I think they get paid too much. That's the way this society functions. If you're good at what you do, whether it is beneficial to a good cause, or not, you get a lot of money. I think they get paid a bit toooo much though. And it makes me jealous, since I effectively earn $10 an hour in my job. So that's my opinion. Damn them <_<

They'll take it all because we will give it all. The USA has a very unstable focus on entertainment methinks.
Outside the States sports players make a much less extreme salary.

When you consider how much money is made off of them, what they put their bodies through, and how fast a career can end. I actually think they wind up underpaid and taken advantage of.

Id like to know who hear is an athlete too, cause Id put more stalk in their opinion. I dont see a lot of athletic RPG Gamers. That isnt a diss either, its a fact. Ive looked at our photo thread.

Lastly, the United States is capitalism, not socialism. We are not the USSA

I played high school football, and scored 5 touchdowns in a game, one more than Al Bundy!

I must admit, on the other hand, this forum and gamers in general these days are less friendly to sports. I played football and basketball in high school, only street hockey with friends since there was no ice in California and the closest rinks were implausible to drive to due to that side of the family's (mom's) lack of interest in hockey. I was confused for a jock, nerd, metal head, goth.. high school kids don't seem to be able to get their stereotypes correct. In comparison, those in the military I would say go through quite a bit themselves, and those involved in entertainment (even NHL players who certainly are getting hurt) do not have it the worst, especially for the pay they get. Although, I won't fight much about acknowledging there's really no other way to deal with the compensation athletes get.


If you'd like, you can PM and I can relieve you of a few misconceptions to show this is incorrect.

This is a bit ignorant. Athletes get flack for steroid use, but they pretty much HAVE to do it to stay competitive with all the other athletes who are using steroids; "peak physical condition", which you and I will likely NEVER reach (and a coach isn't magically going to turn you into a prime physical specimen), is still not good enough for the field (no pun intended) these guys are in. So yeah, I have tremendous respect for professional athletes, even though I don't really care for sports all that much and I would have to say that they are probably extremely over-compensated.

Still, a lot better than crazy rich pop musicians who are often incredibly untalented or perhaps just average compared to tons of unknown people with lots of training and relentless dedication to their craft. When you want medical services, you find a doctor with years of schooling and credentials. When you watch sports, you are watching people (as mentioned before) who are beyond peak physical condition. When you listen to music, you get the lowest common denominator. Ugh.

Thats the kind of kid I was/am. Though Im not at all athletic, I love football and I did play it (bench warmer, but I did play), and I respect athletes a great deal. You sound cool to talk to, but politics are boring. Id rather talk gaming and metal.

You mean just like every other physically demanding job? Except for the money part, the more dangerous and far more important jobs are usually people working behind the scenes.

I have more respect for somebody who will do a dangerous job, but not do it only for fame and fortune.


Umm... are you saying it's ok to cheat just because other people do it?

When you look around and quite a significant number of people who are in such positions got there due to "cheating", however large or small, the enticement is going to be there. People are always trying to give themselves an advantage, even if it means by not playing by the rules. Human nature.

Ideally, nobody would be using steroids and it wouldn't be an issue. I'm not going to say it's okay, per se, but I definitely understand why it happens. To you (and heck, even to me), the whole sports spectacle might be trifling, but it is what these guys do for a living. It probably wouldn't be so much of an issue if there weren't so much promise in the way of riches and glory, but people want to see essentially superhuman physical feats and will pay for it. I don't think it's just an easy black and white issue where you can say "steroids are cheating, so these guys should know better". They clearly are doing more than just playing a game: I play video games for my own entertainment, not with a one-in-a-million level of talent and burning desire to be the best ever. And hell, I am quite dedicated to weightlifting, spending a lot of my time not only busting my ass in the gym, but changing my lifestyle to suit it: eating like a psychopath, stretching/activation work, and researching my ass off, and I'm not even GOOD at it, so i can only imagine the effort and talent behind a professional athlete.

someone needs some work with their reading comprehension :whistling:

Considering steroids are banned in professional sports, I don't see how it's not a black and white issue. You get caught using steroids, you lose your job.... then everyone would be on even footing, problem solved.

I think that the level of skill, training, and effort that's required to become a professional athlete justifies such a high salary.

Consider how popular certain sports like football, basketball, and soccer are. Being a star athlete means you'll get endorsemants from lots of companies so you can promote their products. Obviously, the more famous and skillful you are, the more money you'll get from these endorsemants. This means that they athletes are making money on one level from simply laying the games, and on another level by being a living advertisemant for various companies. Why should professional athletes not get paid for their advertising, just like website owners or TV channel owners?

I think they get paid enough for people in the entertainment business with the highest risk and the shortest span between stardom and best before date. Some might get too much, but guess what, I don't work in the business, don't care about sports and don't know who actually would.

Yeah, IF you get caught, that is. I understand that it's been a lot more controversial these days than in the past, so maybe the various oversight committees for various sports are a lot more on top of cracking down on it. Like I said, I'm not really a big sports fan, so I don't keep up with these sorts of details, I just have tremendous respect for what some of these guys and can understand why they might use performance enhancers even if I don't think it's a good idea and am also critical of how they are compensated and their insane superstar status. Though I think a lot of that is cultural, so again, I don't think you can just point the blame at those in the spotlight.

Given that Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmiero and so on (what can I say, the MLB is a case example if there ever was one) face no jail time nor even elimination of their records or severely heavy financial repercussions, clearly the Puritan like aspect of cleaning up sports and professional leagues is more symbolic than anything else. Wish people would either PUNISH them or just leave it alone entirely and stop the finger-waving charade. The latter statement applies to everything outside the MLB as well.