True.The person who hasn't played can give an opinion on said sport.
The question is if his opinion is less valid than someone who has played.
I believe with respect to the latter, one can make a somewhat less risky gamble by betting the person who hasn't played has less validity than the person who has, HOWEVER, just on its face, not enough information is provided to reasonably claim the person who hasn't played is DEFINITELY less valid than someone who has.
Especially when considering how much goes into what is discussed about professional sports. Boxing, MMA, and other 1 on 1 sports probably make a stronger case regarding the premise but when we speak of team sports, we talk about everything from
- Management - Contracts, Roster Building, Drafting, Effect of Media presence on player performance & psyche, etc
- Individual Performance - Skillset of the average player vs. one who's mastered the sport
- Coaching - Plays, Substitutions, Roster Chemistry, Ability to Develop Rookie Talent
- Player Motivations - Importance of Winning a Title, When Someone should Retire, Importance of Low Stress Envirornment, etc.
I hope I'm making some sense.



