Sports and comic books have been regular companions for the best part of a century and it is easy to see why they make such an attractive pairing.
The action, drama and entertainment which sport can provide lends itself perfectly to a storybook narrative and it is also visually eye-catching from an illustration point of view.
The popularity of sport across the globe as well makes it a great subject for both comic book storytellers and those who draw stand-alone cartoons.
In the first half of the 20th century, comic books related stories of both real and fictional sporting stars and characters. Baseball star Babe Ruth was one of the early sporting stars to be featured in comics and tying in the biggest names from the biggest sports is something which has continued to transcend the generations.
Just look at the way arguably the biggest name in basketball LeBron James’ return to the Cleveland Cavaliers was covered last year. In a tie-in between Marvel Comics and ESPN The Magazine, the front cover of the magazine featured James drawn in a basketball pose but in a scene taken from Spiderman. It was a follow-on from the Spiderman-themed cover which marked James’ departure from the Cavaliers for the Miami Heat back in 2010.
Basketball is not the only sport to feature prominently in comic books down the years as American football is also popular. The Gridiron novel series is one of the most famous in the sports comic book genre and tells the story of Curly Lambeau. He was the first coach of the Green Bay Packers and the series leads readers through an entertaining and informative tale of Lambeau’s role in developing American football and establishing it as one of the major sports.
Sports such as American football and soccer certainly lend themselves to comic book series, while other sports, such as rugby, are often better used as part of a short comic strip or a single cartoon.
Companies and sites like CartoonStock and TheComicStrips.com offer a wide range of cartoons and comic books, and the cartoons can provide a humorous spin on the stereotypes attached to certain sports. Rugby is a fine example of this as it has many angles for jokes and wisecracks to be made in relation to the size and intimidating nature of the players.
An indication of how popular rugby is across the world when you combine it with comic books came in August 2014. Australia’s immensely popular National Rugby League competition, for which the Sydney Roosters are currently among the leading contenders with the bookmakers, linked up with Marvel to have five of the clubs wearing kits which had been inspired by characters from the Marvel series.
But it’s not just sporting organizations which can see the benefits of matching up its stars and comics. A few years ago, as part of its Millennium Development Goals, the United Nations created a soccer comic called ‘Score The Goals’. This featured 10 popular soccer figures, including Zinedine Zidane and Didier Drogba, on their way to play in a charity game only to become shipwrecked on an island.
It again demonstrated how sport and comic books can be entertaining, informative and educational. Given the enduring popularity of comic books, especially with the Marvel resurgence of recent years, the collaboration of illustrators, storytellers and sport has plenty of life left in it.
