Sports Music

Watching the UEFA Champions League soccer on ESPN over the last few days reminded me of the use of music in sports clips on television. This might be a topic for those of you still seeking inspiration for a research essay topic. Wouldn't one of Christiano Ronaldo's goals for Manchester United seem different if it was shown with ambient electronic music or dub reggae rather than the usual sounds we hear? What makes some pieces of music work and others not? Heavy metal and propulsive rock and electronic music with a prominent dance beat above (I'm guessing) 140 beats per minute tend to be favoured. Sometimes opera and grandiose classical music give the big event more of an oomph. Female vocals rarely appear, even on those montages of goals, tries and plays of the week which sometimes emphasise the music rather than the commentary. Martial music with horns is popular since sport is like war in some respects. 'Extreme' sports like snowboarding and making almost suicidal jumps and somersaults on motorcycles tend to favour a punk indie grunge feel. Are these musics 'extreme' too or is it the associations of the musical subculture with the sport's participants? There does seem to be quite a variety of tunes used for sports visuals, just as there are for ads. I guess with YouTube and people posting their own video montages of their favourite sports moments, the range of music used will continue to widen. I'm not sure how to embed YouTube vids with text around it on this blog (someone can write to me if they have time--much appreciated) but what kind of music would you have for this goal?