When houses cost millions, mortgage payments are huge. They spend freely, and sometimes compulsively, attempting to make up for years of poverty or struggle. They also tend to overestimate the span of their professional lives. Johnson and Lynch should serve as models for future athletes on how to handle the business side of professional sports. All have hard-luck stories to tell, and most have their hands out looking for help.
Stories of financial failure are hardly rare in times of economic turmoil, but the stories that tend to make people scratch their heads are those that depict once-rich athletes with little left to show for their athletic expertise. Lynch and Johnson were also smart and prudent with their money. They naively believe that just because they excel on the turf or the court, they can just as easily succeed in outside business activities both during and after their playing careers. He also dabbled in politics, running twice for a seat on the U. Al is a Certified Debt Specialist with the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators and specializes in real estate, credit and bankruptcy advice. All talk about the many specific reasons why some professional athletes who win big manage to lose it all in the same ways.
Some of these big-hearted athletes also have put too much trust and money into the hands of agents who did not have their best interests at heart but, instead, their own. Lynch had a controversial relationship with the media, often refusing to give any type of comments relative to the game, or situation at hand. But now, with so much financial information out there, and so many very simple steps pro athletes can take to managing their finances, those days should be over. When the divorce is all over the tabloids, alimony is steep and child-support is right behind that. Those ways include the inability to handle being suddenly wealthy; the inability to say no to others; the inability to manage money and a career outside of a chosen sport; and a fundamental misunderstanding that at some point medical coverage and other perks from being a pro athlete come to an end.
A recent Forbes Magazine article once stated that 80 percent of pro athlete file bankruptcy. However, they had one very important similarity, besides being productive football players. Torre gathered stories from former and current baseball, football, basketball and hockey players, outlining the ways in which some highly paid athletes manage to lose, squander or otherwise waste the small fortunes that are their rewards for their superlative, but always temporary, athletic prowess. House of Representatives for Florida. It began an investigation of the financial troubles of several elite professional athletes from a variety of big-league sports. That cat was saving his money…. Meanwhile, Johnson handled himself like a statesman on and off the field.
But as the film points out, the average career for a player in the National Football League, for example, is only three-and-a-half years. More than one bankrupt super-star has found, to his dismay, that catching a forward pass or tossing a blistering fast ball does not preclude the possibility of making enough bad decisions to cause an off-the-field financial disaster. How and Why Athletes Go Broke. Big Stars Have Big Bills So much of the life of a sports star is supersized. He served as a drama critic, high school teacher, arts administrator, theatrical producer and director.
For a fortunate few group of athletes, this is the time of year they will become millionaires. Torre himself makes an appearance, as does an array of sports businessmen, agents, coaches, and. Linked Antoine Walker talks about how he lost his fortune. My consent does not require purchase. They are not used to having money and are unprepared for the sudden affluence that comes with a large signing bonus or a huge contract. Most recently in the news were former Tampa Bay Buccaneers star Warren Sapp, who is selling his house to pay off his debts, and former World Series star pitcher Curt Shilling, who may have to sell his memorabilia for the same reason. When the salary is huge, taxes are enormous.
Now, Lynch and Johnson would seem like polar opposites. Some athletes have gambled fortunes away believing that their great luck extends to gaming rooms and betting parlors. They may be partly or completely financially illiterate, as well — some may never have had a checking account, not understand , nor appreciate how much of their salaries go to paying taxes. . Big Stars Have Big Hearts While no one would deny that top professional athletes have expended enormous individual effort to get where they are, the fact is that nobody in this life does it all alone. Wireless carrier fees may apply. Also, some A-list athletes tend to overestimate the totality of their skills.
Retrieved from Staff Writer Al is an award-winning journalist with dozens of years of writing experience. . . . . .
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