the stage. However, the host of the Olympics, Mexico, was in for a rude awakening. First, they had to prove to the world that they were capable of hosting the games. Second, they had to handle the worlds issues and their own too. Mexico’s problems consisted of the effect of high altitude on athlete’s performance and student protests. These concerns are all discussed in Kevin Witherspoon’s book, Before the Eyes of the World: Mexico and the 1968 Olympic Games. Witherspoon argues how global and internal disputes were able to impact Mexico in how they handled the most watched event.

The video on “the Hidden History of the Olympic Games” provides intriguing revelations that the Olympic Games are driven by astonishing propaganda associated with international rivalry and social struggles (Poulton, 2012). The video clarifies that Olympic Games have preserved the colonial strategies and operations in most host nations and cities by the organizing bodies (Poulton, 2012). This has caused the production of unique ceremonies and symbolisms while supporting the encroachment of thieving indigenous lands in host colonies. For instance, Germany used the event to advocate the myth of Aryan racial dominance and physical prowess in the 1936 Berlin games. The German artists emerged to idealize athletes through sculptures and significant forms with muscle tones and physically fit features (Mason, 2012). The significance of the Munich massacre is that retribution is harshly critical in political agendas. This caused a loss of potential athlete skills where about 11 athletes were demised. A rivalry was triggered from the occasion even though the authorities were informed of terror attacks (Mason, 2012).

The olympic games bring in many tourists and attention to the city. The olympic games are well known for raising their host cities profile and they are said to be a lasting investment. The games provide a large amount of jobs and they make many people more enthusiastic about their country, yet this does not make up for the suffering that their host cities goes through. This proves that hosting the olympic games has been outweighed by its negative

According to the text, on Olympic.org (2017), the Olympic Games are one of the most effective global marketing platforms reaching billions in over 200 countries and territories. Corporate partners help provide vital technical services, product support, Games staging, and operations of every organization within the Olympic Program (Olympic.org, 2017). Olympic sponsorships create images of brand goodwill, build awareness and communicate messages, and afford employee reward and client entertainment opportunities (Keller, 2014). These

Billions of dollars are pumped into the sports industry in order for the players and coaches to get paid so that they can perform in ways that make the consumer want to watch again and spend their money to support them, starting the process all over again. All across the globe, sports bring in major money, ranging from 13 billion dollars for the NFL to 461 million dollars for the MLS (Major League Soccer) per year. The NBA (National Basketball Association) and the MLB (Major League Baseball) also brought in a heap of money, making a combined revenue total of 14.3 billion dollars per year (“How Much”). Players also get huge checks as a result of the work they put in during the time they play. NFL quarterback Tom Brady makes an annual salary of 36 million dollars, which is, upon further calculations, about 99 thousand dollars per day (“PayWizard”). The Olympics is also a big sporting event around the world. The cost to build and run the 2012 Olympics in London, England 15 billion dollars, which was more than 10 billion above average. The 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, however, put that number to shame with a staggering 21.9 billion dollars (“Myers”). These few examples are just a sliver of what actually is being brought into the sports industry. Ticket sales, merchandise, and endorsements are just a few other factors that could easily

The present-day Olympics are more focused on individual athletes than nations. The media focuses more on the athletes’ achievements in terms of records broken, while the athletes’ focus on the monetary prizes to be won

If the people do not support the Olympic Games then it lowers the overall appeal of the

From the beginning of the modern Olympic Games in 1896 the games have been the essence of how sports can directly affect politics. “The Olympic Games are arguably the most popular multi-sporting event in the world. As of 2010, twenty-three Nations and thirty-nine separate cities have hosted the Olympics since its revival in 1896” (Saum 8). The 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games has been labeled as a “case study”, examining the relationship between sports and politics, and how they affect each other. Some argue that the United States purposely boycotted the 1980 Olympics as a low risked protest against the Soviet Union’s invasion into Afghanistan, and also displaying the success of both capitalism and socialism. At the end of the 1984 Olympic Games the United States came out victorious with a more economically successful Olympic Games then the Soviet Union’s, who held the 1980 Olympic Games. Thus, concluding the triumph of Capitalism over socialism.

The Summer and Winter Olympic Games alike provide an opportunity for countries to display their athletic prowess and national strengths. However, these competitions are often tainted with the corrupt seeds of politics. A wide variety of dangerous and damaging political power plays make an appearance in each Olympic gathering. In the beginning the Games were designed to be a truce period, but they are beginning to lose this component. Also, in every Games since the beginning of the modern Olympics, there has been some form of political activity present. Granted, the Olympics can be used to repair international relations through global partnerships; however, this should be the only instance where the Olympics are used as such. Also it is incredibly unjust to rob athletes of their Olympic dream if their team was to boycott the Games. In order to make the Olympics an enjoyable and rewarding experience for the athletes and spectators alike, the Games should be enjoyed from the athletic perspective alone, without coverage of the political action involved. In short, the Olympics are a rich, cultural tradition that should not be corrupted by politics.

5. Summary: This article focuses on events of mass public appeal, such as the Olympics, honing in on the politics of these mega-events while articulating the expected versus actual effects that these events have on different groups within society, and subsequently arguing

Olympians generate about 27 percent of the individual sports industry’s total revenue. They also offer the biggest example of sponsorship deals. At the 2012 Summer Olympic Games, the United States sent more female athletes to

In the Olympics, ‘wealthy aristocrats ' who organize and sponsor modern Olympic games have shown that amateur athletics has now become such that the athletes with wealthy backgrounds have an advantage. They have also conversely excluded the less privileged and attempted to refine the athletic games to their own tastes and preferences.

For more than a decade before the Seoul 1988 Summer Olympics, politics has been the major player. Boycotts due to political reasons have been on the rise, and efforts needed to be done to stop it or at least slow down, as much as possible, the interference of politics in sports. The United States of America and the USSR have not competed against each other in summer Olympic games since 1976, and another upset or boycott could end the continuation of the modern Olympic games forever.

Every two years, millions of people around the world turn on their TV sets and watch the greatest athletes in the world compete for the greatest achievement any athlete can reach… The bronze, silver, and gold medals of the summer and winter Olympics. Those millions of people cheer mostly for their country and wear their favorite athlete’s jersey. They plan parties for their favorite events and make memories with every game. With all the hustle and bustle, people don’t stop to think about how the Olympics affect the town, city, state, and even world around it. How does it benefit? What does it cause? What does it leave behind? Who does it impact? So many questions can be thought up about how the Olympics impact the world. The two most