This year has been an unprecedented one for sports. History will record two major contributing factors – the COVID-19 worldwide pandemic and the upsurge of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the United States of America.

The Tokyo Olympic Games and the European Soccer Championships were postponed until 2021, but all other major sporting events have experienced a significant shift.

Restrictions on travel, physical activity, and mass gatherings have had major implications for athletes and sports governing bodies, characterised by new rules of engagement, constriction to the remainder of the season, and significant earnings loss.

Not since World War II has there been such a significant disruption to the worldwide sporting calendar, but BLM has incorporated another substantial layer coupled with the pandemic.

While the movement took shape and gained momentum due to tragic events in the USA, sporting leagues worldwide have found various ways to incorporate recognition of its significance, including kneeling.

In 2016, the National Football League (NFL) quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, Colin Kaepernick kneeled in protest during the USA national anthem; he was vilified for his demonstration. He has been ‘blacklisted’ for the past few years by NFL teams and owners but, with the current social shift, there is a renewed sense of cultural sensitivity and diversity.

Large companies (whether financially motivated or otherwise) can no longer stand on the sidelines in silence. Earlier this month, Kaepernick’s production company, RaVision signed a partnership with Walt Disney to develop projects that explore race, social injustice, and the quest for equity. These productions are slated to be viewed on all of Disney’s media platforms.

Had it not been for the ‘social awakening’ over the past few weeks, this deal would certainly not have happened.

Companies are now being forced to choose on what side of history they want to sit. Do they want to be complicit to the social injustice that has been swept under the rug for generations?

Hopefully, the impact of BLM will outlive that of COVID-19. While we wait on the restart of the National Basketball Association (NBA) season on July 30, there are (surprisingly) several positives in the ongoing situation for sports fans.

While many of the international, domestic football winners have been crowned, there still remain a slew of games to enjoy in this football season. The compact nature of the sport’s resumption has resulted in a throng of games that leaves very little gaps in-between activities. Plus, there is still a lot to play for in football: The Emirates Football Association (FA) Challenge Cup in England, 2020 UEFA Champions League, 2021 UEFA Champions League qualifications, to name a few.

Normally, there is very little football to enjoy during the months spanning early June to late August (in a non-World Cup year).

The hiatus caused by the pandemic and the compaction of the remainder of the schedule has resulted in a steady, wholesome diet of the sport when there would be relative inactivity.

Yes, spectators’ absence leaves a lot to be desired, but the on-field action has not disappointed. It is still strange though that the leagues have outlawed the cursory greeting between teams and officials before kick-off but still allow group celebrations following goals and ‘intimate’ exchanges at the end of games.

Overlapping all this football (including Major League Soccer that restarted earlier this month) will be Major League Baseball (MLB), the restart of the basketball season (NBA and Women’s NBA) and the start of the National Football League (NFL) season in September.

All major football tournaments will end by late August (just in time to start the next season) but the NBA will continue until October (then the new season begins in December) and the NFL until February 2021. There will be football and basketball until June 2021 then the Tokyo Olympics will start late July next year and last until early August.

The next twelve-plus months will feature an unparalleled run of sporting activities that will contribute in a meaningful way to the revival of life in the new normal. Sports can significantly assist individuals and societies in cushioning the harmful effects of the predicament by providing a sorce of distraction and contributing positively to people’s health, socialisation needs, and general sense of well-being.