It happens almost every month of the year. A significant holiday rolls around. People gather at home or at a bar. Food is exchanged and eaten. As everyone entertains each other there goes on television. And on the air is sports in some fashion.

Sports and holidays have been complimenting each other for decades. Everyone knows about Thanksgiving Day Football where you see the pigskin get tossed around as the turkey gets carved. In more recent times the NBA has aired games on Christmas Day. Abroad, Boxing Day means soccer/football match day in the United Kingdom. Even smaller holidays however have some sort of a relationship with sporting events. Whether that was a national holiday that has been around for a while or has been declared a few years again.

Martin Luther King Day was formally established in 1986 as a holiday by former President Ronald Regan. Every year following 1987, the NBA has played at least one game. It may be a sign of respect. Each time either The Atlanta(MLK’s Place of Birth) Hawks or Memphis(Place of Death) Grizzlies after their relocation in 2001 have played.

Around and on New Year’s means a lot to hockey’s biggest league, the National Hockey League. For the former, the biggest Bowl games are played. The NHL, meanwhile, since 2008 has had a game outdoors.  They call it The NHL Winter Classic and excluding lockout-shortened 2013 and covid stricken 2021, on December 31 or January 1, one outdoor stadium hosted two teams.

Why, though? What is the logic of these sports organizations? Why schedule teams and their rosters on days when people rather be home? What comes into the decision of important people who prefer to have their product on the air during a time when many people have their phones off and catching up with friends and family? Is it ratings? Are there traditions? Has it worked for competitors? Are there regional The answer to most of those is yes.

Per Sporting News, ” The reason why the Hawks almost always host games on the holiday is simple: Dr. King was born on Jan. 15, 1929, in Atlanta. And while he would go on to make his impact felt worldwide, King is rooted in Atlanta, where he spent his formative years and enrolled at Morehouse College at the age of 15.” The NBA commented on their reasoning: ” […]using the game of basketball to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with various activities on and off the court to promote unity, togetherness, and equality.” With the recent push for social justice and racial equality this decade, it makes sense for the NBA to continue in its efforts.

As for the NHL, that is also based on tradition. Their reasoning goes way back to 1991. In Las Vegas, The Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers played the NHL’s first outdoor game outside of Caesar’s Palace. 12 years later, the Edmonton Oilers and Montreal Canadiens hosted the first-ever Heritage Classic, also to huge success. Enough to make outdoor hockey permanent.

The decision has been consistently correct. Ratings for both events are consistently high. The Winter Classic has consistently had 1 million to 5 million viewers according to SportsMediaWatch. Ratings have, however, dipped in viewership post covid. The NBA since 2014 has had over 2.5 million views each time. A winning formula that has been figured out. A successful answer to the nearly 100-year tradition of Thanksgiving football.