The title says it all, but not in the way you may perceive it to be. I just read a good article on SportsIllustrated.com about a professional soccer player who plays for Tottenham in the English Premier League, the highest level of professional soccer in England. The player, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, a French-born Cameroon soccer player, has freely admitted he only plays soccer "for the money."
Wow, he must be a really greedy person as he openly and honestly admits that money is the only reason he plays the sport. I'll bet your thinking that's nothing new as we all know that's how most professional sports athletes behave nowadays, even though he is one of the first to admit so.
But after reading further, I now understand his train of thought on the topic, and this has even given me a new light into how I perceive my favorite sports teams as I am indeed quite a passionate fan (and sometimes TOO passionate). In England, where soccer (or "football") is king, the fans behave with a wild dedication to their favorite teams, sometimes bordering on obsession. And these same fans desperately want to believe that their beloved star athletes feel the same way about the team they play for. Some do, many others don't, but will not admit it.
Well, paraphrasing the article (you can read it for yourself), Assou-Ekotto explains that he only plays professional soccer for the money because it's a "job" that pays well, and he is indeed grateful he gets to play soccer as his job. In other words, he plays hard to earn his fat paycheck, unlike too many other professional athletes, who feel a sense of entitlement to being millionaires. He does not feel a sense of loyalty to the club, even though he fights hard for his teammates, but feels that such loyalty to the team name, etc., is ridiculous because he sees it in perspective that it is ONLY A SPORT, and not "open-heart surgery," as they are not really "helping the world advance."
Before you go off on some negative tangent thought about he must be loyal to the idea of his team logo, name, etc., think about it. He is a man who sees soccer as a good paying job and that in order to have a good paycheck, like most jobs, you must do that job well, so he does. Aren't we all usually trying to advance ourselves in employment in order to provide for ourselves and loved ones? Well, he is doing the same thing, and is grateful he gets to play soccer as his job. I think we all would love to do the same thing as our job whether it be soccer, baseball, football, etc. He knows that it is just a sport and sees that there are other things in life more important then just the sport.
Well, I hope I remember this particular aspect that it is just a sport the next time I want to scream at the television as my favorite teams are playing. It is just a sport! It's just kicking a ball, hitting a ball, catching a ball, throwing a ball, etc. Some are just better at doing it then others. And wouldn't you be grateful to get paid great to do that then work a regular, 40 hour a week job trying to get overtime job? If only other professional athletes could realize that instead of balking over wanting more money then their already ridiculous guaranteed contracts.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/ben_lyttleton/04/02/assou.ekotto/index.html
