Team Sports - A Lot to Learn

Over the past couple of weeks, my school - OIS has done exceptionally well at several different football tournaments. So well, that some even asked how we were able to achieve so much. I think that the answer actually comes down to our ability to work as a team, as a unit. We have a lot of individually talented players, but the truth is, our glory as a team can only be attributed to our chemistry on the pitch.

In my opinion, a large part of winning as a team can be attributed to the way that a team is coached and managed. For that reason, I decided to do a little bit of research about the wages of managers in arguably the top division of football, the Premier League. The highest paid manager in the Premier League is Pep Guardiola with an annual salary of 25.8 million dollars! That is roughly triple the average salary of a player at the club.

A winning mindset is a concept we hear all too often, but what does it actually mean, and how can playing team sports help us develop it? A winning mindset is the idea that by envisioning winning in our minds, and never giving up or getting flustered anything is possible. In our day to day life, there are times when we encounter challenges and hardships that can be simply bypassed by a change in the way we think. If we believe we can’t do something, then we can’t do it. Sports teach this because they help us understand the importance of fighting until the very end and never accepting defeat. This idea is summed up quite nicely in a quote by Vince Lombardi the famous American football coach - “Winners never quit, and quitters never win.”  

A great example of this in my own life actually came quite recently when I won the BD Somani football tournament. Although our team struggled to create chances in some

matches, we never gave up, and believed that we could win. Also, I think that this tournament also helps demonstrate another aspect to what sports can help teach. While observing the other teams play their games, it was clear that there was a lot of individual talent. However, the difference between these teams and our own was the fact that we were able to play as a unit rather than individual players. We too had a lot of talented individuals, but we were able to see the end goal as a team, rather than individual glory.

Playing a team sport like football can teach people far more than just the skills required for the game itself. Collaboration, cooperation and the ability to communicate are all essential life skills that can be developed out on the sports field.  It can also help develop a sense of responsibility and accountability in a person, it teaches them to value the end goal and the performance of the team itself over their individual contribution. All of these skills can be applied in several different parts of life as well.

Team sports also help foster collaboration and relationships in young children as well. Sports can help children learn how to communicate effectively amongst each other to help develop tactics and strategies to solve complex problems. These sports also help manage conflicts within a team and help develop traits of leadership, both of which are extremely important traits for young people. These skills will be useful in later life as well when working with others becomes a necessity. 

As a whole, team sports are a great way for children and adults to get good physical and mental exercise while developing important skills and a winning mentality. It helps children understand from a very young age that winning is not just about individual glory, but achieving the end goal as a team. “The difference between the possible and the impossible lies in a man’s determination”- Tommy Lasorda ( baseball hall of fame).