Dizzying highs and crushing lows: is being a sports fan good or bad for you?

By Melissa Fothergill, Senior Lecturer in Sport & Exercise Psychology, Newcastle University

Performance slumps. Relegations. Points deductions. Failed takeovers. Being a sports fan can seem an easy route to heartache when even the good times come with the spectre of future decline.

However, the passion fans have for sport stays strong – and they continue to make financial, social and emotional investments in the teams they support.

Fans of American football have been reported to spend 46 hours a month talking and thinking about their team, and…

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