Fair Weather Fans

They are everywhere, and are well known. Often these types of sports fans are called bandwagoners, as they root for the team that's winning at the time, rather than pick a team and stick with them through wins and losses. This, readers, is also a fair weather fan.

The most common fair weather fans currently root for the Miami Heat since LeBron joined with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, and they have been dominant since. These fans may suddenly be into NASCAR now that Danica Patrick is making a splash. They are fans of which team or players are on top right now.

Throughout the years, I have seen fair weather Cowboys, Yankees, Tar Heels, Saints, Patriots, Bulls, and even Spurs fans. They are more of a fan of fads and trends moreso than even winning or the actual team itself.

Speaking of the Miami Heat, they actually won their first NBA title in 2006. However, I can count on my hand the number of Heat fans I knew before LeBron James became a member. Now they seem to be everywhere, especially among the youth. It reminds me of the 90s when it seemed like everyone was a Bulls fan because of Michael Jordan. Now I don't see as many Bulls fans, although they are winning.

The wins and notoriety are what attracts these fickle fans. But again, it's more than that. They like the teams and players they like because of the novelty and trends attached to them. Suddenly, Heat and 49ers hats and gear look cool. Everyone is glued to the set whenever these teams are playing. Also, when they play within driving distance, you make sure you have good tickets for that game.

I noticed that while there are lots of Carolina Panthers fans, the fanbase grew threefold when Cam Newton was drafted and performed so well. The GMs knew Cam would boost ticket and merchandise sales for a fledging franchise, plus he may help them win. Many owners grasp this concept of putting together the hottest coaches and players together for financial reasons. The salary cap in certain sports makes it more of a challenge, but the managers have to make money. This starts with putting butts in the stadium seats.

Therefore, the fair weather fans are good for business. However, when that team is going through a rough patch, they find the next best team out there and abandon the other teams.

I'm proud to say I'm a true diehard sports fan, and will not jump ship just because my squad isn't winning. It's fans like me that keep the teams trying and help pull them out of their slumps. Loyalty is important, and teams and players can sometimes tell who's been down with them from day one, and who's a fly by night fan. It's really not that hard.