It seems like you can’t go to a little league game without some parent kicking dust at the umpire for calling a strike on their child. “What, are you blind?” “The ball was high and outside.” “Doesn’t your health insurance cover glasses?”
This may seem amusing to some, but the truth is anything but. Children’s sports leagues have become so competitive that parents will often sink to great depths in order to give their kid the upper hand.
Some Parents Have Malicious Intentions
Dr. Stephen Cito of Albuquerque, New Mexico, sharpened the buckle on his son’s helmet in order to turn it into a razor-sharp weapon that would cut and injure opposing players. One child was cut badly enough to require 12 stitches. What was his rationale? The referees didn’t call penalties on the opposing team for “roughing up” his son in a previous game. The boy was expelled.
In another case, one mom at a youth hockey game in Toronto decided to lift her blouse and expose herself to the opposing team’s parents. She was barred from attending any more hockey games.
Parents at a grade school football game decided to form a celebratory pyramid on the field after their children had won a major victory against the opposing team. One mom from the crowd decided to crash the pyramid by flinging her body into the parents and began beating them with her umbrella.
Most Parents Want What’s Best for Their Children
Despite their good intentions, parents, like fans, can be emotional over bad calls, poor plays, and dirty hits. All the same issues that drive fans wild during a sports game drive parents even crazier, and that can put them in the position of ruining what should be a fun event for their children.
While these parents are in the throes of emotion, they may be inconsolable. Most other parents, when witness to such displays, simply groan and shake their head, and with good cause. These parents are ruining the game for their children, the other children, and the parents, by behaving this way during children’s sports events.
If the behavior is obnoxious enough, it may be necessary to talk to league’s officials about the parent’s conduct. It may also work to simply remind them that they should behave like an adult.
No one wants to have to deal with unruly parents who can’t separate a children’s sporting event from the Super Bowl or the pressure of professional-level sports. Nonetheless, it’s all too common and sooner or later, it’s something every parent will have to deal with.
For more thoughts and information on children’s sports leagues, please visit our website: League Network.