There’s no greater feeling than getting out on the court or field with your teammates to play social sports.
In our sport-obsessed country, most kids grow up playing one sport or multiple – kudos to those awesome, committed parents!
However, this participation unfortunately tends to stop as kids age into adolescents due to other commitments, such as heavier workloads at school, part-time or casual jobs, or other hobbies.
Whether you fell in love with team sports as a child, got involved as an adult or have been “umming” and “ahhing” about getting involved, we’re here to remind you of the top reasons why team sport is a great investment of your time.
1. Great Physical Health Benefits
The most obvious benefit from social sports is the fitness and general physical health aspect.
If you were lucky enough to play team sports as a child, you probably already know how beneficial it is to get involved in social sports as an adult. In fact, those who participate in sports as a child are known to have a higher level of physical activity later in life.
Even if you’ve never played social sports, it’s never too late to get your team registration in! Social sports provide a fun way to get in some exercise.
Australian adults (18-64 age bracket) should be committing to at least 30 minutes of activity each day to:
- improve heart and lung health;
- lower blood pressure;
- improve bone health;
- manage weight;
- prevent or manage Type 2 diabetes; and
- increase energy & stamina.
Getting involved in social sport can also be a good catalyst to learn more about nutrition and well-being on a more holistic level, which could improve your overall health.
Improving your physical health doesn’t have to be daunting – it can actually be loads of fun. The first step is to get down to your local recreation centre of sports club for team sport registrations.
2. Great cognitive benefits
While the physical benefits are incredibly important, your brain also gets a workout from your participation in social sports.
Playing social sports can help you with greater attention rates, faster processing speeds and better performance on tests, for example.
Organised physical activity through social sports can also help to prevent or alleviate mental illness or stress-related disease, and it is also a great way to maintain your mental and emotional well-being, by helping to reduce stress levels and acting as a natural mood booster.
3. Teamwork Skills
On the court or field, every person has their role to play and it’s important to know how each individual role works to bring the team to victory.
These teamwork skills transfer to the working world as well. As a member of a team, if you take the time to find the strengths and weaknesses of others, as well as assess how they work as an individual and team member, you’ll be well on your way to better understanding how you can achieve success together.
Outside of the workplace and sporting field, teamwork also teaches essential social skills, such as effective communication. To make a great play in social sports, you probably need to be clear and concise in your communication to get things right, which translates well when you’re working on a project in the workplace.
However, we don’t recommend yelling out your plans to your co-workers – save the loud voices for the teamwork on the court!
4. Social Aspects
If you’ve moved to a new suburb or even a new state, social sports are a great way to make new friends with similar interests.
It can also be beneficial if you’re looking to step out of your comfort zone in your hometown to meet new people or can be a great way to support your existing friendships.
When you join a local sports team, you feel like part of a community, as the local sports teams tend to be supported by and participated in by others in the area.
Social Sports in a COVID-19 Era
Since COVID-19 first began to impact our way of life, we have changed the way we interact, and many social sports were put on hold or had seasons cancelled completely. This left many people, who relied on social sports for catching up with friends or feeling connected, a little lost.
However, with restrictions more relaxed here in Western Australia, we’re lucky enough to get back out onto the court or field to participate in social sports again.
At The RISE, we follow government regulations to ensure our facilities are safe for staff and customers alike.
5. Tactical Thinking
While the general idea of a game may be to get the ball in the goal, there are more tactics at play to help you take possession, keep possession and overall, win the game.
Social sports teach you to plan and think strategically; you need to know how to read and react to each of your opponents plays in order to use it to your advantage.
In addition, the more tactically you and your teammates can think when you have possession of the ball, the more of a chance that you will win.
This kind of tactical thinking translates effectively in a working environment, as you are able to more effectively and efficiently navigate negotiations and agreements.
6. Fun
This one is self-explanatory, but playing sport is always fun, and team sports even more so!
Social sports don’t have to be overly competitive – there are many leagues around that are focused on a more casual and fun team environment instead of a highly competitive one.
Even in a more competitive social sports side, it’s always fun to get out there with friends (old and new) to play together.
7. Leadership Skills
This is of great importance, as any strong team requires strong leadership.
While professional teams might have a set leadership group, including a coach, captain and vice-captain, social sports provide an invaluable opportunity for the whole team to step up and really hone their leadership skills.
Combine these leadership skills with the teamwork skills, tactical thinking and communication skills that are improved by social sport and you’ll find yourself reaping the benefits in your professional life and even your social life by being a more critical thinker, communicating better and finding ways to be more inclusive of others.
8. Creativity
This one is mainly for kids, but can be for the more creative adults too! If you get bored of the current sports, or you are feeling adventurous, you can make up your own rules to a new sport!
Or maybe you can merge two sports – like Pickleball, which is a paddle sport that combines badminton, table tennis and tennis that you can play at The RISE.
The opportunities are only as limited as your imagination, so get thinking about how you can merge your favourite sports or even create your own sport.
9. Great for Adversity and Inclusiveness
Team sports are a great way to practise inclusiveness, respect, and equality for everyone. For those that are often left on the sidelines or feel left out due to their ethnicity, gender or ability, social sport can be a great way to feel connected to others and get involved.
Social sport teams can be more socially inclusive by considering what food is available after training and games, standing up to inappropriate behaviour and promoting bonding with teammates.
Learning to be more inclusive on the court is a skill that translates to the working world as well, as you will no doubt come across people from all ethnicities, genders and abilities who could benefit from your inclusive nature.
10. Humility
You’re going to win some and lose some. Sometimes it can feel like the ‘umpire’ was to blame and other times, you’ll be hard on yourself for missing that goal or turning over the ball.
It is important for both children and adults alike to understand that losing is part of life – you can’t get hung up on winning all the time.
On the flipside, learning to be humble in your wins is also a key part of humility; you won’t make friends or gain respect if you go around yelling about how great you are after a game.
Learning humility helps to foster unity among your team, improve morale after a loss and generally improve how good a teammate you are.
Looking for Local Social Sports? Check out The RISE!
The RISE, which stands for Recreation, Information, Socialise and Entertainment, is a state-of-the-art community hub that brings people together for both children and adult sports.
We have sports venues for hire that cater to a range of great social sports, including:
- Volleyball
- Netball
- Floorball
- Soccer
- Basketball
- Futsal
- Badminton
- Table Tennis
Our social sports are played in one of two modern, air-conditioned sports courts where we foster a fun, social environment for the local community to get involved in.
The RISE is an ideal place to get your team sport registrations in, regardless of your skill level.
Sign up your team, join a new team or find a completely new sport entirely at The RISE. Contact us today to become part of our Recreation Facilities community, enquire about court hire or nominate a team.