"It's a terrible thing to have to tell your fans, who have waited like Detroit's have, that their team won't win it this year. But it's better than lying to them"
About this Quote
The Detroit reference is doing heavy cultural work. It's not just a team; it's a city long cast in American imagination as battered, proud, and perpetually asked to wait. Anderson frames losing as more than a scoreboard outcome. It's a civic emotion, a shared investment that compounds with every season. By acknowledging that wait, he validates the loyalty that sports marketers usually exploit while simultaneously refusing to exploit it himself.
The subtext is leadership through honesty, not optimism theater. Coaches are expected to sell hope to keep ticket sales, morale, and media narratives afloat. Anderson admits the pressure to perform faith, then chooses a different currency: credibility. "Better than lying" is a moral line in the sand, but it's also strategic. When a coach tells hard truths, he buys trust for the rebuild, sets realistic expectations, and protects players from being cast as villains in an unwinnable script.
It's a small statement with a big critique: the easiest way to disrespect fans is to flatter them with fantasies. Anderson offers something rarer in sports culture - accountability without melodrama.
Quote Details
| Topic | Defeat |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite | Cite this Quote |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Anderson, Sparky. (n.d.). It's a terrible thing to have to tell your fans, who have waited like Detroit's have, that their team won't win it this year. But it's better than lying to them. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-a-terrible-thing-to-have-to-tell-your-fans-113191/
Chicago Style
Anderson, Sparky. "It's a terrible thing to have to tell your fans, who have waited like Detroit's have, that their team won't win it this year. But it's better than lying to them." FixQuotes. Accessed February 1, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-a-terrible-thing-to-have-to-tell-your-fans-113191/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"It's a terrible thing to have to tell your fans, who have waited like Detroit's have, that their team won't win it this year. But it's better than lying to them." FixQuotes, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-a-terrible-thing-to-have-to-tell-your-fans-113191/. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
