The Origin Of British Modern Sports

Most of the modern sports originated in Britain, so the British has a reputation of the home of modern sports. Though Britain is an island country, it has a very close link with the Continent and it can at any time to participate in European affairs, which is very obvious in the development of sports. Before the middle of the 19 th century, the developing state of British sports didn’t have difference with Europe continent, but during the middle and late 19 th century, the developing speed and contents of the sports changed hugely, when European continent was hovering in the sports militarism, Britain had quietly gone into the modern sports track, and started the modernization process of sports in advance.Before the middle of the 19 th century, British sports were in a spontaneous and simple state, the form of which was simple and random. They didn’t have written rules, being confined to small areas, accompanied with brutal factors, class and stratum discrimination in sports space is quite obvious, there was not much difference between urban and rural sports organizations and form. In the 19 th century later period, the British industrial revolution finished, which changed people’s survival and mental state, sports also changed vastly. Simple and pure entertainment game evolved into modern sports which had organized, disciplined and written rules.Britain was the birth place of modern sports culture, largely own to the industrial revolution. Firstly, it created enormous material wealth, so the various social strata can get corresponding share. The lower people’s living standards were improved, providing material basis for them to participate in sports, and lay foundation for the sports popularization. Secondly, the industrial revolution drove a large number of rural population into city, making it increasingly larger and its population growingly bigger, which provided basic conditions to carry out large-scale sports competitions. The third, due to the progress of science and technology, the industrial revolution created safe and comfortable advanced gymnasiums and equipment. The fourth, the development of transport infrastructure provided basic conditions for the transportation of the domestic and foreign population and goods, which were the important conditions for sports from a small place to the whole country and the world. The fifth, the industrial revolution prompted communications and the media industry developing quickly, which also promoted sports culture increasingly to commercialization and industrialization. Last, the British in the 19 th century later period had relatively stable political environment, the domestic and overseas without strong competitors in the colonial situation of the world, let the sport do not become the subsidiary of the military expansion, it had been developing along the direction of the competitive sports, finishing the process of modernization. All in all, the modern sport was on the basis of the healthy development of capitalism in Britain.