Why Are Professional Athletes Overpaid?

Are Professional Athletes Overpaid? Are professional athletes overpaid? This question is asked around schools, work places, and homes everywhere. Many people in the United States would agree that yes, professional athletes are overpaid. Everyday many individuals hear about another mega multi-million dollar contract for a professional athlete. For example, in 2014 Miami Marlins right-fielder Giancarlo Stanton signed a 13 year, 325 million dollar contract (“Giancarlo Stanton”). Although one of the biggest contracts in major sports league history, the size of this contract does not take away from the fact the average professional athlete across the United States in the three major sports (baseball, basketball, and football) makes 3.4 million dollars per year (Woodworth pp. 3-4). Not to mention the lucrative contracts of European soccer players. Why do professional athletes make so much money? Why do these people playing games make more than doctors, teachers, public servicemen, and military personnel? The answer is they should not. Professional athletes should not be paid so extravagantly because most do not have a college degree; they do not contribute to society in the same magnitude as doctors, firemen, teachers, military personnel, or police officers; and the …show more content…
Oh, how that has changed. Professional athletes now get paid millions to play their respective games. Every little kid dreams of becoming a professional athlete. The argument of whether professional athletes are overpaid or not is not a new argument nor will it die anytime soon. In closing, professional athletes should not be paid so extravagantly because many do not possess a college degree; they do not contribute to society in the same manner as doctors, lawyers, firemen, police officers, and military personnel; and the money they make could be put to better