In an opening segment of the classic TV show, “Seinfeld,” comedian Jerry Seinfeld suggests rooting for a particular sports team is hard to justify.

“Because the players are always changing and the teams move to another city, you’re actually rooting for the clothes when you get right down to it,” he quipped. “You are standing and cheering and yelling for your clothes to beat the clothes from another city.”

Said for comedic effect, Seinfeld’s observation might not be that far off.

Have you ever wondered why you cheer for a particular sports team? Not a team that someone you know is on the roster, but for the big teams that you don’t know any of the players on a personal level. Like college and professional teams. What is it that compels people to form an attachment to an athletic organization?

Psychologist Scott E. Smith, Ph.D., observed that often, socialization by family and friends cause people to root for a particular team. Sometimes, these ties have run deep in families for generations. Often, they’re based on the region or locality of the team people have cheered for since childhood.

Trivial things, Smith adds, can also cause people to form an attachment to a particular team, like identifying with the name of the team or liking its uniform style or colors.

So strong do these bonds become that fans refer to the team as “we” instead of “they” or “it,” as if they’re an actual member of the team. This falls in line with the true meaning of the word “fanatic.”

Another theory is that people root for a team because it provides an outlet for pent-up emotions, like aggression. The game provides a pressure valve for expressing strong emotions without the potential consequences of expressing them directly to others.

The nature of sports is that players come and go, that, like in life, the biggest constant for a sports team is change. Be that as it may, fans stay loyal to the team and its players, so long as the players are on the team.

What’s Jerry Seinfeld say about that?

“Fans can be so in love with a player, but if he goes to another team, they boo him! This is the same human being in a different shirt and they hate him now!”

Funny, but true. And that’s because sports organizations are like family to fans. Perceived disrespect to a family member is disrespect to the entire family.

Smith further states that the bonds fans form with the teams they root for are like familial ties instead of the entertainment products that they are. For instance, when a product doesn’t live up to a consumer’s expectations, the consumer simply stops buying the product. With sports, however, fans are more lenient and forgiving when their team (product) underperforms (loses).

So is it bad to form bonds of loyalty and fanaticism for a sports team? Not necessarily.

A University of Kansas study found that sports fans are happier and experience fewer bouts of depression and incidents of alienation than those who have no interest in sports. The pluses of being a sports fan don’t stop there. Studies have also shown increases of optimism, healthy senses of belonging, and positive social stimulation among sports fans. Even people who don’t know each other bond more quickly and exchange positive emotions when rooting for the same team.

From the outside looking in, it seems to people who don’t understand or enjoy sports that cheering for a team—any team—is senseless and silly. Admittedly, there are instances in which sports fanaticism can go too far. You don’t have to think for long to recall an instance in which it has.

But if you’ve ever felt the elation of rooting for your team in a packed stadium or arena or the long-lasting emotional, mental, and physical benefits that come with being a sports fan, then you’ll keep right on cheering. As well you should. Just keep things in perspective.