When did sports become serious?

Just for fun I recently looked up a definition in my old (May 1977) Merriam-Webster Dictionary. The word was “sport” (as in football).

The results: “a source of diversion” and a “physical activity engaged in for pleasure.” Synonyms listed included “play, frolic, fun.”

So, my question: If the above definitions are still valid, what was the hullabaloo over the so-called replacement officials used in the NFL?

Although professional sports may, indeed, remain “a source of diversion,” the “engaged in for pleasure” and “play, frolic and fun” part appears to have disappeared.

What now remains, it seems, are only the massive amount of money involved and the gullibility of the fans who provide those funds.

Larry Herth

Yuma