Sports entertainment is a type of entertainment that takes the form of a sporting event, but with more emphasis on dramatic storylines, humor, spectacle or titillation than on a contest of athletic skills. Some sports entertainment events have a predetermined winner, while in others the winner is determined through an actual contest. A stilt-walker entertaining shoppers at a shopping centre in Swindon, England Entertainment is an event, performance, or activity designed to give pleasure or relaxation to an audience (although, for example, in the case of a computer game the audience may be only one person). ... A sport consists of a normal physical activity or skill carried out under a publicly agreed set of rules, and with a recreational purpose: for competition, for self-enjoyment, to attain excellence, for the development of skill, or some combination of these. ...

The term came into prominence in the 1980s through its use by the World Wrestling Federation and its chairman, Vince McMahon. Use of the term sports entertainment was promoted within the WWF to distance itself from athletic contests governed by the rules of national, state, and provincial athletic commissions. By doing this, the WWF and its wrestlers were able to avoid heavy commission fees and license costs, and to retain relative freedom from outside regulation. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. ... Vincent Kennedy McMahon (born August 25, 1945) is an American wrestling promoter, occasional professional wrestler, on-screen personality, former play-by-play announcer, and film producer. ...

Precursors have been found going back to February 1935, when Toronto Star sports editor Lou Marsh described professional wrestling as "sportive entertainment." The Toronto Star is Canadas highest-circulation newspaper, though its print edition is distributed almost entirely within Ontario. ... Lewis Edwin Lou Marsh (February 17, 1879 – March 4, 1936) was a Canadian athlete and referee, and one of the pioneers of sports journalism in Canada, working at the Toronto Star for 43 years. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

It has been suggested that other events, such as monster truck rallies, roller derby (especially the most recent reincarnation, RollerJam), and the American Gladiators/Gladiators (UK) television shows could be considered sports entertainment as well. The Harlem Globetrotters, which have long had more of an entertainment value than an actual sporting event, have even used the term in commercials for their events. 2005 Bigfoot monster truck racing in Arizona A monster truck is an automobile, typically a pickup truck, which has been modified or purposely built with extremely large wheels and suspension. ... RollerJam was a roller blade derby which was televised on TNN. It is now cancelled. ... American Gladiators is a competition TV show that ran originally in weekly syndication from September 16, 1989 to May 11, 1996. ... Gladiators was a popular long running game show produced by LWT for ITV in the United Kingdom from 10 October 1992 to 1 January 2000, (though there was another series filmed in South Africa against the South African Gladiators in 2000 but this was not for UK broadcast) an adaptation... The Harlem Globetrotters are an exhibition basketball team that combines athleticism and comedy to create one of the best-known sports entertainment franchises in the world. ...