LOOKING FOR A WIN-WIN SITUATION This past weekend marks the largest contract signing in Major League Baseball history. On the 12th of February 2000, Ken Griffey Jr. (formerly of the Seattle Mariners), signed a nine-year $116.5 million contract with his hometown Cincinnati Reds. The city’s fans were ecstatic to bring Griffey back, and considering he turned down an eight-year $148 million deal to re-sign with Seattle, they feel that the acquisition was a real bargain. It really is amazing when a man can make $12.94 million a year, simply for playing the game of baseball and millions upon millions of people are calling it a bargain. Salaries in sports are incredibly sensitive and controversial issues. There are many die-hard fans that believe high-profile athletes are worth each and every cent their contract gives them, however most people believe otherwise; I am one of them. What exactly is it that athletes do that makes them deserving of such high salaries? The real issue at hand here, is that the more money athletes are making, the more fans are going to have to pay to see them in person. Is there really a win-win situation here? As entertainers, athletes are paid for fan satisfaction. The more fans that want to see an athlete perform, the more the athlete is paid. In fact, most athletes, even those who make millions of dollars for each flubbed fly ball, dropped pass, and missed free throw, feel they probably deserve even higher salaries; the reason being that they’re still in demand. While certain athletes may never bring a championship ring to their team, or even bring home a winning season, those athletes will always pack the stands. Fans in the stands translate into ticket sales. Ticket sales can potentially lead to national television broadcasts. Inevitably, the formula of ticket sales plus national television broadcasts leads to massive revenue, and this is how owners and organizations can afford to pay players like Michael Jordan $25 Million for his retiring season alone. However, how does society (as a whole) benefit from these over-inflated salaries? In short, it doesn’t. It is a delicate and confusing situation. If the fans will pay for everything from the hats to the T-shirts, to the tickets to the hot dogs, the teams will generate more money. However, if that happens, come contract time athletes will demand for more money. If the athlete demands more money, the cost of tickets and memorabilia will go up.
When looking into the history of our culture, there are many subtopics that fall under the word, “history.” Topics such as arts and literature, food, and media fall into place. Among these topics reside sports. Since the beginning of time, sports have persisted as an activity intertwined with the daily life of people. Whether it is a pick-up game of football in the backyard, or catching an evening game at the local stadium, sports have become the national pastime. According to Marcus Jansen of the Sign Post, more specifically, baseball is America’s national pastime, competing with other sports (Jansen 1). Providing the entertainment that Americans pay top dollar for, live the role models, superstars, and celebrities that put on a jersey as their job. As said in an article by Lucas Reilly, Americans spend close to $25.4 billion dollars on professional sports (Reilly 4). The people that many children want to be when they grow up are not the firefighters or astronauts told about in bed time stories. These dream jobs or fantasies have become swinging a bat or tossing a football in front of millions of screaming fans. When asked why so many dream of having such job, the majority will respond with a salary related answer. In today’s day and age, the average athlete is paid more than our own president. The cold hard facts show that in professional sports, the circulation of money is endless. Certain teams in professional baseball and football are worth over millions of dollars. Consequently, the teams who are worth more are able to spend more. The issue that arises with this philosophy is virtually how much more? League managers, team owners and other sports officials have sought out a solution to the surfacing problem. Is it fair to let...
“Fans pay to watch athletes compete at the highest level. To be sure, it is the fans that primarily pay the athletes’ salaries” (Walter). Yes, a large portion of an athlete’s pay comes from the people that come to watch them. Athletes get a portion of all revenue their team or staff receives. This means that everybody gets a cut of that prize money, everybody gets a cut of ...
There are twenty-five players who make more than ten million dollars per year, a price that, ten years ago, only two players made half of that (azcentral.com). The Seattle Mariners had the highest median salary in 2002 at over 3.3 million dollars per player. Ten years ago, the same Seattle Mariners had a median salary of $317,500; an increase of over three million dollars or an increase of over 900% (usatoday.com). This trend can be seen in all Major League franchises. The salaries in Major League Baseball are growing at an astronomical rate that should not only decrease, but halt, due to the fact that these salaries are pushing away the fans that support these businesses and the lack of parity within baseball itself.
As a fan of basketball, the NBA has always been the center of every discussion I partake in whenever basketball is involved. Since its inception in the late 70s and the popularity of the American National Basketball Association, basketball has been cemented as one of the most iconic games played today. Whether a fan or enthusiast watches the game live or on replay, the high-voltage intensity and addicting thrill of every turnover and every score made just makes the person go wild. Of course, in every game, some people often wonder how much money the players have each season. I am one of those people who often think about how wealthy these players are and the more
Many people can easily picture this scene in their minds: the roaring crowds, the smell of easy- to-eat foods, and the thousands of people all dressed in the same colors. That’s a description of game day at a major college. College sports bring in a lot of money, yet their players don’t receive any money. Many people view this as something that needs to be changed while others believe that only professionals should be compensated. In the essays “Let Stars Get Paid” and “College Athletes Should Not Be Paid”, both authors give their opinions on whether or not college athletes should be paid. College athletes should not be paid because they already receive many benefits from being athletes.
Athletes are being paid hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars to entertain us. They work less hours than the average person and make considerably more. Athletes all around the world are paid handsomely because they are talented and have extensive knowledge of their sport. But, is that knowledge and talent really worth what they are earning every season? Compared to some of the most common and needed professions are athletes really earning their paychecks? It’s time to take a deep look into what requirements besides natural ability athletes really need? How many hours are they expected to put in a week and what their job really is.
For years college athletes have been working their whole life to play in College. Day in and day out, working their hardest, pouring their heart and soul into their sport. Over decades athletes have been able to showcase their talent to get to College. When a college school recruits you, your job is to bring in money for the University. A real athlete plays the game for their desire and passion for the sport. Recently, athletes have been questioning whether or not they should be paid for their hard work and dedication to the sport. In this essay, I will explain the effects of paying athletes.
The controversy of athletes being overpaid dates back to 1922, when well-known baseball player George “Babe” Ruth received $50,000 within the first year of his career. Ruth’s extensive wealth was bolstered by dozens of endorsements (Saperecom). As it is shown in figure 1, in the Fortunate 50 Tiger Woods takes the number one spot for highest paid athlete. Tiger’s salary for 2011 is $2,294,116 and like Babe Ruth, his endorsements exceed his salary earning $60,000,000 making his total $62,294,116 (Freedman). It’s crazy to think that 89 years ago professional athletes scarcely made more than the average person today. This is of course not counting the inflation that has occurred since the years which Babe Ruth played baseball.
Recently the NCAA has been under a lot of pressure over the issue of paying college athletes in return for the extreme amount of revenue and wealth brought to the university by being successful on national television. The dispute has brought up issues on both sides of the controversy as to what should happen with the millions of dollars student athletes generate through the highly publicized and money making games and tournaments in college sports. The major money making sports in college athletics are undoubtedly football and men’s basketball. These two sports combined have year round ESPN and national television coverage which creates multi-billion dollar revenues that the schools rake in. So the question remains, why should high profile student athletes not be paid for their accomplishments on the field or court? There is a strict line between an amateur and a pro which
This brings up a question: Do athletes have too much power over the economy? While sports bring in jobs, money, and entertainment to millions of people, some think that athletes are overpaid. One could examine the cultural effects of glorifying athletes and sports. One would have to question if it’s healthy for the economy to have a person with a high athletic aptitude dominating the economy, or the ethical consequences of an athlete using his or her power to control what people do. Athletes’ power over the economy is generally healthy, and they bring jobs and revenue into the United States.
People should be able to spend how much they want on a player or a team. If you have the skill, you should get enough to pay the bills. The key difference between sports and other industries is that competition is the product that leagues sell.
Many players have risen to stardom by becoming a professional athlete. Athletes have come from many different backgrounds; some from wealthy and some from poverty raised backgrounds. Salaries are continuing to rise, and money doesn’t seem to be an issue. Athletes are getting what they want from the owners by negotiating through their agents. Athletes’ salaries aren’t from their owners, but they come from other sources (“Athletes’ Salary”). Athletes get paid an extremely high salary for the work they do, and should consider the value of their work. They do not deserve the extreme amount they get paid and something should by done about it.
Sport has always entertained and influenced our lives. It creates dreams for children and goals for adults. However, many fans are oblivious to the millions they pocket each year. It is without doubt that our sports stars are grossly overpaid. Their annual earnings exceed those we make in a lifetime, even when compared to highly qualified professions. Despite the money factor, we sometimes question the values that are emphasized.
Sports are one of the most profitable industries in the world. Everyone wants to get their hands on a piece of the action. Those individuals and industries that spend hundreds of millions of dollars on these sports teams are hoping to make a profit, but it may be an indirect profit. It could be a profit for the sports club, or it could be a promotion for another organization (i.e. Rupert Murdoch, FOX). The economics involved with sports have drastically changed over the last ten years.
In today’s society many will argue whether or not professional athletes are overpaid. In the present time athletes are being paid phenomenally large amounts of money for their entertainment. It is my claim that all professional athletes are overpaid because they do not offer society an essential function that improves or enhances our world in comparison to other professionals such as medical doctors, lawyers, and teachers. Society does not value entertainment enough to warrant such high salaries such as those of many professional athletes. There is no reason that these athletes should demand these tremendous amounts of money. This is why you have to put into question their reasoning for demanding such high salaries.