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This picture was published on Nov 5, 2019. This information relates to my topic because this is an athletes shoe that their selling and it shows sports is not the only thing that is making money they're smart with the money they get. The publisher is Net Income on NetsDaily. The information provided is supporting my claim because it shows that athletes are smart for making their own businesses, choosing good endorsements, and other self made jobs. The purpose of this information to show that athletes aren't just rich because their job, they do other things to benefit them because a athletes career is short and not as long you would think it is.

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This picture was published January 24th, 2022. This picture relates to my topic because the fans bring them the money it shows that they are entertained by the athletes, people have a good time watching games because of that. The publisher of this photo is Ryan Miller on democratandchronicle.com.
This information supports my claim because it shows that the fans love the athletes or they love the game and they'll go pay an amount of money to come see them play. Thats telling me that they're entertained from the athletes capabilities. The purpose of this information is to say that the fans bring in the money they get from the ticket sales, parking, food,the money they get from watching online and more.

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This article was posted April 8, 2019. The information in the article relates to my topic because the author is making sense she is making valid points without being bias. The publisher is Jane Elkins on thea-blast.org. The information provided in the article is supporting my claim because both of our reasons are basically covering the same points. Things such as athletes are at a high risk to get an injury that is could be season or career ending, and that the viewers bring in most of the income, I agree with her and I believe she made valid points. The purpose of this article is to back up what I was saying and that i'm not the only one thinking like this.

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Comparing a professional athlete's salary to the average American, it's easy to say that they make too much for only playing a sport. After all, a professional athlete makes on average $3.2 million a year while the average American makes only $56 thousand. That means that athletes earn more money than teachers, doctors, and members of the military.

But, it's important to remember that athletes work under enormous companies and on teams that generate billions of dollars in revenue each year. The NFL, MLB, and NBA all get millions of views each game and can have almost 20,000 people in their arenas who specifically go to watch the players. Without the players, these leagues wouldn't exist, so it makes perfect sense that there salaries reflect the popularity and huge amounts of business they bring in. In general, players salaries are just a very small portion of all the cash these businesses bring it.

Another thing to consider is that professional athletes are at a high risk to get injured. Their job is to push their body to the limit and they have a lot of pressure to perform well. Whether it is getting the touchdown in football or diving for the ball in baseball, athletes often times put their bodies on the line for the game. In fact, around 15% of all professional athletes end up getting a season or even a career ending injury.

There is a perception of athletes as greedy people whose only concern is for the fastest cars, designer clothing, and outlandish spending but this is not true for all athletes. In reality, a lot of athletes give back to the community. With their large salaries, a lot of athletes make very large donations to different charities. Famous basketball player LeBron James even raised $2.5 million for the Boys and & Girls Clubs of America and David Beckham supports countless programs, most prominently UNICEF, for which he works as an ambassador and helps with the Unite Against AIDS Campaign.

Along with that, even making it to a professional level takes years of hard work and determination. Only around two percent of college athletes end go going to play in professional leagues, according to the NCAA. Even after making it to pros, not all athletes make millions of dollars. Athletes in less popular sports make so much less than even the lowest-paid athletes more popular leagues.

For example, players in the National Women's Soccer League only make an average of $28,000 a year while lowest paid players in the NBA make $500,000.
It's also important to consider who would get the money if the athletes made less. If the large amount of revenue isn't paid to the athletes, it's likely the billionaire owners of these leagues would pocket the difference.

All this just comes to show that professional athletes make huge amounts of money because millions of people all over the world are happy to watch and pay money to see them perform and make breathtaking plays. If you really believe that they make too much money, perhaps you should stop watching professional sports altogether.

1. Floyd Mayweather ($285 million)

2. Lionel Messi ($111 million)

3. Cristiano Ronaldo ($108 million)

4. Conor McGregor ($99 million)

5. Neymar ($90 million)

6. LeBron James ($85.5 million)

7. Roger Federer ($77 million)

8. Steph Curry ($76.9 million)

9. Matt Ryan ($67.3 million)

10. Matthew Stafford ($59.5 million)

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Professional athletes deserve to make millions

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Comparing a professional athlete's salary to the average American, it's easy to say that they make too much for only playing a sport. After all, a professional athlete makes on average $3.2 million a year while the average American makes only $56 thousand. That means that athletes earn more money than teachers, doctors, and members...

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This article was posted on March 4, 2012. This information supports my topic because its giving direct statistics and good reasons. The publisher is The Doctor Chris Muller. The information in the article supports my claim because in the article the author states in the American football system most players had a normal day job. Many more better reasons like how health insurance would deny or give them coverage that didn't even help the costs for surgeries injury related. The purpose of this is to show that they need the money for the things that I referred.

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Jimmy Connors plays two tennis matches and winds up with $850,000, and Muhammad Ali fights one bout and winds up with five million bucks. Me, I play one-hundred and ninety games, and I'm overpaid! - Johnny Bench

In my lifetime, I have seen strikes and lockouts from just about every major sport, and they all argue over the same basic thing: money. The NBA, NFL and MLB are the most notable when it comes to disputes over salary.

With players and coaches asking for more perks and pay, it makes you wonder if they are already making more money than they are worth. It also begs the question of how you measure a player's value in dollars and cents.

In this article, I will explore both sides of the argument. Whether or not athletes are overpaid is not for me to decide; this is simply to see what all of you think.

Once you have come up with your opinion on the matter, please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Heads
Each sport is different in how they pay their athletes, and the difference in salaries from one player to another can be in the tens of millions of dollars.

In a time when many Americans are struggling to make mortgage payments, student loan payments and find good employment, it sometimes becomes frustrating to hear about someone who makes millions playing a game demand more money and then get it.

If you look at it subjectively, it is hard to deny something that I think a lot of people will think: Most athletes are overpaid.

Let me run down some statistics for you to back up the argument before going any further. I will use Chicago-based teams as an example, since I am from Illinois. These numbers do not include endorsement deals or any bonuses.

The highest paid Bears player made over 13 million dollars in 2011

The highest paid Cubs player will make 19 million dollars in 2012

The highest paid Bulls player will make 13.5 million dollars in 2012

The highest paid Blackhawks player will make 6.3 million dollars in 2012

The lowest paid Bears player made $330,000 in 2011

The lowest paid Cubs player will make $417,000 in 2012

The lowest paid Bulls player will make about $850,000 in 2012

The lowest paid Blackhawks player will make $512,000 in 2012

The average Bears player made about 2 million dollars in 2011

The average Cubs player will make over 6 million dollars in 2012

The average Bulls player will make just under 5 million dollars in 2012

The average Blackhawks player will make just over 2.7 million dollars in 2012

These numbers certainly make me realize a few things. Different sports pay very differently, athletes are separated in salary by very large margins and many athletes are overpaid.

Now, allow me to give you some examples of how much some people in non-sports industries make each year. These numbers may vary depending on the specific area of expertise.

No matter how you look at it, the guy getting paid 19 million dollars to swing a bat at a ball is making more per game than the average American household makes in an entire decade.

Do you think it's fair? Think about how much you took home last month. Now, think about how much your bills cost you. Now, think about how much money you had left over to buy a ticket to a game or something else that you didn't really need, but wanted.

It doesn't really seem right that the thing my three-year-old nephew does for fun makes someone millions of dollars every year. Then again, life is not always fair.

Athletes were not always paid more than CEOs. In the early stages of the American Football system, most players had to have a normal day job on top of playing, because there was no money to be made in pro football.

The same thing goes for almost all early African-American athletes who were paid significantly less than their white counterparts, even if they performed far better.

My father has worked his ass off for the 40 years since he began working, suffering injuries to his shoulder and back on the job, and yet he will retire having made less in his lifetime than Payton Manning made just last year. Does that make sense?
Tails
Here is the other side of the argument: Aren't we, the fans, the ones who dictate how much money these guys make in the first place?

I have gladly shelled out up to $75 for a ticket to a game, and I have bought officially licensed team hoodies and travel mugs for more than I am willing to admit.

We are the ones who are willing to keep giving more of our hard-earned money to attend games in person, buy over-priced beer and food and wear the jerseys of our favorite athletes.

If we stopped going to games and buying officially-licensed merchandise, then these numbers would obviously have to go down to balance out the budget.

When we make the decision that it is worth it to pay a day's wages to attend a three-hour game and cheer till we loose our voices, then we are telling these athletes that they are worth every penny they make, and maybe in the minds of some people, they are worth it.

Many people get inspired by athletes and end up doing great things on their own, and inspiration is not something which can be priced and stocked at Wal-Mart next to the soda.

If you find any kind of inspiration from someone else, then there is no way to put a value on how that person has positively affected your life, especially if that inspiration drives you to do something fantastic.

There are also other reasons these guys and gals get paid the big bucks, and one thing in particular that affects many athletes, both during and after their pro career, is injuries.

Health insurance companies will either deny these men and women outright, or give them coverage which will not actually help the cost of knee or hip-replacement surgery, for example.

According to costhelper.com, the average knee-replacement surgery for someone without insurance is between $35,000 and $40,000.

This is not including physical therapy, follow-up exams and surgeries to replace any parts needed on the synthetic joint. This is just one scenario where a huge expense might pop up for an athlete.

With most athletes putting their bodies through the ringer each and every time they play, it is likely that at some point they will incur some kind of high-cost medical bill.

Another high-cost medical issue can be brain damage, which can affect anyone who suffers trauma to the head. According to braininjury.com, the average force needed to give someone brain damage is around 50 Gs, or, in easier to understand terms, being hit with a 13-pound bowling ball traveling at 20mph.

Football players can be subjected to hits up to 200 Gs when hit, but wearing a helmet can prevent the damage from happening, or at the very least lessen the impact it has on one's life.

Another reason for high pay is the short career of an athlete. 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.

Being put through the kind of physical stress a pro athlete goes through will almost certainly affect you later in life, especially those in full-contact sports.

Knee, back and head injuries can be the hardest to deal with later in one's life, due to the fact that they are parts of the body we use every day for many different activities.

Speaking from experience, I can tell you that dealing with knee problems can affect how you live your entire life.

After being born with a congenital leg problem (my femurs are technically backwards in my legs), the doctors told my parents I would never be able to walk without several expensive surgeries being performed to reverse the bones.

My parents could not afford the surgeries, but I ended up being just fine. I could run and do everything all my normal-legged friends could do. In fact, I was more flexible than most.

When I began studying martial arts at the age of six, it helped me to stop walking with pigeon toes. I went through studying for 13 years, but after about ten years of not only studying, but teaching martial arts, I began to notice some discomfort in my knees.

I went to a specialist who took some X-rays and performed tests, and the issue was that I had worn away all the cartilage in my knees, to the point where my knee caps were moving more than they should have.

Now, ten years later, I am still a healthy adult, but every day I wake up and feel some pain in my knees, which can make it hard to get going in the morning. Winter weather makes it even worse.

This is something I have to assume pro athletes deal with on a much larger scale, since they deal with much more physical contact than I was dealing with.

These kinds of physical problems can cost a retired athlete a lot of money to make their daily lives livable. This, combined with the fact that most insurance companies won't cover a pro athlete, makes it so their medical bills end up much higher than the average person.

So, now that you have seen both sides of the coin, please feel free to share your thoughts on the subject below.

A special thanks to my partner in crime, Mike LeMonier, who gave me some great information to contribute to the article.
Information on teams and player's Salaries gathered from the following sources. Chicago Bears salary from Sportscity.com
Chicago Cubs salary from Chicago Blackhawks salary from Sportscity.com

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Two Sides to Every Coin: Are Professional Athletes Overpaid?

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Jimmy Connors plays two tennis matches and winds up with $850,000, and Muhammad Ali fights one bout and winds up with five million bucks. Me, I play one-hundred and ninety games, and I'm overpaid! - Johnny Bench In my lifetime, I have seen strikes and lockouts from just about every major sport, and they all argue over the same basic thing: money.

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This article was published February 22, 2017. I chose this information because it relates to my topic and its a personal view from the author. The publisher is Ethan LaFranco on Dobienews. The information provided is supporting my claim because even if it was his personal view he will still saying facts. Ethan wasn't lying and he was giving statistics on big topics like that 20% or less college players get drafted into the pros. The purpose of the information I said was to show that personal or not a fact is a fact.

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Personal view: pro-athletes deserve the money

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Pro athletes get so much money and they deserve every bit of it. They have worked so hard by competing in high school to get to college and then to the pro leagues. What I don’t think people understand is there are thousands of people who play in college but only about twenty or less...

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This article was published to the internet on March 22, 2010. This information is against my topic but it provides me good reasons why they shouldn't get paid so much money. So I cant be bias. The publisher is Mhir Bhagat. The information in the text is against my claim because the author states reasons like the president doesn't make nearly around the same money as these athletes. Which to some people can be outrageous and I get why. More reasons too supporting my side like how hard they work. The purpose of this was to not be bias and even though me and the author aren't agreeing with the same topic we still have some claims that they deserve the money

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Wouldn't it be great to make nearly $111 million a year simply to play a game? Tiger Woods, along with many other professional athletes, certainly think so. But do these athletes really deserve all that money?

In my mind, absolutely not. Professional athletes are making too much money in a society where salaries and wages are traditionally based on the value of one's work. In today's society, one should be paid according to the job's economic importance and their value to society.

Teaching is one of the most economically important occupations because our future economy relies on the education of its youth, yet teachers are paid astronomically less than the average professional athlete is. In fact, each basket Kobe Bryant scores earns him equivalent to the average classroom teacher's yearly salary.

However, some may argue that while teacher's only provide service to a single classroom, superstar athletes are entertaining fans all around the world, enticing people with a feeling of relaxation and excitement.

Obviously, what these individuals must not be aware of is the most important man in our nation, the president, who makes critical decisions that affect the entire world every day, only makes $400,000 a year. While President Obama is hard at work reviving the economy, the unproven rookie in the MLB is earning way over that figure.

Furthermore, police officers, firefighters, and doctors save lives while risking their own for a fraction of what sports stars make. People in the military leave their families at home to defend and protect the country knowing they may never return. It's truly a pity that none of these true heroes are given the same recognition by society as athletes such as Brett Favre or Michael Jordan are given.

While I do understand that making it into the pros is not an easy thing to do, and that it takes a tremendous number of hours of hard work and dedication every day to earn a job in professional sports, these people do nothing more than entertain the general public.

Moreover, in my mind, if these athletes want to continue to be rewarded with the fame and fortune that is unfairly bestowed upon them, they must prove to the world that they are going to be positive role models for future athletes, and those who admire them.

These infamous players must grow up, and prove to America that they can be positive role models for kids on and off the field. They may get leeway when it comes to their salaries, but the law should be overpowered by any amount of talent.

If Alex Rodriguez earns the same amount of money as it would take to feed the nation's poor for a year, he can't cheat and take steroids. What kids learn from successful ballplayers like him is that "It's okay for me to use illegal substances, because in the long run, it will pay off by earning me an enormous contract."

In order for these players to gain respect, they need to have a more significant impact on the community.

Finally, what really puzzles me, is how athletes get upset when athletes say that millions of dollars won't be able to support him and his family, and that they need more. What puzzles me even more, is how after holding out for weeks, and sometimes months, the owners give in and pay them what they don't deserve.

Think about Jamarcus Russel, the former No. 1 overall pick in the '07 draft. He is on a six-year $68 million contract, with $31 million guaranteed. In simpler terms, that means that despite currently being recognized as one of the biggest busts of all time, and even if he were to get injured tomorrow and never play again, he will still have $31 million in the bank. In any other job, if you don't perform to your expectations, you're fired. There is no guaranteed money.

The whole system that allows professional athletes to just swim around in money is simply ridiculous, and it needs to stop. When asking people whether they think athletes are paid way too much money, most agree with me.

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Do Professional Athletes Get Paid Too Much Money?

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Wouldn't it be great to make nearly $111 million a year simply to play a game? Tiger Woods, along with many other professional athletes, certainly think so. But do these athletes really deserve all that money? In my mind, absolutely not...

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This video was published April 28th,2012. This video relates to my topic because in the video the player named Derrick Rose tore his acl. That shows the risks and hardship athletes go through. This video was published on Espn. The information provided supports my claim because it shows an athletes character to risk their health for a sport. Everyday a athlete goes on the court they risk ruining their body over the strain it goes through. Some injuries can be career ending, one bad injury you might not even be able to walk. The purpose of this information is to be able to realize that athletes put a lot on the line and they're brave for that.

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Derrick Rose ACL Knee Injury - 4/28/2012 2012 NBA Playoffs Game 1

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This picture was uploaded on instagram July 12, 2016. It relates to my topic because its showing the hard work they put in. He even goes so far to say in his caption that "Its my drug". Lebron is saying working out is his drug stating it for it to be addicting. The publisher of this picture is Lebron James. The information is supporting my claim because its showing how hard working athletes can be. They workout every day constantly to become better at what they love, showing determination to it. The purpose of me posting that is that not everyone is willing to work their body out so much everyday. It shows the strong will of athletes and that is another reason why i think athletes deserve the money.

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This video was filmed on February 10, 2002. This film relates to my topic because it shows how this one person is being booed by the crowd and managing to still keep smiling meaning that is a positive person right there. The source can be found on the internet, the entire game video is on youtube. This information supports my claim because it shows that athletes could still be positive even if they are being shamed, some people would've cried, some people would've cursed the crowd out, but Kobe still managed to stay level headed and calm which is a skill not many people can use. The purpose of this is to show why people like this deserve this money, imagine scoring 31 points and having 5 rebounds, and 5 steals and the crowd boos you it's tough. Words can really hurt a person and hundreds of people were trying to bring this man down, the media is harsh and it broke some people. That's why I think athletes deserve that money.

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Kobe Bryant Booed at 2002 All-Star Game MVP Presentation

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This picture was took in 1988 slam dunk contest as the final dunk attempt. The person that captured this photo is unknown. This photo relates to my topic because its showing  viewers a reason why athletes make so much money, they are simply built completely different then your average human.  This picture supports my claim because it visualizes talent, you don't see people reaching 10ft in the air from a point that far. It is something that is not natural and defines why you cannot put a price on talent.  This moment was engraved in sports history and is a very memorable moment.