Is sport losing its seasonal rhythm in the race for year-round action?

Look, I admit it, but only because my primitive mind believes it to be true, that things – society, relationships, sport, whatever – worked better in years gone by; decades ago. Back then, when I was growing up, things just made sense!

These days it just feels as if everything is a mess!

Take sport, for example. Back then, girls played “girls” sports and boys played the fun games: rugby, cricket, soccer. Hockey, however, was a bit of a grey area. Girls played it, but the guys, the jocks at school, also seemed to have fun with the hooked-stick hullabaloo.

Of course, I am just teasing on this point. But there’s something else that does have me a bit concerned. Something more serious than pretending to be sexist, and that thing is how sporting codes are now straddling seasons.

South Africa’s Junior Springboks are in a hot, humid Europe at the moment.

Now, transitioning from South Africa’s chilly conditions to the stifling heat in Italy, where the World Rugby Under-20 Championship kicks off on Saturday, meant the Junior Springbok medical and conditioning staff were forced to think outside the box.

The team arrived just outside Verona to face 30-plus degree temperatures and high humidity. Fortunately, the medical team, under Dr Clement Plaatjies, had long anticipated this. Preparation began five months ago, including recovery protocols, hydration strategies, and heat-acclimatisation techniques tested during South Africa's summer.

From mobility drills on the plane to pre-tournament WhatsApp messages detailing hydration and health tips, nothing was left to chance. Cold towels, water sprays, and hydration breaks are now standard tools as the Junior Boks settle into their Italian base.

But here’s where things get interesting – and a little troubling.

Why are our junior players flying from a South African winter into a European sauna to play what has traditionally been a winter sport?

The answer, unsurprisingly, is money. And television. And the professional era.

Once upon a time, sports followed seasonal rhythms. Cricket was for summer. Rugby belonged to winter. There was a built-in logic to it all – not just because of tradition, but because of climate, player welfare, and grassroots participation.

But from the mid-1990s onward, professionalism, globalisation, and commercial appetite reshaped the sporting calendar. Today, rugby is played in blazing heat, and cricketers find themselves preparing for tours in another hemisphere wearing thermals and windbreakers.

Yes, year-round sports mean more content, more sponsorship opportunities, and more televised matches. For fans, there’s always something on. For governing bodies, that means money. For athletes, it might mean more game time and exposure.

But the price? Potential burnout. A confused calendar. And a generation of athletes forced to adapt not only to acclimatised, settled opponents but to environments their bodies were never quite trained for.

That’s the position the Junior Springboks are in now. Their preparation is impressive, and full credit goes to the medical and support staff. But it also reflects a broader tension in modern sport: professionalism boosts performance but bends tradition. And maybe even breaks something along the way.

Should players have to train year-round, change hemispheres, and flip between climates just to satisfy commercial calendars? Or should sport rediscover its seasonal soul?

I know where my vote is …

But I do understand that it’s a matter of preference, and it’s a difficult question. There’s no easy answer. 

But next time you're watching a rugby match played under a baking summer sun, or a cricket game held in a biting autumn breeze, consider this: Is more always better? Or does sport lose something when it never rests?

As an old saying goes, "Even the earth needs a season to lie fallow."