In my opinion MONEY is tearing the game apart. It starts with the amount that has been pumped in my SKY Television and ends up with the players being paid SILLY money. It is a vicious circle which is gradually affecting our National Game. This MUST be addressed.
Adam Wilson, UK...but currently in Australia

Just two of the comments Talking Point has received so far. Take part below.

Background ¦ Vote ¦ Your reaction ¦ Have your say

The Vote:
	Are player demands ruining soccer?
	Yes No

Background ¦ Vote ¦ Your reaction ¦ Have your say

The Background:

French footballer Nicolas Anelka's on-off move to Italy has finally hit the buffers - reportedly because £56,000 in his weekly wage packet was not enough.

The 20-year-old Frenchman, who moved to English Premiership side Arsenal for £500,000 two years ago, was set to move to Lazio for a cool £22m.

Even with the pay cut, Anelka would have earned £14m over five years in Italy's Serie A.

Now in a saga to infuriate fans and sicken journeymen players, the Arsenal management has finally pulled out of the deal and told Anelka they expect him back in training with the club.

As for Anelka, he has already threatened a strike and legal action if he is not allowed to move.

Player-power was already in the ascendency after the landmark Bosman ruling, allowing out-of-contract players in the European Union the right to move to a new club without a transfer fee - but with massive salary hikes.

And if Anelka does go to law and wins, it could on the face of it mean transfer fees are meaningless and a player can simply hand in his notice and move on like any other EU worker.

So, £22m for one player, £56,000 a week for kicking a pig's bladder around. Has soccer lost touch with reality?

Are the demands of players like Anelka and their agents threatening the very future of the game? Or are these high-profile stars worth the money as they thrill fans by the million? Is this the going rate for the world's top sports men and women? What do you think?

Are player demands ruining soccer?

Background ¦ Vote ¦ Your reaction ¦ Have your say

Your Reaction:

I think its totally ridiculous the way a player can demand so much for his services. There definitely needs to be some sort of capping scheme implemented into these deals. I believe if the league is keep at its present level of quality, the likes of Anelka are not required to keep the level up.
If the clubs and the FA aims are directed towards protecting the league, then there wouldn't be any need to hold onto such individual by all means. Protect the league and let players like this walk.
Taiwo, England

Every child's hope and dreams is to play professional football, as were the dreams I had. As a child I wanted to become famous and enjoy the money, highlight as any other celebrity. Wages for players are not too high but are the price for each player's determination, dedication to football.
David B, England

56,000 a week for being good at kicking a round object accurately - has the world gone mad. A sense of realism is needed here is any football worth the salaries of 208 nurses earning £14,000 a year?? Do what they do in the States, impose a salaries cap on the teams and if they want one or 2 stars that effects the pay available to the others in the team, and perhaps we will have meaningful matches where the better TEAM wins not the one with the biggest cheque book.
William Lack, England

Big clubs like Arsenal should set an example in football with players like Anelka. He should be made to play with the reserves until some club is willing to pay his huge wage demands
Paul Doherty, England

Given the outcry when a so called fat cat gets paid £1 million odd per year for running a public utility it should be pretty obvious that demands like Anelka's for running around kicking a ball are obscene. He should look down the road at Crystal Palace - a small fraction of his demands would go a long way towards saving a less glamorous club.
Richard Chubb, UK

I personally think that Arsenal should try and sell Anelka as quickly as possible, because he is just taking up the club's revenue by keeping him. What they should focus on, is selling him for whatever price they can get for him, instead of asking for ridiculous prices such as £22 millions, to which no club will pay, especially for an arrogant player such as Anelka
Dean McBride, United Kingdom

I think players' amazing wage demands are going to kill football as we know it. There are already to many very young men who are now millionaires and do not care one bit for the fans who just happen to pay their wages.
Joe Churchman, England

The fundamental reason for the demise of football as the working man's game is that, like everything else that is subject to the media's twist on market forces, the game has gone BIG business. The FA are largely to blame, as it was their greedy desire to take control of the revenue generated by English football by coaxing the big clubs away from the Football League using Sky TV's money. The players were heroes back then, but the distinction between then and now is that during the 1980s they were regarded as just sportsmen, not the media soap-celebrities they are in this decade.
Scott, UK

I think that players should be paid well for playing their sport. These vast sums that are talked about are determined by market forces and if it is what the consumers are willing to pay then so be it. What you have to remember is that these sports men and women have extremely short careers. Furthermore, every time each person steps out onto the professional sports field they are putting their safety and income at risk. So they must be compensated to cover this.
However, the situation is different with people like Anelka. He has shown disrespect to those that pay his wages (fans and Club) and acts like the spoilt 'little kid' that he really is. I think that his brothers who have a large say in what goes on with Anelka are also to blame. Rather than the Professional athletes, it is the agents that are ruining our sport.
Zoran Higgins, England

As with many other sports the pay of players should be based on results (win bonuses) and/or what they can cream from sponsorship deals by staying at the top of their profession. Certainly they deserve a reflective salary (say a few thousand pounds at the top end) but it should be them to earn not the responsibility of the club to pay them extortionate salaries with no guarantees about their performance to get it. At the end of the day it's the man on the street who foots the bill at the turnstiles and in merchandise prices. Price him out the market and the game will falter big time with everyone losing. The money should be going into the game, not an elitist band of pockets (not least foreign pockets).
Ian C, UK

Fire Anelka. Sue him for breach of contract, and show the footballing world that blackmail will not be tolerated in any way, shape or form! I thought all sport, INCLUDING FOOTBALL, was supposed to be a test of skill and ability, not of bitterness, violence and slur!
By the way, bring Football back onto terrestrial TV - the real fans ARE out there, if you're bothered to look!
S. Patel, UK

Footballers are becoming defined by their aggression, arrogance, greed and immaturity. They aren't worth what they are paid; no one is.
Wendy, UK

No matter where the root of the issue lies we are agreed that GREED is the cause. If it's coming from directors/TV/players it doesn't matter -greed is rife in sport. I don't begrudge anyone making their living and of course the pleasure that the likes of Anelka bring to many means they deserve to be remunerated accordingly.
But the issue here is, he signed a multi-year contract, has been advised he can get more elsewhere and thus moans and groans his way into a mega-transfer... not a professional attitude and even more disgusting given the obscene amounts of money in question. Oh yeah, suddenly he's sick after being ready and raring to go to Rome...hmmm I wonder how true this is.
John McCabe, Holland (via Ireland)

We saw a similar thing last season with Pierre Van Hojdonk at Nottingham Forest. He refused to play saying Forest weren't good enough, now Anelka's decided he doesn't get paid enough! Let them go, if clubs give in to their demands football will be ruined! Football is a team game, one individual does not make that team. Look at Sweden's international side, any 'superstar' players there?? But they outplay England constantly!
Robert Hartwell, Sweden

Arsenal are right to stick to their guns and not let Anelka or his so-called advisors away with this clear breach of contracts. The De-Boer brothers did the exact thing to Ajax and broke away. How Anelka believes life will be sweeter in Rome with the Italian press is odd, they will chew him up in seconds, if anything, they're worse than in England. He has many many lessons to learn in life, first being gratitude for what Arsenal have done for him.
Dave, Ireland

Of course. How much money do these individuals actually need? In the US, there have been baseball and basketball strikes, but eventually the players gave in - if football bosses do not remain firm, they will never see the end of the cycle of salary increases.
James, UK

Monetary wise no. If any of us regular Joes was offered 20,000 or more a week we'd take it. I think the salaries are disgustingly high, but I dare anyone to say they'd turn it down.
Neil Whittaker, USA ex-pat

It must be noted that these are professional athletes that we are talking about. Men that have to dedicate many years of their lives being told what to do and when to do it. Are they allowed to go out on the razzle every other night like the average man their age? Are they allowed to gorge their faces with junk food every day like men their age? NO!
Guys like Anelka, Beckham and Owen have been blessed with an amazing talent that the average professional footballer would only dream of having. For anyone to think that it's ruining our national game is talking codswallop. Why shouldn't these superstars earn a load of money? Reckon you can do things with the ball that they can? They are class above the rest.
Kaya Sezer, England

I find it very difficult to put into words the disgust that I feel when reading about players who earn tens of thousands of pounds a week for playing football - then decide that they don't want to play for the club that they are contracted to any more and subsequently go "sick".
Such displays of childish petulance from so-called professionals should be duly rewarded by the clubs putting them on Statutory Sick Pay. If any player does not want to play for the club he is contracted to - then why should he be paid!!?
Stephen R Moore, UK

I must take issue with Paul Harrison. Victoria Adams is not sour faced and is one of the most beautiful girls in the world. Mr Harrison needs his eyesight checked!
Andrew Land, England

Arsenal should sell Anelka and see the back of him for good!
NJ Teh, UK

The only reason footballers, like all sportsmen are paid so much is television and advertising. If that was not there, neither would the money. People should realise that sponsors are milking the public at every opportunity.
Graham Jones, USA

The team owners and managers overbidding for players services and the greed involved is a factor. Players are reacting to the demand of the market including high TV rights.
Ed Edet, USA/Nigeria

I don't feel it's necessarily the players that are pushing up wages and bonuses etc., but the money grabbing agents, TV companies and sponsors that are desperate to cash in on these young athletes. These guys are barely old enough to drive before they're thrown in front of a load of money spinning profiteers from various companies who's only interest is to exploit footballers and cash in on their success. How can a club expect to keep a guy on a average salary when a sponsor is paying him the equivalent weekly wage for doing virtually nothing!!!
In the case of Anelka it's seems to be more due to his greedy brothers (and what they'll get out of it) than anything else. He needed Wenger and Arsenal more than he thought. He has incredible talent but this has been spoilt by the greed of others....The poor guy's probably totally confused with people one side of him throwing vast sums of money and others catching it behind him.....The bloke probably just wants to play football.!!
Andy Crawford, Australia....but English

Players like Anelka claiming to be suffering from stress let the fans down. Agents are also responsible for planting ideas in young players that they can earn more money elsewhere. The price of tickets in the Premiership continue to increase, does the quality of football?
Colin Beynon, UK

GREED is the only motive of such players. The fans would do well to buy a ball and learn to play. Forget the greedy boys.
Tony Donohoe, USA

All sports are being ruined by to much money. I love the thrill of the sport not the egos that play
Jane McLaughlin, USA

What a stupid amount of money to pay people to play a game. The whole world needs to get a grip and start spending money at the grass roots not on the greedy few. There will always be people who play football because they love it, the less they are paid will not reduce how well they play but the extra money spent on kids and mini-leagues would totally revolutionise the game.
David, UK

To sports fans in the USA, this conversation can only make us smile. Are your favourite athletes making more money than you ever thought possible? Welcome to the club. The players want what most people want: more money. They're just doing a better job of getting it.
Rath Andor, USA

An athletes working life is a short one, let them make money while they can still play.
Richard T. Ketchum, USA

I think it is time for both players and clubs to be more responsible. Players at the top level enough plenty let's be honest and they will always be well provided for. I applaud the Manchester board who do not appear to want to buckle under Roy Keane's extortionate demands. If overseas clubs are paying more then let him go overseas. It is becoming too expensive for real fans to go watch games and this is as a direct result of escalating salaries.
Brian Nash, USA

How many ways are there of saying yes. The irony is that I am in a far better financial position than I ever was to go and watch my teams (Liverpool in England and Hibs in Scotland) but I choose not to. The reason being is that I simply refuse to put money into the pockets of the extremely overpaid, spoilt, petty and questionably talented. Thanks to all of the Liverpool fans who turn up week in and week out, McManaman has found a better payday in Spain. Football is trendy. I know people (most are reasonably well paid) who had no interest whatsoever in the game until it became "the thing to do". Take some "direct action" - vote with your feet.
Neil, UK

This player is as explosive as Ronaldo he should get $100,000 a week You guys do you complain when lousy actors men and women make 20 millions in those violent and stupid movies, watch IFC and Nicolas Anelka.
Dominique, USA

They play where they pay...same as the rest of us...It's not so much the players greed as the chairmen's willingness to pay these wages, which in turn is the result of the fans pressure and desire for success....In the last 4-5 years especially since Euro 96, football has boomed out of all proportions_It's polarised the game...the local fans passion will die and crash boom bang the whole thing will come tumbling down...
Jonathan, Denmark

How can you say soccer is being ruined? As in all aspects of life, if there are millions of punters to pay the price of tickets and merchandise, then we can afford to indulge the Prima Donnas surely. The main thing is to maintain the ratio of consumers to elites, then graft and greed can be managed.
Tom, Australia

Football always has an always will be (increasingly so) driven by demands. Let the free-market apply, yes we might end up with a situation similar to that of the NBA forcing players to strike, but as long as clubs are able to afford to pay players the asking rate, that's what is going to previal. Consider the relevant prudence of Manchester United as a case in point, they have set a maximum wage for any player on their books, other clubs will soon follow suit. Sanity will return.
Anthony Houlahan, Hong Kong

If Anelka can't speak or does not want to learn English please tell him not to give all sort of reasons in wanting to leave Arsenal and England. If he hates the English so much than he should not even come to play on English soil and take their money. Typical French arrogance.
Bala Kumar, Malaysia

Every industry, from football to farming has its problems in ownership. Footballers at the top end are lucky, they get a proper share of the profits of their industry. Most of us don't. The reason we can't argue with footballers when they say "if they pay other players $50,000 a week then why shouldn't I get that" is because that is a reasonable argument. However no footballer has ever turned around and said that everyone in every industry should get as good a share of the proceeds.
I have worked with many footballers and I would say, to a man, they are the greediest most conceited people around. It is socialism for the rich - as in many industries - if just one of them turned around and supported claims for better wages for other workers it would go a way to disarming their critics. However I think they couldn't give a monkeys about other people. Football is fracturing and the players wages are just part of the problem.
Adam, UK

Anelka has come in for an awful amount of abuse for his greed, I don't hear the same sentiments about Arsenal, they paid 500,000 for him less than 3 years ago & expect to pick up 22,000,000 for him, I would say the greed is on both sides, with Anelka probably learning the lessons of his club very well.
Jim McDonagh, Australia

It's no longer Sport. Supporters no longer count, only Murdoch and his money. When that money stops/runs out there will be no supporters left to sustain these greedy business opportunists.
Kenny M, USA

So Anelka has turned down £80,000 a week tax free to join Lazio or Juve. These people are just not in the real world. It will take me 10 -12 years to earn what Anelka's weekly salary would have been, yet he still had the temerity to turn it down. Arsenal should make him stew in the reserves until his contract his up.
Mark Smith, Wales

I don't think that soccer is being ruined by player demands. The problems revolve around the additional revenues from television rights that the teams get and therefore pay silly money for players. The players are getting what they can. The same thing has been happening with baseball for years. Players' salaries are increasing as television revenue increases. The big problem is that the money is not getting shared equally amongst all the teams.
Bill Butler, United States

Perhaps it is ruining the game, but the players are no more to blame than the owners who are the truly greedy or the fans who are dumb enough to continue to support the players / teams. If soccer follows the path of US professional sports, then we should expect soccer to remain successful but it will lose touch with the common fan.
Naveen Yalamanchi, USA

Players do deserve good wages but no one can argue that the players in the premier division are not being compensated well. The recent saga with Anelka is the worst example of integrity, loyalty and respect for the fans and team players.
Kanji Imtiaz., U.S.A.

These greedy players are spoiling the game allright. Because of their sky high demands the price of tickets to the games has rocketed and then the only option is to watch the game at home on Sky. Having paid your subscription, of course. What happened to football being a working man's game ?
Oz Nanist, UK

It must be accepted that Soccer players like any other professional sports business people have a limited earning life. Nobody want's to go back to the days of footballers retiring at 35 and being penny-less by the time they are 40. The clubs they gave glory to continue with new blood and ignore their old war horses. However, the pendulum has now swung out of control in the other direction and today's players are killing the golden goose.
John Murray, Canada

I want to be entertained. I'm never going to be paid this money so am very happy that talented sports stars are. I am a consumer and I want to be entertained. Compare the cost of a player transfer to the cost of just one of the high tech weapon. The best players can now play for their countries 45 weeks a year and not need to worry about a career for the remaining seven.
Mike

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Are player demands ruining soccer?

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