Sports prize money/earnings are crazy.

[Pat "5mph"]

n a one day race recently I remember someone (quite a significant rider, Wout maybe) winning an intermediate climb and the commentator pointing out that they'd won a fitted bathroom.

A new fitted bathroom can easy get to £10,000 nowadays.
Even a lot more more if it's a big room!
The commentator should have specified

 

[Beebo]

Dean Richards was a firearms copper in the Leicestershire constabulary.
The British Police used to be able to put out a team of full internationals. The likes of Ackford were also coppers

As far a bias towards southern clubs in England selection - utter nonsense.
The old North Division had it's fair share of internationals.

Wade Dooley too.
You wouldn’t want to run into him on a night out.

 

[Beebo]

Just watching the gymnastics at commonwealth games. Those people put in huge amounts of effort for yet get paid almost nothing and then have to find a job at the end of their careers.
Swimmers and athletes too. People at the top of their game. In the top 5 in the country.

One of the dads in my daughter’s class at school played for Millwall. He was on £250-£300k pa. And was probably in the top 750 players in the country.

 

[Webbo2]

Just watching the gymnastics at commonwealth games. Those people put in huge amounts of effort for yet get paid almost nothing and then have to find a job at the end of their careers.
Swimmers and athletes too. People at the top of their game. In the top 5 in the country.

One of the dads in my daughter’s class at school played for Millwall. He was on £250-£300k pa. And was probably in the top 750 players in the country.

So playing for a sh!tty team like Millwall he earned more than the majority of consultant medics in the UK not bad for a job where you don’t get struck off for a sh%!tty performance.

 

[Beebo]

So playing for a sh!tty team like Millwall he earned more than the majority of consultant medics in the UK not bad for a job where you don’t get struck off for a sh%!tty performance.

I agree in part.
Millwall are a good championship side.
And they get 18,000 people a week watching them play.
Their job security is pretty poor, and a career may only last 10 years.
But it doesn’t seem very fair that the players are valued more highly than medical staff.

 

[Vapin' Joe]

But it doesn’t seem very fair that the players are valued more highly than medical staff.

We could always pay nurses and doctors £200,000 a week. But would you be happy with the extra tax burden?

 

[AndyRM]

I'm never really convinced by the whole "Medic v Footballer" wage comparison to be honest. Not to diminish the skill that's involved in being a medical professional, but it can be taught, which isn't possible in sport. Obviously skills can be honed, but unless that innate ability is just "there" there's no chance of getting to the top.

No, it's not fair, and the wages at the highest level are truly obscene, but unless there's a complete restructure of society there's not much that can be done unfortunately.

 

[Webbo2]

We could always pay nurses and doctors £200,000 a week. But would you be happy with the extra tax burden?

I would be and the Parliament could introduce a tax in way of a wage cap that tax sport people earning over x thousands aweek would pay x % towards the NHS and social care.

 

[Vapin' Joe]

I would be and the Parliament could introduce a tax in way of a wage cap that tax sport people earning over x thousands aweek would pay x % towards the NHS and social care.

I don't think you quite realise how much it would cost to pay NHS staff £200,000 a week.

 

[Webbo2]

I don't think you quite realise how much it would cost to pay NHS staff £200,000 a week.

Given the NHS is the biggest employer in Europe I‘m suspecting it might be expensive.🤣🤣🤣🤣

 

[BrumJim]

I'm never really convinced by the whole "Medic v Footballer" wage comparison to be honest. Not to diminish the skill that's involved in being a medical professional, but it can be taught, which isn't possible in sport. Obviously skills can be honed, but unless that innate ability is just "there" there's no chance of getting to the top.

No, it's not fair, and the wages at the highest level are truly obscene, but unless there's a complete restructure of society there's not much that can be done unfortunately.

Arguably footballers are one of the few people that can claim to have a fair wage. It is a competitive market where a top footballer can move to any club they like, but the club will only employ them at that wage if it is worth their while. Otherwise they don't.

(wild statement alert) On the other hand, most football clubs seem to be owned and run by people with over-inflated egos and a source of money that is not related to their value. Those that don't run at a loss and go bankrupt, only to appear the next weekend with the same kit and players (and a few less points in the league), are "sponsored" by a company that is trying to sportwash their nasty credentials. And it is this dirty money that pays for the players.

Hence the problem isn't with footballers earning too much, it is with rich oligarchs, "business men" and rogue states earning too much, and spending it on their hobby.

Is this all sounding a bit communist?