At least around here, I'd say that the commercial paid athletes are the usual mix as everywhere. Football is almost through and through commercial here.

Speaking about a degree, their career at that age conflicts with a university path and not everyone has the need to catch up later. Leading to probably fewer degrees than avarage in society.

It's likely to be different for other sports, but that's again due to need to get a job at that age and there are only few options in my country to earn money and still become a top athlete at the same time. And almost all those option are combined with getting a university degree.

An example: AFAIK, I can only remember one (1)! professional long distance runner, where I think she has no university degree. All others have.  E.g. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingo_Froböse ( ?? only, sorry )

1 minute ago, worik said:

At least around here, I'd say that the commercials paid athletes are the usual mix as everywhere.

Speaking about a degree, their career at that age conflicts with a university path and not everyone has the need to catch up later. Leading to probably fewer degrees than avarage in society.

 

It's likely to be different for other sports, but that's again due to need to get a job at that age and there are only few options in my country to earn money and still become a top athlete at the same time.

 

An example: AFAIK, I can only remember one (1)! professional long distance runner, where I think she has no university degree. All others have.  E.g. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingo_Froböse ( ?? only, sorry )

 

> Thanks for the answer, worik. I didn't mean dumb in the educational meaning, but rather in general sense, like there are people who aren't highly educated like my Prince (have only high school degree) but he is very wise and bright.

9 hours ago, Evaloves4 said:

aren't highly educated like my Prince (have only high school degree) but he is very wise and bright.

But you forget there are many different kinds of education.  One of these is referred to as the "School of Hard knocks"

In the case of Prince, I would say he has a master's degree from that school.

As @worik said, there is a mix, just as in life there is a mix. Professional athletics is more about money and entertainment than it is about the actual sport. In US, $20 million per year to throw a ball? Perhaps more or less, but either way, ridiculous.

And here, it is the job of a person at a college to "recruit" the best players, and grades don't matter. A kid can be dumber than a brick, and become a star. Stories of universities that give passing grades so a kid is allowed to play.

They may have no basic education, an inflated ego that does not fit thru a doorway and then a pro team hands him $20 million, he tears a tendon in his knee and never plays again, and has no clue how to do anything.

And then others, struggle to get a good education and to be good people.

Well, that explains the locker room talk then.

To me it always looks like that in the US an athlete is some idol. People worship them, pay whatever it takes.

Football seems very boring to me. Only baseball tops that. Though baseball is a strategic game.

There are some athletes that a very bright i think, but most of them look more like veggies. Can not excel in everything i suppose.

But that applies to the soccer, or as we call it in Europe Football, as well. There are many veggies running around but with high salary. It makes me wonder sometimes, why they do earn so much money.

1 hour ago, LadySmoks said:

In US, $20 million per year to throw a ball? Perhaps more or less, but either way, ridiculous.

Indeed.

But I want to point out the difference between just "professional" and "commercially professional".

Yearly earnings in the commercial segment are similar ridiculous around here.

On the otherside:  if you are just "professional" it drops drastically.

Take athletics again as an example. There are the ones who do that professionally. E.g. one of those was https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabrina_Mockenhaupt.

Aside from winning some money for being the top runner in contests, her earnings were that of an army sergeant. Because the armed forces were her employer for about 18 years before she retired. And that's pretty typical around here, because that's one of the very few employers to support you during the necessary harsh training to be at the top.

And she didn't study, to return to the education question

1 hour ago, worik said:

On the otherside:  if you are just "professional" it drops drastically.

My husband says there is n such thing as a professional athlete any longer. They are "entertainers", and paid as such. ((( Tom Brady is a tall, white Michael Jackson (I know, but he really was black at some point in his early life) of American football!!!

Baseball! A person does well 1 year and gets a 10 year contract for millions, because every kid wants their parents to buy his jersey, and pay to see him play. Kind of sad in a way.

15 minutes ago, LadySmoks said:

My husband says there is n such thing as a professional athlete any longer.

Luckyly  that's still different here.  Though it demands a lot more from you than just physical fitness, when all your friends have sparetime, money to build their lives and you can hardly pay for a small flat.

13 hours ago, Evaloves4 said:

educational meaning, but rather in general sense,

Well, I live in the country known as ''the country of soccer '' and on the intellectual level, speaking not only of education but of other areas, it is generally low but there is a reason for that. Because my country has continental dimensions and doesn't have a good government administration, poverty rates are very high. In poor communities, most children to escape drugs, crime and other social problems join some sports or side activities, one of these sports is soccer. As they come from places with low educational levels, low cultural levels and high levels of poverty, most athletes when they become stars do not know or have any knowledge other than soccer itself and this is both a problem and a blessing at the same time. A problem because it creates a cycle in which children instead of seeking education, be it school or cultural, they grow up in an illusion that soccer and fame is what makes someone succeed in life, but becoming a soccer player is something difficult, I have a distant cousin that his dream was and today he doesn't have a college education because he tried to follow an almost impossible dream. But it is a blessing because it frees many children and young people from entering a life of crime and drugs. I don't know if it was understandable, but English is not my native language, so that's it.

> Thank you all for participation. I needed to know this from the first hand to see if the theory about football, rugby and soccer player is true