Sunday 18 November 2012

Can footballers’ wages be justified?

by Daniel Hearn


With top footballers’ wages rising massively over the last decade or so, football is the subject of debate as to whether footballers are worth the extravagant salaries they are paid. Many argue that it is not fair that footballers get paid such huge salaries for 'chasing a ball around a pitch for 90 minutes' while nurses, who are of great social value, average a measly (in comparison) £18000-£35000 a year. Initially, it appears that there is cause for debate because footballers like Samuel Eto’o who appear to offer little, if any, social benefit, make more than £35000 in a week! A breakdown of Eto’o’s wages is shown in the image to the right:

His wages do indeed appear excessive, but surely there must be a reason for this. In actual fact, there are a number of reasons that soon shed light on why footballers’ wages so extortionate