Essay On Professional Athletes Overpaid

Throughout the years, professional athletes salaries have skyrocketed. The majority of the revenue to the companies is due to the public's willingness to pay to attend events or watch them online. Also because of the revenue the companies are generating, they have more money to pay players to convince them to join their team. Some believe that the athletes deserve and have earned their pay. They believe that they need the large salary to cover medical bills or to save for retirement. However, most athletes do not save the majority of their funds. Professional athletes are grossly overpaid and do not deserve that large of a salary because they do not do enough to actually earn it; they do not spend it well, and there are others more deserving of the funds. However, there are those who believe that professional athletes deserve what they are paid for several reasons. As stated in an article by Bleacher Report, “ most athletes [are] putting their bodies through the ringer... every time they play... at some point they will incur some kind of high-cost medical bill”. The care needed to treat such complex injuries costs loads of dough that the average working person does not have. Many athletes do not have very long careers, many most retire by their mid-30’s. According to Doctor Chris Mueller, a featured columnist on Bleacher Report, “the average American will retire between the ages of 65-75, but a professional athlete will last a lot less in their career than someone who sits at a desk all day.” Playing such sports can have a principal toll on the athletes bodies and wear them out far too early, forcing them to retire. At that point they may not ever be able to get another job, depending on levels of injury, and they will need the money to support themselves as well as their families. Nevertheless, athletes do not do enough to actually earn their pay. According to Mark Simmons in his article Most Paid Salaries, “they are increasing ticket demand, thus increasing prices.” This factor in deciding their pay is the ticket prices, and people are willing to pay big bucks for those tickets. This drives prices way up. Also, coaches are willing to pay players more because, as stated by Douglas Looney, “we, as a society, put value on sports.” One effect of this that is seen quite often is that teams …show more content…
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