Why do athletes get paid so much money?

Answer 1

Lots of good answers here.

The other reason has to do with supply and demand. There are only a few people in the world who can do what the average professional athlete does...when you combine that with the tremendous amounts of money being earned from attendance (ticket sales) and from advertising dollars, it adds up to a lot of money in the athletes' pockets...as well as the owners!

Answer 2

Lots of reasons.... Ready for some learning?

1. Team owners are willing to pay it, if you could get paid more for the same job at another company, wouldn't you take it? If not, think about millions and millions of dollars. It's a bidding war for the top names.

2. Revenue- bringing in a top star does more for a team than just win games. It sells tickets, which in turn sells consessions, like hotdogs etc. Also merchandise! In addition, if a team is more popular, there's more advertising sales to be made. Who should get that money? The owners are already making plenty, the players that bring in the most money, make the most money.

3. Longevity- Atheletes have a much younger age of retirement, due to the physical aspect of their job. They must make enough money to support them selves from year 38 on. Not an issue for the huge ticket items, but that's why the league minimum is where it is. So that even the lesser paid players, aren't broke after they retire. Not how it used to be. That's why hall of famer Joe Morgan is a baseball announcer for MLB, because he didn't make millions and millions in his era.

4. Smaller item- A player has a lot of expenses that come out of his salary, including his agent, manager, and legal representation, all take a cut right out of his salary. His salary not only has to support him and his family, but also his manager and his managers family, and provides a portion of income for his attourney and agent.

Answer 3

Because apparently, controlled ball handling and athletic ability is more important to society than teaching, law enforcement, medicine and anything that actually takes some level of education to accomplish.

I'm not actually all that bitter about it. It's just one of those things that bothers me when the topic comes up. One could easily ask the same question about those in Hollywood...What make entertainment so much more valuable than people who actually change and/or save lives on a daily basis?

Lack of values in society I think. It will be a great day when the average Joe makes 20 million a year and athletes and actors have to have fund raisers to support their "cause".

Answer 4

Because that is what the market will pay. When major league sport teams started getting into the big media money, the players demanded a piece of the action (once they figured out that the owners were raking in big bucks), and agents have helped fuel the whole thing and it has gotten way out of hand. Then ad prices and tickets started to cost more so the owners could make more, and the agents and players jumnped all over that. Really, it is pathetic as all hell.

Answer 5

Athletes get paid the money the do because they devote their lives to the sport, also they put their health and bodies on the line. I played college football and was a professional wrestler, and belive me, when you are an athlete, it requires 150% devotion to what you are doing, and your body will definitely feel the abuse after a short time. These guys earn every penny they make.

Answer 6

Because of the immense profit that they make for the Athletic Industries. Think of how expensive Super Bowl tickets are.. plus the hike of prices for hotel room booking, plus the eight dollar hot dogs and ten dollar beers inside the stadium. Then the weeklong celebration afterward. Sportsbars selling overpriced drinks, t shirt stands selling someone's name one a sweatshirt for $50 or a jersey for $200+. They bring in so much money for their hometown. They deserve it. I give them 1000xs more credit than any actor out there. They DO work hard.

Answer 7

Because they make so much money for the teams they play for. How much they get paid is usually proportionate to the amount they make for their team (i.e. who wins the games) They also usually have a shelf-life of about 10-15 years, maybe less if they get injured, so they have that short amount of time to make the money most of us take 40-50 years to make.

Answer 8

Heck definite, yet who's in charge? the traditional activities fan. think of roughly it, the only reason they make plenty money is as a results of the fact activities have a brilliant following, advertisers money in in this, and properly, you be responsive to their salaries. they do no longer probably deserve it with the aid of fact they are are countless extra human beings obtainable doing issues that actual matter (sorry, i'm no longer a activities fan) and that they could no longer make as much as those athletes do. it is somewhat unhappy, actual.

Answer 9

Because the people who own the teams get 50X as much.....so why shouldn't the athletes get compensated too?

Same thing with models and actors. Somebody else is making even more than they do. Think about it.

Answer 10

It's not right that in this country athletes are paid more than teachers.