The World Series of Stupid Names
July 11th, 2007 by Tim Lovett

Rule of Thumb: If your championship begins with “The World Series of”, the sport is second-rate.

These are unique and exciting times in the world of sports. Over the past decade, many obscure sports and games that barely qualify as sports have been increasing in popularity largely due to increased television and internet exposure. When the top leagues and organizations that represent these sports are given the opportunity to raise their game to the next level, do they come through by creating a respectable championship with an original name? Ha, ha, of course not.

The most frequent culprit, as I have hinted at, is when a championship match or tournament is named “The World Series of [insert sport/game]”. Most people might expect the word ‘poker’ to come at the end of that last sentence, but currently, it can also include Darts, Video Games, Hearts, Spades, Pinochle, Beer Pong, Pop Culture, and even Bird Watching, among others. You can imagine the seconds of thought that must have gone into the name.

Some may argue that this strategy helps to increase brand recognition. In my opinion, copying the name of Major League Baseball’s championship, in addition to being lame and uncreative, communicates the message that the particular sport is second-rate and does not necessarily deserve to be taken seriously. And trust me, when your sport mostly involves sitting in a chair or drinking beer, you already have your work cut out for you.

The problem is getting even worse as other obscure sports are creating championships that attempt to leech off the established name power of other events. Their lack of creativity would make a network executive green with envy:

The Stanley Cup of Skimboarding

The Wimbleton of Quarters

The Miss America of Yahtzee

Yes, there will still be a swimsuit comeptition.

The Westminster of Hopskotch

The Wrestlemania of Pissing Contests

The Starrcade of Apple Bobbing

As goofy as they may seem, there is no way to argue that they are any less retarded than calling a championship “The World Series of Whatever”.

Also, Major League Baseball, now tired of all the different World Series in existence, have decided to change their championship to something more original:

The Masters of Baseball

My point should be clear, enough with this “The World Series Of” bullshit. It’s stupid, unoriginal, and downright annoying. In case anyone is planning to launch their own championship in the future, I’ll leave you with my short, handy guide on how to name it without resorting to lame clichés. Don’t let me down.

How to Name a Championship

1.) Creative Approach: Think of an original name.

2.) Uncreative, but simple and effective approach: Name of sport + Championship.

It's just that easy.

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-7.11.2007

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