Sure, football can be dangerous. There have been some horrific injuries to the NFL players, but the only time a player died on the field, the cause was a heart attack and not a hard hit. Where it’s becoming more dangerous is in the stands, or in the parking lot after a football game.
On Saturday evening, two fans were shot in separate incidents that occurred in the parking lot of Candlestick Park after the NFL preseason game between the Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers. One of the fans has life-threatening injuries, while the other is expected to survive.
There are few details in regard to the horrific shootings, only that the man who is in critical condition was wearing an anti-49er T-shirt, and was shot two to four times in the stomach. Everything else is speculation at this point, though it’s likely that alcohol was involved.
During the game, a 26-year old man was beaten in a Candlestick Park bathroom. He was unconscious and had life threatening injuries, according to police.
We live in a scary world when you’re risking your life by attending a sporting event. When NFL players sign up for a career in football, they know what they’re getting into, and they are highly compensated for it.
In one of the worst violent attacks that I can remember, back in March, a San Francisco Giants fan at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles was beaten so badly he suffered serious brain damage when his skull was fractured. He was in a coma for months and has only recently been able to move just slightly. He still cannot speak.
Fans of all sports can become violent, it’s not just relegated to the NFL or to European soccer events.
Although fans have always been passionate, the violence seems to be getting worse. It could be that we are more stressed with the difficult economic times. So many people are out of work and fighting an uphill battle just to get by, when they attend a sporting event, the pressure all comes to the surface, sometimes ending in a violent explosion.
When alcohol is thrown into the mix, all rationale seems to go out the window. It might come down to banning alcohol at sporting events in the future, though it wouldn’t seem right to punish everyone for the few who instigate these raging attacks.
Possibly there’s another solution, though some people may not agree. Imagine a future where marijuana is legal. Now, instead of selling alcohol at the football game, fans can purchase a joint. Instead of turning into a belligerent violent maniac, that fan would be calm and relaxed. Though that’s just crazy talk, isn’t it?