Going public: Is salary disclosure beneficial for the players? / News - Basketnews.com

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For the past several decades, the salaries of professional athletes have skyrocketed. Topics regarding player salaries immediately gain popularity after someone signs a landmark deal. And the offseason is usually when such news hit the wires, however, not every league or team makes financial information available.

Research has shown that earnings for the top 40 athletes in the United States have increased 7.1 annually over the past 20 years. However, it also makes them subjects of potential mockery or judgment from the media and the fans if they are not performing according to their contract. So the main question here is whether athlete salaries should be made public or kept secret?

There are numerous reasons why salaries in the North American professional sports leagues are made public. First, players of all major sports leagues have Player Associations, and there are collectively bargained labor contracts. Some player unions require that all salaries and compensation amounts be available to those involved in negotiations between the unions and the leagues. If the information is available to so many people, there is no point in keeping it a secret.

Second, some leagues employ a luxury tax rule, which fines teams when their salaries are too high. As a result, player compensations need to be made public for this system to work.

Finally, some player associations (for example, the NHL PA) have outright published their salary database on the website. Anyone can visit the official NHL PA website and find a list of every team and the exact amount of player compensations.

There could be an argument that the publicity of the salaries comes in handy during contract negotiations. It is hard for team management to convince a player to sign for less money when he/she has proof that a fellow teammate is making more money.

Also, players might feel the need to disclose their salaries since a higher value gives them more prestige and a stronger negotiating position for the endorsement deals. On many occasions, athletes generate a higher income from promotional activities and endorsements; therefore, publicity and the ability to sell their name could be keys to negotiating success.

Of course, with big money comes big responsibility. As mentioned before, fans will always compare player contracts to their performances. If a player underperforms, inquiries inevitably emerge. The teammates could also start questioning whether the salary of their star player corresponds to his/her on-court results. Salary disparities (and availability of such information) within the team have their pros and cons.

When it comes to Europe and the EuroLeague, player salaries are not made public. EuroLeague Player Association (ELPA) was established in 2018 and has recently signed a collective agreement (EuroLeague Framework Agreement (EFA)).

Regarding player salaries, there are 10 remuneration tiers (from €250,000 to over €3,500,000) in the EFA. But the availability of exact player earnings to the public will be minimal because the release of such information will be subject to a data protection protocol "to guarantee the confidentiality of the aforementioned data among clubs." More importantly, the breach of such confidentiality will entail a disciplinary sanction.

All in all, salary disclosure could be positive and beneficial for both players and fans. For the fans, it provides a feeling of being more involved in building and improving the team. And quite simply, it becomes just another topic to discuss and follow. While for players, it could create leverage in contract negotiations, thus, increasing their earning potential and financial stability.

The chatter concerning the player salaries will always be there. Therefore, athletes must come to terms with it because it's part of the game at the end of the day. As the popular saying goes, don't hate the player, hate the game.

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