# What is the worst sports governing body in the world? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 14, 2014, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612 "2014-11-14T11:49:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/41 "2014-11-15T07:54:03Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > I thought the breaking of “kayfabe” came when Vince McMahon admitted under oath that professional wrestling was fake. But that was the WWF, not the NWA. > > Regards, > Shodan Yeah, but who the hell DIDN’T know that it was fake? I would’ve been more surprised if they admitted under oath that it wasn’t. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/42 "2014-11-15T13:33:20Z")
> [@markdash](#): > > You just sacked that straw man for a 10 yard loss! > > The NFL has done a tremendous job of marketing itself and crafting a game that is great to watch on TV. It inspires loyalty and passion from its fans and the networks line up to pay billions in rights packages. These are accomplishments to be commended. > > But it’s also neglected the long-term health of its players for decades, turned a blind eye to violent off-field transgressions, and to this day continues to hold cities hostage for new stadiums under the threat of relocation. That last part’s pretty much true for all sports, though, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/43 "2014-11-15T15:29:39Z")
> [@markdash](#): > > But it’s also neglected the long-term health of its players for decades, turned a blind eye to violent off-field transgressions, and to this day continues to hold cities hostage for new stadiums under the threat of relocation. This is the doing of the owners, not “The NFL.” What’s the UCI? ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/44 "2014-11-15T15:29:49Z")
> [@markdash](#): > > You just sacked that straw man for a 10 yard loss! > > The NFL has done a tremendous job of marketing itself and crafting a game that is great to watch on TV. It inspires loyalty and passion from its fans and the networks line up to pay billions in rights packages. These are accomplishments to be commended. > > But it’s also neglected the long-term health of its players for decades, turned a blind eye to violent off-field transgressions, and to this day continues to hold cities hostage for new stadiums under the threat of relocation. I’m not going to commend it at all for being the most successful marketing machine in sports. I get a little tired of constantly being sold something during a telecast, not the least of which is a game which isn’t particularly appealing to me any more. > [@RickJay](#): > > That last part’s pretty much true for all sports, though, isn’t it? For U.S. sports leagues, certainly. Pony up, all you cities! Loyalty is a one-way street. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/45 "2014-11-15T16:00:55Z")
> [@Justin\_Bailey](#): > > What’s the UCI? [Union Cycliste Internationale](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Cycliste_Internationale). ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/46 "2014-11-15T16:22:09Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > I would stake my house that if wrestling had been kept a real sport it would not be 1/1000th as lucrative and popular as it is as a soap opera for men. Real wrestling is, to most people, boring. It is not a very dynamic sport, if you will. Like all sports it’s very interesting once you understand it, but it’s not spectacular the way boxing or MMA (or football, hockey, etc.) are. I daresay that MMA _is_ “real wrestling” for all intents and purposes, and it’s certainly done alright. ---
**Author:** ![Shearer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/57b2e6/32.png) [@Shearer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shearer)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/47 "2014-11-15T18:00:22Z")
The Darts governing body was so bad that about 20 years ago all of the best players left to start their own Organisation and run the sport themselves. ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/48 "2014-11-15T18:06:40Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I daresay that MMA _is_ “real wrestling” for all intents and purposes, and it’s certainly done alright. It’s done well so far, but its ruling bodies are awful. It’s regulated by state boxing commissions, many of which know little about it and at least several of which actively dislike it. Recycled boxing judges judge ground fighting that they don’t understand…it’s a mess outside of a few select states. ---
**Author:** ![tonyfop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/85f322/32.png) [@tonyfop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tonyfop)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/49 "2014-11-15T19:12:15Z")
> [@dzeiger](#): > > Haven’t seen mention of the FIA yet (F1 racing). > > Old Bernie recently got out of a trial for bribery by…paying money to the people accusing him of bribery to get them to drop the charges. I know that this is a USA-centric board, but could some of our European Dopers expound on this? I have heard that Bernie was one of the most corrupt individuals in sports, but I don’t know any particulars. NASCAR, on the other hand, is pretty much a family run operation which keeps a tight grip on all decisions in the sport. They have expanded out of the South pretty well, but are fighting to remain relevant by messing with the championship format. This has alienated a lot of long-time fans, and has not attracted as many fans as they had wanted. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/50 "2014-11-15T19:15:09Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I daresay that MMA _is_ “real wrestling” for all intents and purposes, and it’s certainly done alright. Yeah, I guess it’s really the only practical way you could HAVE real wrestling as a professional sport. There’s really no room for anything else in the marketplace now. An interesting question would be this; would MMA have exploded in popularity had boxing not completely self-immolated? I have a feeling the answer is no, but who knows. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/51 "2014-11-15T22:19:07Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > An interesting question would be this; would MMA have exploded in popularity had boxing not completely self-immolated? I have a feeling the answer is no, but who knows. I find this question interesting. On the one hand, I firmly believe that boxing could have survived all the corruption; it was moving all the fights to pay per view that killed it dead. On the other hand, MMA is (and has always been) mostly a pay per view thing. I can’t really wrap my head around it, to be honest. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [November 15, 2014, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/52 "2014-11-15T23:50:14Z")
Martin Garcia, the American who did the investigating of FIFA FOR FIFA, says that their report does not agree with what he told them. And now the German Bundesliga President is demanding release of the full Garcia report. > **[German Football League Threatens FIFA Over Unreleased World Cup Report](https://deadspin.com/german-football-league-threatens-fifa-over-unreleased-w-1659228843)** > > FIFA finally released a summary of their report into the bidding process for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, and to the surprise of absolutely nobody it basically cleared Qatar, Russia, and current FIFA officials of any wrongdoing. The 42-page report... ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/53 "2014-11-16T01:06:37Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > I find this question interesting. On the one hand, I firmly believe that boxing could have survived all the corruption; it was moving all the fights to pay per view that killed it dead. \*\*On the other hand, MMA is (and has always been) mostly a pay per view thing. \*\* > > I can’t really wrap my head around it, to be honest. (Emphasis mine.) MMA is definitely working to get away from that model, though. The #2 promotion in MMA, Bellator, has all of its fights free on Spike (basic cable) except for one or two PPV events. And the UFC’s deal with Fox makes for double-digit free cards per year, which paired with their habit of running prelim fights for free on Facebook, is making for (I think) a gradual migration away from the “10-15 huge PPV cards per year” business model. There are just too many fighters and too many fights for that anymore. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/54 "2014-11-16T02:27:53Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > Agreed. > FIFA seems pretty corrupt, but then I don’t watch soccer enough to provide instances outside of World Cup backroom deals. > > MLB seems shady. From the performance enhancing drugs scandals they can’t seem to shake to the lopsided bankrolls large markets can throw around to buy up all the talent. Boston has made the playoffs one time in the last five years, Dodgers and Yankees combined have one WS win in the last 15 years, Angels have one win in their history. ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/55 "2014-11-16T13:00:41Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > At the risk of hijacking this, isn’t pro wrestling more like unto MMA than real wrestling? Watch a match and I figure you’ll see kicks and punches and a knee to the gut and an elbow to the head and, yeah, okay, some grappling interspersed with all the striking, but that’s still a _heck_ of a lot of striking. It depends a lot on what pro wrestling you’re watching, and who. But yes, in general, pro wrestling doesn’t have much “wrestling” in the sense of grappling, holds, transitions, things like that. There are certainly some wrestlers who use those (Kurt Angle and Jack Swagger come to mind, along with Brock Lesnar), especially those who came from a college or amateur wrestling background. Alot of the Japanese wrestlers mostly focus on strikes, as well as American wrestlers who imitate that style (like CM Punk). The other big difference is in how submissions are handled. In MMA, once the submission is locked in, generally the opponent taps out immediately because he doesn’t want every joint in his arm dislocated. In pro wrestling, of course, it’s all about the drama, and so “devastating submission” holds are sometimes locked in for a minute or more before the opponent taps. On a few occasions, the victim of the move refuses to tap out long enough that he “passes out from the pain” in order to show what a tough bastard he is. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/56 "2014-11-16T13:45:08Z")
> [@Diceman](#): > > The problem with figure skating is that it involves judging. No. The problem with figure skating was that it involves judging _outside of competition_. Read Inside Edge and you’ll see what I mean. Judges already knew who they wanted to win from watching practices and exhibitions and scored according to that. Why do you think they had to change it completely around to make it a points based system? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/57 "2014-11-16T15:35:24Z")
> [@GoodOmens](#): > > It depends a lot on what pro wrestling you’re watching, and who. But yes, in general, pro wrestling doesn’t have much “wrestling” in the sense of grappling, holds, transitions, things like that. There are certainly some wrestlers who use those (Kurt Angle and Jack Swagger come to mind, along with Brock Lesnar), especially those who came from a college or amateur wrestling background. > > Alot of the Japanese wrestlers mostly focus on strikes, as well as American wrestlers who imitate that style (like CM Punk). Randy Savage could win a title match by using exactly _zero_ wrestling moves in the ring: he’d throw punches and land the occasional kick, and deliver a knee strike and an elbow strike without even bothering to go for the _pin_ because (a) the other guy just got counted out, soon after a (b) DOUBLE AXE-HANDLE OFF THE TOP TURNBUCKLE! ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/58 "2014-11-16T16:26:59Z")
> [@tonyfop](#): > > I know that this is a USA-centric board, but could some of our European Dopers expound on this? I have heard that Bernie was one of the most corrupt individuals in sports, but I don’t know any particulars. > > NASCAR, on the other hand, is pretty much a family run operation which keeps a tight grip on all decisions in the sport. They have expanded out of the South pretty well, but are fighting to remain relevant by messing with the championship format. This has alienated a lot of long-time fans, and has not attracted as many fans as they had wanted. NASCAR I think is in the running for an award as the governing body that is driving their sport into second class status. Watch a NASCAR race and look at the stands. They aren’t full, hell in many cases they aren’t even close. NASCAR seems to be trying to emulate the lack of success pioneered by USAC/CART/INDYCAR who took the Indy 500 from the great spectacle in motor race to part of a ho hum series. ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/59 "2014-11-16T16:51:13Z")
> [@Rick](#): > > NASCAR I think is in the running for an award as the governing body that is driving their sport into second class status. > Watch a NASCAR race and look at the stands. They aren’t full, hell in many cases they aren’t even close. > > NASCAR seems to be trying to emulate the lack of success pioneered by USAC/CART/INDYCAR who took the Indy 500 from the great spectacle in motor race to part of a ho hum series. I’m not sure how much of this is NASCAR’s fault though. The tracks are primarily owned by two publically traded corporations (ISC and SMI). Those companies set the ticket prices at their tracks and both reacted late to the 2007/08 economic downturn (although SMI reacted sooner and IMHO better). NASCAR has some control over the schedule, but also has contractual obligations to the trackowners that hamper the wholesale shifting of races to more exciting venues. I think the ratings are more a function of the increased competition from other sports along with a general lack of compelling personalities to inspire interest. None of that is really under the governing body’s control. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2014, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612/60 "2014-11-16T17:22:33Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > That might be, but boxing was one of the most popular sports in America\* before anyone owned a TV\*, and remained a major sport well into the 1970s and 1980s. The Ali-Spinks fights in 1978 were one of the biggest sports stories of the year. > > Boxing started falling apart for a lot of reasons, not the least of which was they started making it hard to actually watch a major fight on TV. That is exactly it. I stopped watching and following boxing when you couldn’t see any decent fights without paying a ton of money. UFC has done a much better job of it balancing PPV and free broadcasts. > [@Guinastasia](#): > > Yeah, but who the hell DIDN’T know that it was fake? I would’ve been more surprised if they admitted under oath that it wasn’t. It’s still real to me! [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BvTNyKIGXiI) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-worst-sports-governing-body-in-the-world/704612.md?page=4)