College sports is business, and a pretty booming one at that. Who is profiting from all the money being made from football, basketball, baseball, and many other sports teams at these colleges? It isn’t the players. College athletes, no matter how good they are, are not allowed to be paid in any way. This includes endorsements and incentives. The money being made off of these college students doesn’t stop at the games either, their names and faces are used in wildly popular video games and merchandise. Where does the line get drawn from sports to exploitation?
Pros of Paying College Athletes
They Put Their Health On The Line
Football isn’t a sport for the weak. It is a full impact sport that results in full impact injuries. These players, most of whom are gunning the major leagues, can be seriously hurt at any point during practice or games. If this where to happen, there shot at the major leagues will be gone, which is the main argument revolving around this debate.
Attract Talent
Schools that would be willing to pay for their athletes to play for them would attracted better, and more talented athletes to their school. This would benefit everyone involved.
They Are The Business
The college sports world brings in incredible amounts of money. This is made from tickets to the sporting events, merchandise, booster funding, video games, and much more. College sports teams have life long followers, not just ones that are in college. The athletes that are playing are the heart of this business, so they should receive a piece of the profit.
Stop Corruption
These college athletes are often drawn into corruption by boosters and agents that are willing to bribe them to play for their school. This causes quite a bit of problems within the college sports community that would be abolished if the athletes were paid.
Cons of Paying College Athletes
They Are Being Paid A Different Way
Many people argue that these athletes may not be paid with money, but instead they are paid with exposure. Many college athletes go on to play for major leagues like the NFL and make millions of dollars. This is due largely to the exposure and play time that they received in college. Along with exposure, these athletes are given a major amount of scholarships and grants for their education.
Problems Among Peers
If the athletes at a school are receiving pay checks, simply to go to school at play sports, the other students at the school may feel a great deal of envy and animosity. Along with having their schooling paid for, if they are also paid it will seem very unfair in the eyes of many students.
Unfair Pay
If the players are paid based on the amount of revenue that they bring in, some players may not receive nearly as much compensation as others. This is an unfair way to treat these college students. Female athletes will also be paid significantly less than their male counterparts.
Budget Problems
Many schools use the money earned from college sports to re invest in the school and help to balance their budgets. If they had to begin paying players, other programs would likely suffer as a result. Extra things on campus may be cut, and the overall quality of the campus will degrade.