On the American sports calendar, there is no bigger day than Super Bowl Sunday.
Nothing else garners the same level of attention, drawing in both serious and casual fans. In the United States, 19 of the 20 highest-rated scheduled television programs of all time are Super Bowls. It is one of our few remaining common cultural touchpoints, an event everyoneknows about.
And for Christians who bring their faith onto the field, the Super Bowl represents a supersized platform.
On the Kansas City Chiefs—who have played in four of the past five Super Bowls—owner Clark Hunt has spoken frequently about his faith and how he prioritizes spiritual development on the team. Chaplain Marcellus Casey provides spiritual support and care, while players like cornerback Trent McDuffie describe faith as “the biggest thing in my life.”
The Chiefs also have kicker Harrison Butker, a conservative Catholic who leans more into political activism and made waves earlier in the year for his controversial remarks at Benedictine College.
On the other side of the field, the Philadelphia Eagles also hold a legacy of outspoken Christian athletes, with the team’s faithful players receiving so much attention in 2017 that an entire book about them was published.
Chaplain Ted Winsley served on that team, and he continues to work with and disciple the Eagles today, including Christian wide receiver A. J. Brown. During the playoffs, Brown went viral for opening up and reading Jim Murphy’s Inner Excellence on the sidelinesin the middle of a game—a book written by a Christian and strongly shaped by a faith-based perspective.
So what do football fans think of all this God talk? A new survey out this week from Sports Spectrum and Pinkston found that most sports fans tuning in on Sunday—the majority of whom are Christian themselves—will be happy to hear players and coaches display their faith.
Sports Spectrum, the closest thing to a “journal of record” for the evangelical Christian subculture in sports, has focused mostly on sharing and amplifying stories of faith from athletes. With this survey, Sports Spectrum moves in a new and intriguing direction—seeking to actively drive and shape public conversation and enhance our understanding of the culture of sports.
Christians used to be concerned about America’s growing obsession with sports. It was seen as a rival for influence and authority in American life, a competitor for devotion and loyalty. To watch a game on Sunday, Christian leaders warned, was either a sin or a sign of lukewarm faith.
Some scholars today continue to stress the conflict between religion and sports. They argue that sporting events have replaced the role that religion used to play in society. Yet this survey, which targeted people who watch games at least a few times a month, suggests sports fans might actually be more religious than others.
Compared to the American population, which has slightly more women than men, the survey respondents skewed male: 57 percent to 43 percent. And respondents also expressed deeper religious commitments: 73 percent identified as Christian compared to around 67 percent of Americans overall, with more than half saying faith is extremely or very important to them. Just 19 percent indicated no religious faith, compared to around 30 percent of the general population.
These results suggest fascinating possibilities for further exploration. Rather than replacing organized religion in American life, perhaps sports has become a cultural space that is more open to religion—a means through which traditional religious identities can be affirmed and expressed.
And perhaps this is true not just of athletes and coaches (an argument I make in my book), but also of the fans who cheer them on.
Growing up in the evangelical subculture, I was taught to see popular culture as a hostile place, with an American public that did not want to hear about Jesus. When I saw Christian athletes and coaches speaking about their faith after games, it seemed subversive, as if they were sneaking in something that the media did not want to promote or share.
In this survey, however, fans have shown broad support for athletes like McDuffie and Brown who use their platforms to talk about their faith: 56 percent are supportive, while only 12 percent oppose.
It’s a result that makes sense, given that the survey respondents tended to place a high value on faith. But it also makes sense in a cultural climate that encourages the expression of personal identities and values, especially for public figures. Few identities are more important to a person than religious affiliations and beliefs.
For Christian athletes, this should provide encouragement to be open and honest about the significance of faith in their lives.
Yet, it is easy to support expressions of faith with which you agree. It’s a different story when an expression of faith doesn’t align with your views.
While three-fourths of respondents (74%) said they support athletes using their platforms to talk about nonprofit causes, only a third (34%) said they support athletes talking about causes they oppose.
This should not diminish the desire by Christian athletes to speak about their faith. But it should remind them that faith is not some generic common denominator; it takes shape in particular ways, and it makes claims about truth and goodness that not everyone will agree with. Navigating public witness well requires a blend of courage, wisdom, and discernment.
Certainly, Christians should be encouraged that so many athletes, coaches, and sports fans find faith meaningful to their lives. But does the culture of sports shape Christians more than the other way around?
The survey also examined the rapid rise and spread of sports gambling and found that Christians were as likely as Americans overall to back the trend.
When asked how they felt about online sports betting, 43 percent of respondents were in favor, 35 percent neutral, and 23 percent opposed. Among Christians, 42 percent were supportive, 35 percent neutral, and 22 percent opposed.
While gambling has always been associated with sports, in the past it was done in the shadows, limiting its reach. Now, gambling is front and center, literally funding sports leagues and the media companies that cover them—all the while teaching a new generation of fans to view gambling as a central part of the sports experience.
Christians should be concerned for many reasons: the way gambling can lead to a dehumanizing and transactional view of athletes, the way it encourages addictive and self-destructive behavior in young men, the way it subverts and undermines the constructive possibilities of moral formation through sports.
Yet while some Christian leaders have raised the alarm, there is little organized resistance. Nor, it seems, do church leaders take sports betting seriously as a matter of discipleship.
Whether Christian fans have money on the game, friendly pools for Super Bowl squares, or just favorite teams they are pulling for in their prayers, they may ask whether God cares who wins.
Most fans seem to agree that God doesn’t pick sides: 78 percent of survey respondents say that God does not have a preferred outcome or that he influences the results.
This is the right perspective. We can’t discern God’s will when it comes to why one team wins and the other loses. If we try, we can easily fall into the transactional frame of the prosperity gospel: If players perform religion in the right way, if they have enough faith, then God will bless them with success.
Most fans seem to agree that God doesn’t pick sides in the big game: 78 percent of Christian, Jewish, and Muslim respondents said that God does not have a preferred outcome or influence the results.
At the same time, we can acknowledge a sense in which victory does come from God. When fans see athletes or coaches thanking Jesus after a game, they should see it as a recognition of human dependence on a higher power. The skills and talents used on the field have a source, and it is not us.
We should also affirm that God cares about sports. He may not pick winners and losers, but he is not indifferent. He cares about athletic competition because he cares about human beings and the cultural activities we create and engage with.
As we watch the Super Bowl again this year, we should care about sports not just because it provides a platform for Christian athletes to talk about Jesus, but also because sports are a gift that can be enjoyed. And as the survey results remind us, it’s also a formative space for meaning, connection, and community in our culture.
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