Sports Arena Songs That Have to Be Retired Right Now

Sports and music go together like peanut butter and jelly.

No matter if you're at a game in person or just sitting around on your couch watching on TV, the songs that are blasting through stadium speakers can be heard loud and clear.

Unfortunately, that doesn't always mean that they're good ones.

While humming the tune of an old, silly song is annoying, when one of these gets into your head, it's miserable, as they're the sports arena songs that should have been retired by now.

"Sweet Caroline" (Neil Diamond)

Look, when it comes to Neil Diamond's classic hit "Sweet Caroline," there isn't anyone on this planet who loves it more.

Seriously, every wedding I've been to in the past eight years has ended with me (somehow) grabbing the microphone from the DJ and singing this toward the end of the night.

Still, that's where the song should be left—at weddings—because thousands of sports fans in a stadium shouldn't be doing the, "bum, bum, bum" part following the chorus.

I know it's a tradition at Fenway Park, but outside of Boston, Diamond's song needs to be replaced by something a bit more energetic.

"Turn Down for What?" (DJ Snake, Lil Jon)

With apologies to everyone who might enjoy this song, there's nothing else that comes to mind when hearing it other than a bunch of drunk college girls.

Maybe that's a sign that I should lay off the booze for a while or a sign that it just doesn't belong at sporting events.

Whatever the reason, it's time for any baseball player using it as a walk-up song, NBA arenas blasting it to get fans amped or pregame shows choosing it as part of their highlight packages to just quit, because no one is getting "turnt" anymore.

"Cotton Eye Joe" (Rednex)

I'm not sure it's going out on a limb when I say that "Cotton Eye Joe" by Rednex would be voted as the worst sports song by a panel of fans.

Like a gnat at a baseball game that you just can't seem to swat, "Cotton Eye Joe" seems to always find its way into your eardrums, leaving you so mad that you actually get upset that you're at a sporting event for a minute.

I have no idea how or why this song became so prevalent at games, but it has more than worn out its welcome, so let's put it on a pickup truck and push it off a cliff.

"Cha Cha Slide" (DJ Casper)

From the power of strange vibes (no joke) as I was writing this out, this exact song played while watching the Chicago Bulls-San Antonio Spurs game on TV.

Whether that was a sign from the basketball gods that it should be excluded from this list or just verification that it is way too overplayed, this tune is blatantly annoying.

Played at nearly every single stadium and arena, the claps that are pumped through the speakers are more prominent than that of the fans sitting and trying to watch the game.

"Jump Around" (House of Pain)

Other than at Wisconsin Badgers home football games, where it has been a tradition for almost 20 years, "Jump Around" by House of Pain should no longer be played at sporting events.

With Badger fans claiming it as their own, the song should rightfully be theirs.

Plus, seeing as how the song was released in 1992, I almost guarantee that half of the fans in any given arena where it's played don't even remember it, so let's replace it with something a little bit more current.

"Rock and Roll Part II" (Gary Glitter)

One of the most popular songs at any sporting event, Gary Glitter's "Rock and Roll Part II" should be removed from every sporting event on the planet.

Unlike others on this list that are either overplayed or just annoying, Glitter was convicted of some seriously disgusting acts that already caused some NFL teams from refusing to play the song starting back in 2012.

For that reason, if there are still arenas that play the popular song, it's time to just cut it from the playlist and move on to something else that fans can dance around to.

"Who Let the Dogs Out?" (Baha Men)

Thankfully, one of the most annoyingly catchy songs ever recorded—Baha Men's "Who Let the Dogs Out?"—has slowly been removed from arenas and stadiums more in recent years.

That still doesn't mean that it's not played too much, though.

While I wouldn't mind it if it never made it through the speakers at a sporting event again, I can live with the irony of it being played during a "bring your dog to the game night" or something. Even then, though, it's so disgustingly cliche that every fan in the place would probably roll their eyes.

"All I Do Is Win" (DJ Khaled)

Note: Video contains NSFW language.

Replacing the outdated "Celebration" by Kool & The Gang for nearly every single win by a home team after a sporting event, when DJ Khaled's "All I Do Is Win" is playing, nearly every fan can leave the stadium happy.

Well, except for the fact that the song is actually playing.

Like most on this list, it's not a bad song, but it's just so cliche and uncreative that I almost want "Celebration" to make a comeback.

Also, I have a strange feeling that it was recorded for one purpose in mind—to be played after each sporting event so Khaled and others on the track can collect royalty checks, and that grinds my gears.

"Sandstorm" (Darude)

In all the history of sports songs, is there a song more frequently played than Darude's banger "Sandstorm"?

I'm not so sure.

A decent workout song like, what, a decade ago, arenas still use it as a go-to jam for fans to get hyped up and bounce around to between periods.

Outside of sporting events, there's no one listening to this song, so I plead that it takes its rightful place in the rafters of every arena as a retired song. It was fun while it lasted, folks.

"Timber" (Pitbull Ft. Ke$ha)

With all due respect to singers Pitbull and Ke$ha, it's as if sports reminds us all that the two are actually still relevant, as their song "Timber" is pumped through stadium speakers at nearly every single sporting event.

It's not that it's a bad song, but it's so overplayed—and, yes, catchy—that every fan can't help but have it stuck in their head for the days after hearing it while at a game.

For that reason—and that, well, it's Pitbull and Ke$ha—there's no reason to be playing it at arenas or stadiums any longer.

The tree has fallen and it's over, Mr. arena DJ.