“Are You Ready For This?” booms from the loudspeakers as the basketball players enter onto the court. Fans scream and cheer. The stadium is full of life.

There are musical traditions in sports: cheering for certain teams, beginning a game with the national anthem, and singing “We Are The Champions” after winning a tournament.

In almost every sports game, there is some type of music. In baseball, music is always playing over the loudspeakers as the players run bases and strike out. In basketball, music is often used in the teams’ entrances and during warm-ups. Football does not use music much, except between plays so as to not distract the athletes, but it keeps a high standard during the Super Bowl half-time show.

Players in all sports have a playlist or certain songs they listen to before their games.

Senior Matthew Hayes on the men’s rugby team listens to “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins, and considers it an “amazing pump-up song.”

But what if there wasn’t music in sports? What if you only heard the crack of the baseball bat against the ball and roaring of the crowd, but no trumpet blaring, “CHARGE!”

Without music in sports, you would hear commentators drone on about statistics of players or over-analyze a play. Without music, sports would lose the fun and exciting moments brought by music and become dull.

Music creates anticipation; for example, the wait for the seventh- inning stretch when the loudspeakers boom out “Take Me Out To The Ball Game.”

And what about all the songs that were made popular because they’re now sports anthems? Like “We Will Rock You,” “Eye Of The Tiger,” “Rock and Roll Part 2,” “We Are the Champions,” “Get Ready for This,” “Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye),” “Whoop! There It Is,” and “Jump Around.”

Any of these songs might not have become music icons if it weren’t for the fact that they were used during warm-ups, team entrances, or half-time.

The song, “Get Ready For This,” may have never become so iconic if it hadn’t been used in basketball games.

“Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye)” may have never become popular had it not been for the football movie “Remember the Titans.”

Without music in sports, we would lose a whole tradition of shouting, yelling, and singing in the stands. We would lose the excitement of a simple drumroll before a free-throw. We would lose a vital part of the whole experience.