Only English should be spoken by school athletes during games (Opinion)

Teams are all about unity. Everybody needs to be on the same page and understand what everyone else is doing at all times. It's also important that those officiating the games understand what is being said, as well as those attending the games, since they are supporting the team. That's why English needs to be the only language spoken by all team members during the game. Otherwise you'll have the anarchy that went on Monday at the Hopewell Valley Trenton High soccer game in Hopewell, where it got so bad that a coach had to call the cops when parents started yelling "Speak English" and "This is America" at his players.

There were also accusations that a Hopewell parent overheard a Trenton player curse out a referee in Spanish. That would never happen if everyone spoke English. Having players on a team communicate in a different language is divisive and excludes teammates, and why would you want to do that?

Taking this argument to the next level, should a player aspire to take their game to the next level to possibly turn professional, and maybe even hunt for endorsement deals, speaking English will give you the biggest possible fan base. On a smaller level, should you become part of a corporate team or try to sell customers, you'll also need to speak English. When you're an athlete, you want to put yourself in the best possible position to succeed, the best way to do that is to speak English... and that should start on the playing field.

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