What do games do to foster teamwork, and how do they bring us closer to others? The obvious example for me to use, and the one that brings the most to mind to answer this, is soccer. When playing on my high school team, we would bong through team bonding activities. We were also practicing five times a week plus a game once or twice a week additionally. It was hard not to bond, spending so much time together. Even further, those of us who played the same positions (like the defenders, midfeilders, and forwards) bonded even more.You had to know you could trust the person you were playing next to, in order to play well or outside your comfort zone. It was hard to try new risky moves or plays if you didnt have a strong relationship with your teammates, especially the person playing beside you.

But, it was high school and we were teenage girls with raging hormones, so sometimes our relationships would break down. It was obvious when bonds were being tested, and the team wouldnt operate as the well oiled machine it typically did so we always made sure that people left things off the field for the sake of the game.

In college I started playing intramural soccer in the summer. The team I played on last year was made up of some kids I went to high school with as well as a lot of friends we had all made. Some of us were old pro’s with a love for the game, some of us were new to it and just wanted a fun way to meet new people and keep active. The way the league works is that teams can set up practices if they want, but games are only once a week. Our team never ended up making extra practices on the side. the bonds we made relied on the relationships we already had with people and extending them to the friends they had brought with them. Beside this, some bonds were formed between strangers when players on other teams decided to take the co-ed intramural, just-for-fun game way too seriously and start pushing, shoving and name calling. My team never really got like this, we would tell each other to shake it off and laugh at the over enthusiastic players trying to start fights.

I look forward to playing again this summer and creating new bonds with new people on the feild, playing with a variety of different people really changes how you play the game and gives you new insight.