Footballers = overpaid muppets?

[Mark]

From the hard-headed business perspective, I don't disagree. As far as the club (and arguably the supporters) are concerned, the only overpaid player will be the one getting on the bus out of town because they're bloody useless.

Doesn't stop the rest of us non-supporters thinking they're overpaid though, and that I suspect is the crux of the matter and the reason why I think this will end with everyone agreeing to disagree.

[Desmo]

Originally Posted by Mark

this will end with everyone agreeing to disagree.

I'd rather it ended with somebody telling me how I can earn £1M a year from farting.

[Mark]

Hitman perhaps?

[Feek]

If you can do 1M, Desmo, I can be the person who does 2M worth

[William]

One thing I do think is, if I were a footballer I'd realise i'd never need that much money and I would give it all away, you can never use all that cash on anything worth having. Then again I have a very different outlook on life than most people.

[Will]

I might retract the muppet statement as I'm sure a lot of them can't help behaving the way they do since they probably lack the education or the opportunity to have been brought up in a decent lifestyle. Furthermore, they do their best (allegedly) at what they do - they are still in my eyes not worth the adoration they are given. Still as far as I'm concerned they don't contribute anything worthwhile to society certainly not for the amount they are paid, and Davey, yes I did mean within the UK, after all this is what we are addressing. I stand by my points that I made earlier, that should you give them an average London salary (around £45k I hear) heck even a couple hundred grand, I doubt many of them would stay in the game. Furthermore, I wish they were more educated if they are going to be idolised by children at least behave properly. Stop all this spitting, and aggression, be more gentlemanly, use good proper English, stop being so pathetic and feel sorry for yourself. A person of such monetary wealth (that is about the only wealth I can associate with footballers I'm afraid, they are nothing but very average "celebs" to me) and in the unfortunate position to influence so many weak minded individuals they have a duty to display more values than they currently do.

Why did they not strike or stop playing everytime a football fan is injured or killed owing to fights between fans? Why are they not doing something to make the game better and give a better name to the sport? It's not all about winning, getting, me me me me. That's where all these fools get these attitudes from and go round wanting blood just for the sake of crazed mass hysteria through purely peer groups or media and public brain washing.

I'd have so much more respect for them if they achieved even 50% of what I see as primordial soup levels of evolution. I'm sure on the whole they are decent people and can influence and use their wealth to improve things, however when you are paid such a disgusting and obscene amount of money for doing something which you are supposed to be passionate about they have a responsibility and a right to try and elevate their values and peer groups to a level which is seriously lacking.

Football is not evil, it's a good sport, heck the rest of the world play it, but the rest of the world who are better at it, paid less, are just as passionate about it, yet do not have 300 newspapers/magazines ramming it down the throats of the nation. What I object is the almost religious association with it and that ye be damned should you even utter a contemptuous word against the mighty game of football.

I could rant all day about this and I'm very very stubborn about it. I won't post in the other thread as I don't really want to drag this on.

I don't hate football at all, in fact as a child I used to love going for a kick about with friends - but I'm afraid since moving here it's put me right off.

[Garp]

A slightly different angle to put on this. This came up from reading a business focussed article about a year / year and a half ago when Beckham was with Real Madrid.

He went there on a 4 year €35m contract. That seems a shocking amount, insanely high for some guy that'll be kicking a ball around a pitch for at most 90 minutes, usually once a week. The article wasn't really interested in the football at all, but was looking at him as a brand and a business commodity. In that 4 years he brought in in Merchandise profit alone more than twice the value of that contract. As a business commodity purely from that perspective he was getting paid appropriately to his value, and Real Madrid did very nicely off him. Once you get past that you need to consider the value he's worth in TV rights, club finishing positions, sponsorship attraction and so on and so forth. Every time he went on the pitch and Real won it boosted his marketable value, and boosted the clubs marketable value. The more he contributed to the winning, the more it boosted his personal marketable value.

To be honest, if I was him and I'd gone to Real Madrid, I wouldn't have accepted a penny less than €35m, given what brand strength I would be bringing to the club. Not because I want to be rich (couldn't give a damn to be honest), but because I want to make sure I'm valued for what I am, and €35m would be about right.


I really don't see why people are bitching about football being a business? We live in a capitalistic world. Its almost impossible for it to be any other way, frankly. If you want to stop it being a business you need to completely shake up society and the way it works. Possibly even head down socialist / communist routes.

[Will]

First comment wasn't aimed at anyone, just a general view.

No what I meant was it doesn't matter if they're not educated, but owing to the success that they have brought themselves into they have a responsibility to make sure that the blindly idolising kids that follow their every steps are given the best chance in the world and don't throw it all away just for football, because not everyone is going to get the chance he did. They deserve their success if they've earned it, in my opinion i don't think they deserve quite the obscene amounts of money they do, certainly not in the diminished responsibility they perceive to have on the nation. In spire of some of the footballer's successes there is more to life and success than football, and i think a lot of young kids don't see that - yes it's a good alternative to going stabbing people (not that that's getting any better) but instead of inciting team building and gamesmanship it seems to bring about gang behaviour and "if you're not in my team then I'll ****in' 'ave ya" sort of yobbishness - I've witnessed it first hand, on many many many occaisons. It might just be london but I doubt it.

Just to contrast, in general other athletes (from athletics to swimming to golf), or even rugby most of the players have been educated to a-level and above - so you can have a professional sporting career and still have some modicum of academia to at least be relatively coherent or interesting. They're not going to play football all their lives, though with the money they earn they can probably retire at 30 anyway. I just wish they were more sensible and a behaved more in a role model style. Furthermore stupid pathetic girly (no offence) faking of injuries and prima donna attitudes and behaviour REALLY riles me beyond belief.

[Justsomebloke]

It's a shame that the Passion of the game leads to violence in some supporters but in my experience it is usually thugs beating on Thugs & rarely involves Joe public. Especially these days with heavily monitored stadiums. It is also unfortunate that Non football goers only ever see the advertised violence & don't experience being part of the Good side of football induced Passion.
For people like me who thought we would go on & play pro like Millions of other little league kiddy's it is an innocent, Productive past time/hobby & passion. There are not that many innocent healthy activities for some kids to get involved in & football is a Superb diversion to Mischief. I played as a kid & even played in a cup final. When we lost i sat down in the middle of the pitch & cried my eyes out I was 7.
My coach was a Responsible Good person (one of the very few i met) who had some influence on me & my mates. It was also an escape from my house for a Whole afternoon legally away from my Mother & whatever step dad i had at the time.
Then supporting your club now that is even more Passionate. I supported my chosen club because my best mate supported them & for No over reason. It gave us something to follow & to belong to which was Legal. It takes a Sick individual to go up to a stranger & whack them & that Sicko would do it no matter what he said he followed whether it be some Nazi group, football club or heavy Metal. In my experience the so called Top boys seek out other Firms & kick off with each other. It's Always been this way, there is no kudos in kicking the crap out of Joe public. Far from it, You would not be going to the next match with the firm if you got off on beating on nobody's.


So to the O.P.
I personally think they get paid Far to much money. I believe there is a lot of money generated commercially through football & there talent but that should be spread further down the line to lower league players & clubs. Stadiums should be improved throughout the country incorporating other sports. Stadiums should then be open & more public so the local people in whatever area could benefit from it. Football clubs should be a family orientated arena to bring the community together & enrich it through participation in sport, Not necessarily football. The wage money should be used for the stadium, events & the local area.

[Justsomebloke]

^^ Even though i lived & supported a London club i never really got the sense of a Derby
S'pose having mates that supported most other clubs local takes the edge of it for what we got up to.
Our best games were Always against Leeds