Having played a sport at a competitive level one can easily understand the psyche of players participating at all levels. Sports in India is still a leisure or fitness activity, but certainly not a career option.
Indian sports results at the international level barring few sport does not correspond to the resources and population –we always wonder why still lack in achieving in this field!!! The main reason is very valid from the point of view of a parent who always has a question regarding future of their ward ‘what is next’ as they do not see many opportunities in terms of career in Sports in India. There are many factors responsible for these thoughts including the ‘mindset’ towards sports and sportsperson. Most of the sportsperson who compete have a fixed target i.e. Admission to a good college or scholarship in an International university or a permanent Government job. The other few end up with jobs as coaches and PE teachers which is still not treated a job of importance in any institutions.
The economics of Sports is changing with the new ‘Price-tag’ of our players who are getting paid like international counterparts for Season of 18 to 30 days. The amount paid to these players is unheard of even in the game of Cricket. The sportsperson who use to benchmark ‘Government job’ are now looking at these Leagues where they get paid for 10 Years of salary in maximum of 30 days with a bonus of endorsements.
The economics of Sports is changing with the new ‘Price-tag’ of our players who are getting paid like international counterparts for Season of 18 to 30 days. The amount paid to these players is unheard of even in the game of Cricket. The sportsperson who use to benchmark ‘Government job’ are now looking at these Leagues where they get paid for 10 Years of salary in maximum of 30 days with a bonus of endorsements. This new financial ‘Game plan’ will soon change the thoughts of our cautious and conscience Parents. Let’s calculate the average salary along with perks of a player in a Permanent Government job on an average is 6-7 lac at the entry level whereas the amount earned by a player for one season is around Rs.30-65 lac which is almost equalling to 10 years. The case study of Mohit Chiller a kabbadi player is serving as Clerk in North western railways who was bought for Rs.53 lacs by Bengaluru Bulls for 37 days whereas his salary for a year would be around Rs.3.5-4 lac which is close to 13 years of his Salary !!!. In the case of Amit kumar who works for ONGC was bought by Haryana Hammers in pro wrestling league for 30 lacs draws a handsome salary.
This professional change in sports in our country will have to be projected well through social media to evoke interest in prospective players and parents. The educational institute should seriously think of engaging professionals to nurture talent for this new ‘Career stream’. The perception towards sports should change in the society and players must get the due respect as other professionals get.
India soon will be looked as the hub for profession sports activities as some more leagues are going to start soon.
The columnist is a sports guru