The avarice of those 2… has there ever been anything like it?
- Thread starter Fortitude
- Start date
Didn’t Pele take a lot of money in America and then basically became a meme for selling every product going, even viagra?
Maradona wouldn’t have said no to too many gigs either.
Beckenbauer, Best, Cruyff etc took the money to play in America. Platini got done for serious corruption and taking illegal money and was arrested.
Maradona wouldn’t have said no to too many gigs either.
Beckenbauer, Best, Cruyff etc took the money to play in America. Platini got done for serious corruption and taking illegal money and was arrested.
Pele was supposedly broke when he accepted the NY Cosmos offer. The offer was a legitimate attempt to increase exposure to the sport in the U.S. and was initially very successful, with attendances and number of viewers rising dramatically.
I don't think anyone has any realistic expectation that paying Ronaldo 200m per season is going to be "profitable" in any meaningful way.
This is bizarre. What does someone earning 30k in the UK have to do with someone earning much less in another part of the world? Being 'rich af' relative to someone else somewhere means nothing. What is important is if 30k is enough to pay for a mortgage and bills, to feed your loved ones, to protect you in retirement etc in line with inflation and cost of living. That's why our average Joe has to work for companies that they might not want to, or need to take promotions as and when they appear.
If you seriously think Messi and Ronaldo have expenses that they need to think about paying for I don't know what to tell ya. What they are doing is textbook hoarding of wealth, which is their prerogative but that's what it is. It's completely different to the average Joe applying for jobs/promotions for an extra 5-10k a year.
Yeah, I think some people here are not grasping the wealth disparities.
Some of the most expensive houses / estates in the world, owned by some of the wealthiest people in the world, cost less than what Ronaldo is making in Saudi Arabia for one season.
These are absolutely enormous salaries. You can't really use anywhere near this much money on "needs", which is why all these people end up investing it (and often losing it).
agreed, it’s so stupid.
Messi's alleged wage during his last year at Barcelona cover nearly any of the most expensive houses/penthouses in the world. He would have to use a small part of his previous earnings to cover the cost.
That doesn’t leave many words
It's very easy to say when neither of us will ever be in that position, isn't it?
Although, anywhere north of 2.5 times my salary and yeah I'd be gone like a flash. If it was awful I've give it a year and then go on a long holiday.
The self righteousness is high with this one.
Footballers maximizing their income and not being bothered with geopolitics and one-sided appraisal of human rights issues is not surprising at all.
Footballers maximizing their income and not being bothered with geopolitics and one-sided appraisal of human rights issues is not surprising at all.
What is the ideal course of action for the 2 players mentioned in the OP? What exactly is it that they are supposed to do?
Well, the world is their oyster, isn’t it? Messi could go anywhere in semi-retirement and receive the most money and grow his brand. He’s the best player to have roamed the earth for a lot of people - a living legend for whom money will never stop piling in for.
Pelè was never allowed to maximise his earnings, which I’m going to hazard a guess most using him as an example don’t know. For his standing, he was grossly (and I mean grossly) underpaid throughout his career and only got a sniff of decent money once he was in the relative semi-retirement stage. Him doing what he did post-career could well be seen as out of necessity too, as he wasn’t paid a relative amount of life-changing money so had to top up his coffers wherever he could.
Cruyff had a dignified end and cashed his chips in with little controversy…. Maradona is in the Garrincha and Best categories of addled, dependent and somewhat lost as a person. He said himself retirement and a loss of the adulation from playing compounded that. Platini and Beckenbauer were mentioned, but on the playing side, they retired gracefully with their lot. Di Stefano and the Colombian league might be the closest equivalence to what these two are doing, but I’m not so sure. You can run through the very, very best, and their stories are far removed from what we’re witnessing here.
If you’re decidedly in the category of the best to play your sport, and your sport is football (in this day and age) do you need to pursue the biggest, worst bag? Two billionaires guaranteed exponential growth for years yet… it’s not the romantic story of either of them returning to hometown clubs in Portugal or Argentina/Barcelona we’re seeing but them both taking the darkest of turns in pursuit of the most money anyone on the planet is offering them. I think Ronaldo’s came about because of humiliation via nobody wanting him, so him at least getting paid for his F you, but Messi? If he does happen to go ( @Zehner suggests it might not be the case and he’ll go to Barca instead) it’s quite a turn up for the… heh… books as he’s no excuse for it like Ronaldo does. Isn’t it pure, unadulterated avarice?
Hahah
Haha, I've so wanted to make the same point about some other posts and threads on this forum
In the position to have much higher wages if we moved to another country? Plenty of people are in that position.
I get that but there’s no evidence that people like Pele or Cruyff would be any different. The answer is that the vast majority of people are greedy.
Agree with op. Their greed is incredible and the way people accept it is maddening. I don’t mind footballers being rich all that much. But becoming testimonials for human rights abusing countries in order to become even richer, or committing tax evasion, despite that added wealth having virtually no effect on their quality of life is absolutely disgraceful. They have no moral code or honour.
Are the vast majority of people greedy? I would say that most people aren't greedy, while greediness is common enough to be acknowledged it's not the norm.
Morals don't pay the bills. Or keep you out of jail, or get you the best medical treatment, or the best luxury or a safety net for your family when someone tackles you from behind or your knee explodes.
It's not avarice though, they do spend their money.
It's not avarice though, they do spend their money.
Another pocket watcher
Football is a job. If they want to earn as much as they want who cares?
Unbelievable.
Football is a job. If they want to earn as much as they want who cares?
Unbelievable.
Instead of vague “some of you” qualifiers - you should find examples of said posters
Lionel "Oliver Twist" Messi asks please sir, may I have some more.
Messi is basically that orphan boy from the Simpsons. If you think about it.
I would say so. People have to be taught to share. It’s easy to not be greedy when you don’t have the possibility of earning those eye watering sums.
Greed has little to do with earning eye watering sums, the vast majority of people aren't greedy at their level, they don't seek continuously and actively more wealth, power, food or whatever. Most people reach what they deem enough fairly early, only a few don't reach that point and always want more.
They are cnuts and when the time comes they shall not be spared.
I think really the issue for these two is that they're the first superstars in the information era. I'm sure if social media was around along with the kind of opportunities Messi and Ronaldo have then other players in previous eras would have received similar criticism
I don't know about that. Weren't Beckham and Zidane heavily criticized for the big cheques they received to support Qatar 2022? One of the main argument was that it was pure greed because both of them were wealthy.
Well I guess they were similarly criticised but neither of those players played further social media era. Ronadlo and Messi I think were the first and so far only genuine superstars of this kind of era
Most humans are greedy, if some look greedier than other it's because those who look greedier are the best ones at what they do, therefore more opportunities to make more money.
If most human don't look greedy in the surface it's because they are average at what they do, and they don't get the chances for extra-profits.
An average office worker that will never get a higher position ,because his work is average, can't be greedy because to begin with he doesn't even excel at his job to ask for a raise or get a better payment in other company.
How can you even be greedy when you are average at what you do?
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Yeah but how often do people turn down sums like that? I’d say most people want more but the sums being offered don’t justify the hassle.
The bolded makes my point. You don't think that the average office worker can't be greedy, the vast majority of people are average and below average.
We need to just get rid of laws and put Andrew Tate in charge.
Again greed isn't demonstrated by the highest sum, it's a character trait, you will see it with the most mondaine things. As an example if the average footballer was greedy, a larger proportion of average players would do what Ronaldo did and join an exoctic on a higher wage than they currently have while having the luxury of not working as hard as they currently do.
Reailty shows us, that it's a minority that do these things not the majority. The majority believe that they have enough and put other parameters higher.
Yes, but that's on them, their performance don't justify an extra-money, cause they do what most people do, therefore they have nothing especial in them.
The point is, if you have nothing especial in you, you can't ask for more money at your job.
Greed isn't about asking for money though. It has little to do with the quality of your performance or deserving anything. It's about always wanting more of something and never think that it's enough.
And the point is that the vast majority do not operate like that, it's a minority that does it and they exist in all social economic levels and all ages.
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Well thr thing is, in capitalism, the power normally rests with the employer, there's nothing wrong with exploiting the role reversal because you can guarantee the employers (real and Barca) would do the same were the situation reversed
The audacious capriciousness of this incongruently articulated thread is an egregious violation of my cognitive consciousness.
Or something.
Or something.
I’m aware of what greed is. Football is littered with people that move for money. We’ll have to agree to disagree.
So true. Some people have enough money to last them for ten lifetimes yet they remain greedy for more. With others, it's power.