When I sat down for my first internship lunch in Washington, D.C., the last thing I expected to need was knowledge of sports. I had brushed up on the news, studied politics, and went shopping for business professional outfits. But no one at lunch was talking about President Biden or inflation. They were talking about the previous night’s baseball game.

There can be a mindset at Hillsdale that sports don’t matter in the real world. I’ve heard countless students say that they’re busy studying and don’t care about watching games. But besides the entertainment and fun of sports, there’s a purely practical reason to care about them: your future career. No amount of studying Aristotle will make up for the awkward silence when a coworker asks you which team you back in the AFC playoffs and you’re wondering what sport they’re talking about.

According to Gallup, more than half of Americans consider themselves to be sports fans, making sports a natural topic of conversation. Even common office jargon and cliches are sports-related: “dropped the ball,” “knocked it out of the park,” and “utility player.” Sports are brought up constantly in business, at the water cooler, during office lunches, and post-work bar nights.

Sports unify as much as they divide. Despite geographic differences and team rivalries, talking about and watching sports bonds people. Besides sports jerseys, what other type of clothing makes total strangers cheer or boo as you walk past?

Even better than knowing sports is playing them. A stunning 90% of Fortune 500 CEOs play golf and 80% of business professionals agree that playing golf helps establish contacts, according to research from Syracuse University. Of those surveyed, 93% said playing golf with a business associate helps establish closer relationships.

Of course, not everyone will like sports or want to play them. But it’s worth knowing even a minimal amount about them. Lack of sports knowledge in the workplace is such a common problem that sportscaster Jen Mueller even wrote a book about it, “Talk Sporty to Me.” In it, she demonstrates how to use sports lingo in professional settings to further your career.

“Mueller suggested sports haters spend five minutes a day (or even five minutes a week!) tuning in to the top sports headlines to have a baseline awareness of what’s culturally relevant,” MSNBC reported. “All it takes is being able to deliver one 15-second sports headline to show that you pay some attention.”

As my internship progressed, I realized what a huge disadvantage it was to not follow sports. I found that at the end of the day, people in politics and business rarely want to discuss politics and business. Sports provide a break, entertainment, and a constantly fresh topic. I started to follow big games and occasionally donned my Pittsburgh gear–and soon learned that a Pirates jersey elicits more sympathy than celebration.

While I may never be a mega-fan, three internships in Boston and D.C.  have shown me the importance of sports in the last place I expected: the office.