Contributions of sport to society“True glory is being brought to your knees and then coming back. This is true glory. That's the essence.” -Vince Lombardi From 1870 to 1940, sports became one of the most important popular culture activities in America. The evolution of American sports occurred in response to the changing needs of society. Each transformation has been consolidated and disseminated through the positive contribution of sports, using them to rationalize the use of resources, necessary for participation or attendance. During the spread of urbanization and industrialization, the Victorian ideal emphasized physical fitness and self-improvement to combat the harsh effects of daily life. During the 1930s, sports became a way to convey the all-American characteristics of hard work, teamwork, honesty, fair play and overcoming obstacles. Many powerful and respected Americans saw sports as a way to build character. Teddy Roosevelt, for example, who founded the National Collegiate Athletic Association in 1912, was a fervent supporter of sports, as can be read in his essay Character and Success: “Just as one kind of man scoffs at college because he doesn't think that can bear to get no immediate fruit in money, so another type of man scoffs at college sports because he does not see its immediate and positive effect in practical life... If treated as it should be... as a good wholesome game, it is of great benefit not only to the body, but in its effects on character. Studying implies character of the student, and working hard in a sport that involves intense physical effort and constant training also implies character. middle of paper ......and Historiography of American Sport.” OAH Journal of History 7, no. 1 (1992): 10-14. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25162849.Schwartz, Larry. “Brown Bomber was a hero to everyone.” ESPN Sports Best Athletes of the Century: Joe Louis. Accessed February 2, 2014. http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016109.html.Sklaroff, Lauren R. “Constructing GI Joe Louis: Cultural Solutions to the “Negro Problem” during World War II. " The Journal of American History 80, no. 3 (December 2002): 958-983. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3092347Stets, Jan E. and Peter J. Burke. “Identity theory and social identity theory.” Social Psychology Quarterly 63, no. 3 (September 2000): 224-237. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2695870.White, J. Andrew. “Voice Broadcast of the Thrilling Progress of the 'Battle of the Century,'” The Wireless Age, (August 1921): 11-21. Accessed October 27, 2013, http://books.google.com/.