Frisbee Sport: The Social Storm from Niche to Netflix
With its easy-to-learn, low-threshold and high socialization, Frisbee sport has successfully leaped from a fringe sport to an online sensation under the recommendation of various variety shows and social media.
Young people are attracted to Frisbee not only because of its uniqueness and entertainment, but also because of its "social" attributes. The lack of expensive equipment, flexible venue options, and gentle physical contact give Frisbee the potential to become a popular sport in modern cities.
According to the Top 10 Life Trends for 2022 released by Little Red Book, the amount of Frisbee-related content posted has increased six-fold in the past year. The battle for venues between soccer and Frisbee is on. IC photo captured this phenomenon as shown in the image.
Will soccer people resist or embrace frisbees when faced with them?
Emerging sports often lack exclusive venues, and Frisbee's need for venues is highly similar to that of soccer, which inevitably leads to venue conflicts. Fans' confidence in booking venues has taken a hit. For those soccer fans who are used to these venues, they may feel marginalized.
Even well-known soccer commentator Huang Jianxiang commented, "The real problem with Chinese men's soccer is that the infrastructure is weak, there are not enough soccer fields, and the number of people who are really involved, especially the youth, is too small."
"China has a population of 1.4 billion, but how many kids play soccer year-round? These kids may not even have a place to play soccer in the future because soccer fields are now occupied by people who play Frisbee."
Frisbee and soccer fans have clashed in Beijing and Changde, Hunan province. This is reminiscent of the "turf war" between square dancing and basketball, which also centers on the fight for fitness venues.
As a result of this conflict, Guoan's attempt to promote Frisbee was met with dismay by some fans. Some criticized Guoan for "disgracing the soccer club", while others thought it was "good for traditional soccer clubs to embrace new sports".
However, more sensible voices believe that, whether it is social welfare or commercialized sports venues, the principle of "first-come-first-served" should be followed, and there is no such thing as other sports seizing soccer venues.
Former international goalkeeper Wang Dalei responded to the fans' controversy on the Internet, arguing that since the people who play Frisbee paid and booked the venue, they have the right to use it, and there is no question of Frisbee seizing a soccer field.
A sports industry source also said, "Those free sports fields were originally intended to serve the public, not just the soccer community. It's just that soccer fields are more applicable, so most of them are designed according to the specifications of soccer fields, but that doesn't mean it's only for playing soccer."
Soccer is undoubtedly one of the most popular sports in the world, but it is not actually suitable for everyone. There are many other sports available for groups of different ages and fitness levels.
