PLAYER SHARES OF REVENUE IN AUSTRALIA AND OVERSEAS PROFESSIONAL TEAM SPORTS

Abstract

This paper benchmarks the shares of revenue obtained by players in Australia's five major team sports—Australian football, rugby league, rugby union, soccer and cricket—with those achieved in North America and European soccer. The shares Australian players receive are relatively low, ranging from approximately 18 to 29 per cent. Shares in American sports are approximately 58 per cent, in European soccer, except for Germany, between 63 and 68 per cent. Moreover, in some cases, the share of revenue Australian players receive has been in decline, has been less than increases experienced by the population as a whole, and there are players who earn less than the Australian adult minimum wage. The paper concludes that to the extent that various Australian sports experience financial problems it is not due to payments made to players.