American College vs UK University Sport

Sport at the higher education level can be very competitive, and an important part of life for many students. In Nottingham, our Varsity series sees UoN’s best athletes compete against Trent’s for the prestigious crown. This year has seen UoN emerge victorious once again, and Varsity has become a focal point of life for many students in Notts, whether that be competing or simply supporting their university. If it feels like sport at universities in the UK is a big part of life, American college sport commands far greater attention, as Jack explains.

US college sports such as basketball, American football, and to a slightly lesser extent ice hockey, baseball, and others have massive platforms. The highest level of student competition is broadcast on national TV. March Madness, the National Championship, and other Division I sporting competitions have huge followings, almost comparable to the professional competitions for these sports.

The rivalries, legacies, and narratives of these competitions provide an exciting backdrop for these sporting spectacles. It’s a perfect framing for these high-level, high-stakes, winner-takes-all, anyone-can-win tournaments. While student athletes in the UK may only be known at their own university, student athletes in America are often known all over the nation, thanks to the nationally televised events they take part in.

A comparison between the US and UK systems reveals fascinating benefits and detriments to both systems. The first point of contention is the differences between America and the UK university setups, and how it affects the running of their sporting programs. UK higher education institutions tend to be much smaller in size, infrastructure, and funding than American colleges. Additionally, there are less than 200 universities in the UK compared to the thousands of colleges in America.

This creates greater sporting competition between colleges in America because of the volume of competitive sporting colleges there are competing at the Division I level, the highest level in collegiate sport. At just the Division I level there are 363 colleges, whereas there are only a handful of universities in the UK which boast a competitive level of sport. Of course, the US is a far bigger country, but there are still proportionally more elite level sporting colleges across the Atlantic. Furthermore, for many American athletes, the only way to make it professionally in their sport is to get drafted out of college into the league, which only a few top prospects do. Despite many not necessarily being able to get into a competitive college due to their academic merits, there are thousands of scholarships given out every year to athletes who are top prospects coming out of school. Sometimes, student athletes are found to struggle balancing the rigorous training that players must go through and maintaining good grades. This can lead to scandals and controversy from colleges which obliterate academic standards to skate NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) rules on student athlete academics, keeping underperforming students at their school because they are important athletes.

Just look at Last Chance U as an example, a documentary which focuses on the Junior College level of sport. Many top athletes end up at junior colleges for a variety of reasons, from poor conduct to a failure to keep up with their academics at a standard college. In the UK, this issue is far less prevalent – the setup at universities here seem to prioritise education over sport, with less rigorous training, a greater emphasis on academics, and less of an incentive to attend university simply for sport.

Unfortunately, many American student athletes prioritise the grind of their sport rather than their studies, but less than 2% successfully become professionals in their sport. Whilst in theory it’s positive that athletes who would not normally be able to go to college based on their academic performances can get a college degree, the reality is many place their sporting aspirations over their academic potential, leaving them without a degree or professional status.

This sees the American system fail its students frequently, while the system in the UK sees students go to university to compete in sports for fun rather than for their livelihoods. If an athlete has the chance to go professional in the UK, they tend to be signed to academies by the time they finish school, meaning that students do not go to university for the dream of competing professionally. The impetus is thus on the students at university to study harder for their degree instead of prioritising sporting commitments. The main difference in setups is the way that college sport in America is a business, rather than a voluntary, more leisurely activity as in the UK. The college sports business in America is huge, with massive TV rights packages, huge sponsorship deals, and companies seeing athletes as numbers rather than as people. Consequently, Division I colleges have their student athletes training rigorously, including schedules with daily practice, leaving less time for study.

There are massive stadiums for these colleges. The University of Michigan’s 107,000-capacity “The Big House” eclipses the size of every football stadium in the world. Michigan has over 50,000 students enrolled, which is not even the most in America yet still is larger than any UK university.

Moreover, college alumni in America are a massive deal, with many people continuing to support and follow the college that they or their family members once attended. With professional sports only having 30 or 40 teams competing, college sports offer sport fans in America the opportunity to follow a team which may be nearer to them, both in proximity and personal association. This is comparable to British fans who support their local football team as well as following a Premier League team. In the UK, the only people who really follow their university’s teams are the students, and even then, it is usually only the sport which the individual likes that they follow. This sees many teams at universities having relatively small fanbases, only supported by friends of players or fans of the sport. In the US, many people support their college for the simple reason that their college is playing, and everyone is supporting them – that clichéd ‘school spirit’.

While both systems have pros and cons, the less glamourous UK setup is much more beneficial to the students than in the US. Treating students like students rather than athletes helps to ensure the priority is academics rather than sports. Furthermore, the casual nature of UK sports allows for more opportunity for everyone, rather than just the best athletes.

UoN does a good job of this, with students joining the university’s sports club to be a part of the collective, with students across multiple teams coming together and socialising for a more casual and relaxed environment than the intensities of collegiate sports. Even without such a following, events such as Varsity demonstrate that ‘school spirit’ can still thrive over here. While admittedly much more expansive, the US system fails its students - who ultimately should be the priority for the colleges – time and time again, causing issues for young adults across the states.

- Jack Perceval

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