What do sports teams mean to the identity of a city?

Sports teams are usually said to be the spirit of the city.  Personally, I feel as though Americans are generally corrupt and lack priority and I do not see why people are so excited and over such things.  These enormous stadiums are terrible for the environment and require huge amounts of electricity.  Fans spend money on merchandise and tickets when I bet you they are having financial problems, not to mention, that we are currently going through ah recession.  Students are given the idea that not going to school for the day in order to celebrate is okay.  So, why are sports so important?  

Sports teams have a huge impact on major cities and play a key role in their identities. There are some cities that represent their sports teams to the fullest and some just don't care. With the Phillies winning the World Series, some people are die hard fans that were up til the early hours of the morning just to celebrate the big win. On the other hand, I for one am not a die hard baseball fan so the win was minor in my eyes. I don't like Philly sports teams so once there is a win under our belt, it's nothing major to me.