Sports and Scandals, A Match Made in Heaven

When I mention the word scandal, what comes to your mind? Maybe the Monica Lewinsky situation involving the former President of the United States at the time, Bill Clinton in June of 1995, or maybe you immediately think of a Hollywood celebrity? However, there is another world and population that we may be forgetting, and that is the sports world and its athletes. Sports scandals are abundant, and in some cases, are even juicier, or unspeakable, than those in Hollywood or the political world. They're also pretty diverse. Some regard the sport itself, while others deal with domestic incidences, dishonesty, alarming cases of abuse and even murder. If you think sports are all fun and games, you better rethink that statement. According to the Oxford dictionary, a scandal can be defined as "an action or event regarded as morally or legally wrong and causing general public outrage."

There is so much pressure put on athletes to be that perfect role model or to constantly perform at a pro-level, but they are individuals just like us, and they do have their moments where the big moments can sometimes become too much for them. As sports fans, we have witnessed amazement, agony, defeat and unfortunately scandal. Below are some of the biggest scandals in sports history. 

Kerrigan was photographed looking shocked and heartbroken following the attack on her legs. Credit: Neon

The Olympics are a time to honor your country, compete, and hopefully put all the hatred aside, but that was not the case for this scandal. This is regarded as one of the more immoral, unsportsmanlike and repulsive moments in sports history. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were fierce rivals, especially in 1994. Just one day until the US Figure Skating Championships, a man attacked the figure skater Kerrigan while using a police baton near her lower right thigh as she was coming off the ice. It was later discovered that rival skater Harding's husband and a co-conspirator were involved in the attacks. Harding later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to delay prosecution. Kerrigan was able to recover from the attack quickly and went on to win the silver medal at the Olympics in the same year. 

It is a great honor to play any sport, but it is even a greater honor to represent your league, division or conference in the championship game or series. because you may never know when you will get the chance again. Now, would you throw the opportunity away to win a championship and stamp a legacy on your resume for money under the table? Well, the Chicago Black Sox did. This scandal took place during the 1919 World Series between the then Chicago Black Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. The scandal involved eight players that were banned for life from baseball for "throwing" or losing on purpose for considerably large amounts of money. Arnold "Chick" Gandil had planned the throwing of the games and was the one who convinced the players to take the money. The scandal is a story behind the well-known movie, Eight Men Out and is still a common topic when discussing if "Shoeless" Joe Jackson should be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. 

“Shoeless” Joe Jackson remains on the outside looking in for the Baseball Hall of Fame due to his infamous role in the 1919 World Series Scandal

Credit: SN Archives

O.J. Simpson was a well-known athlete, broadcaster, and actor. His collegiate and NFL careers were both very successful. He won a National Championship in 1967 at USC and the Heisman Trophy the following year in 1968. He is enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame as well as the NFL Hall of Fame, but the most important number in Simpson's life did not involve football or acting, it involved murder! On June 12, 1994, Nichole Simpson and Ron Goldman were found stabbed to death outside Nicole's condo near the Los Angeles, CA area. Immediately Simpson was a person of interest to the police. However, Simpson decided to not turn himself in and 5 days later on June 17, 1994, the high-speed police chase began, and it was a nationally televised event. The television stations had to interrupt the broadcast of the NBA Finals to break the news. The evidence on Simpson was pretty significant especially during court when Simpson was asked to put on a glove that contained his fingerprints to determine the weapon used to murder Nichole Simpson and Ron Goldman. It looked like an obvious fit, but Simpson faked a struggle to put the glove on. 

Simpson and arguably the most notorious pair of gloves in history.

Credit: Reuters/Sam Mircovich

Simpson was also ordered to pay over $33 million in damages. The Heisman Trophy that Simpson won at USC was auctioned off along with other belongings that netted $500,000 and that money went to the Goldberg family. There are a small number of people in America who would deny that he was guilty, yet he was found not guilty in a moment of skepticism for audiences everywhere. Maybe it was not a good idea to run from the police, Mr. Simpson! 

Other moments in the sports world involve major scandals. Some of these include Pete Rose betting on his team as manager of the Cincinnati Reds in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, arguably keeping him out of the Hall of Fame, or the New England Patriots famous SpyGate scandal in 2007 where head coach Bill Belichick had his defensive coordinators film signals from other teams during games. Belichick mentioned that he misunderstood the rules presented by commissioner Roger Goodell and was fined $500,000. 

Scandals are everywhere, but they are heavily involved in the sports world which can sometimes make it difficult to continue to root or be involved with that team or individual player. However we script it, scandals are going to happen and let's just hope it does not continue to affect our love for the sport or the game itself.