Does Australia put too much pressure on professional footballers to be role models?

Question

Is it too much to ask these talented young men to be role models? Why do they contineu to behave so badly? Why haven't they learned from the mistakes of others? Does the media give them too much glory too soon?

Answer 1

There has to be a level of conduct associated with the profession.  These young men are the role models of our children, and their bad behaviour can have a direct impact on how children perceive the world and their values.

Society treats celebrities as stars, and they make a huge amount of money from their popularity, but unlike surgeons, they aren't exactly saving lives, chucking a ball around a field.  In their privileged position, the least they can do is, at least, not be *bad* role models.

Answer 2

They have had everything handed to them in the past, so maybe a little pressure will be good for them; about time for them to have to work for things. And they continue to behave badly because they have been getting away with everything since high school. I say s***w the jocks. And glory? I see nothing glorious about them no matter what the media says.

Who believes what  the media says anyway?

Answer 3

key word is: professional. having some kind of line in the sand is good for the sport and everyone associated with it.

Answer 4

Yes, most of these guys are young and want to go out and have fun. Why shouldn't they be able to do what other guys there age are doing.

It's a parents responsibility to teach their children right from wrong, it is a footballers responsibility to train hard and play the game he is paid to play.

Answer 5

The thing is they are proffessional football players and so they know that they are in the limelight and i know they need to live their own lives and have private times but they also need to behave themselves too. Personally i don't really care what they are doing while their on their private time and i think the media needs to start respecting peoples privacy. I guess the reason why they have become such hot topics is because of all the assaults and the like happening from these so called proffessionals. Yes they should learn by others mistakes but it obviously isn't sinking in.

Answer 6

I don't think so. There is a certain standard expected of a player when he reaches the status of a first grader. No matter how good the player is, or for which team he plays, there will be that expectation of playing to the best of his ability, to avoid heavy alcohol consumption and drugs will absolutely not be tolerated. When a player signs his $100k+ contract, he is also signing an agreement to the above - and more - terms. If a player strays from this agreement, he can very easily set a strong example to his fans, especially young children. This is especially worrying to the Australian Rugby League as its future relies upon the young children that watch and play the game. Because of this, heavy standards and expectations are placed on every player and 99% of the time it works.

One reason behind the misbehaviour of some players is the amount of money they are paid. Some players earn up to and even over $700K a year and this is far too much. In the old days - we're talking pre-1980 - players played rugby league as almost a hobby. Nearly every player had a second job to bring the extra money that was required. Nowadays, with players earning excessive amounts of cash, they become big headed and lose themselves in the hype.

I say, pay these players less. Doctors, ambulance officers, police officers and firefighters should be the ones being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars, not someone who goes out on a field and throws a ball around. This is the problem with rugby league - and AFL - at the moment and it needs to be fixed before the respective governing bodies point the finger.

Answer 7

With the amount of money these men are paid, and the fact that they are in the lime light, the pressure is just.

When you think about it, most dont have a second job, all they really have to do is attend training, play a game of football, appear at charity events and childrens hospitals.   To me thats not alot of pressure.

The least they can do is behave themselves and become real role models to young children.  

With parents trying to instill into kids that taking drugs or drinking excessively is wrong, when their "hero's" are carrying on like pork chops, it really doesnt help.

When it comes down to it, if they werent paid as much as what they are, and had to work as well, I really think football, no matter what code would be less of a soap opera.

Answer 8

The media are the ones dumping all the pressure on the fulltime footy players. Players can't go out for a quite drink without being harrassed by drunks at the bar trying to make a name for himself or girls following players all over town to get a bit, even if it is in a men's loo.

I think they should also have some sort of part time work or study to prepare them for life after football. Not everyone can move straight into a seat at the nine network.

Answer 9

The majority of people did things they have regretted later in life. Its called life! Many people drank too much or experimented with illegal substances and may even have driven while drunk. The only difference with these guys is that they are in the media spotlight, a bit like Prince William and Harry. Now please don't think I am condoning the more serious crime of  assault on women and I am not trying  to say that I think drink driving or drug-taking are acceptable behaviour but despite their talent on the field these guys are just normal human beings like the rest of us who make mistakes from time to time

Answer 10

The players are professionals and therefore need to act like professionals and role models.

Answer 11

We are obsessed with sport, which is unhealthy because it's just playing games.

Young men who are good at kicking are elevated to massive hero status very early in life: given all the money they can spend, before they have learnt responsibility or perspective about their situation.

Underpinning our sport obsession is a basic lie that 'winning at all costs' is the ultimate value: the way the Australian cricket team trash the sports traditions for a good record of wins is a good example.  This attitude is in fact an excuse for society and the media to justify the attention and money given to people who play games (as compared to, say, doctors, engineers, soldiers, disabled people or whomever). We pretend that they have some higher value to teach us, because it is not enough for us to accept that we simply like to watch them be good at sports.

So sports people actually come to believe that this is true- successful footballer write books on 'leadership' which are just a lot of dumb cliches... but we go along with the lie because we all have a stake in it.

In this atmosphere- young players who might actually be nice people are turned into bad people- values like sportsmanship, sacrifice and service to others hold no value, compared to rabid competitveness and winning at all costs.  Toughness and aggression rule, and arrogance and rudeness are the just rewards of those who are successful.

Trouble is, while these values are supreme in the sports world, which has nothing to do with real life, they don't impress people outside the sports world: so young men are surrounded by people who tell them they are quasi-gods, and they are confused when EVERYONE else doesn't really care about their ball skills: they are simply boorish, arrogant, disgusting children who nobody bothers to discipline.

It isn't just the media's fault, and nobody 'makes' sports people be horrible people: it's anyone who elevates sports to something beyond what it is.  What I find funny is that I constantly hear sympathy for errant sportpeople but anyone else acting the same way becomes part of the 'law-and-order' obssession of society, with no mercy to be shown.

Answer 12

No there is no pressuere othere than the pressure they choose for themselves by making stupid decisions.

Seriously sport is all about glorification and striving for a win, when you become a professional sports star- excepting that lucriative contract- you also take the weight of public opion and the responsiblity that comes with it.

Answer 13

Australian footballers are role models to young and old, LOTS of people look up to them (even though they are just footy heads). They should maintain a level of maturity when going out not saying they can't have fun just that they are  representing their sport and all who play it.

Answer 14

I think that it is a little harsh to just solely blame the players. You have to look at the hole picture. They are a product of there upbringing and the experiences of there short lives. The whole picture includes there culture, the parents, the clubs that often sign them up in early teenage years, their school etc.  It is these people and experiences that determine there reactions in a certain situation.

I don't expect the footballers to be polished speakers, angels and media savvy. However, what I do expect of them is to behave in a rational and socially acceptable way, just like anyone else in society. These values need to be instilled by the people around them. When they behave badly they should be reprimanded for it, not have it swept under the rug by "minders" so that they can play next weekend.

Fortunately there are a lot of good footballers out there who are pleasant and add a great deal to society. Unfortunately for them their reputation is sullied by a few boof heads whose 'talents' all too often end up as front page media.

Development of the person should come before development of the footballer. Alas it is not even on the same page.

Answer 15

Yes, they are mainly kids. they will stuff up a lot.

Answer 16

Professional footballers choose the carer like most people do based on their what they do well, and also their desires. What is forgotten in the answers that I've read so far is that these "Professionals" punish there body all the time. So for them there is a lot riding on them and what they do. We also forget that just because we see them all the time, that they are just like you and me, and in a sense no more responsible for being a role model than we are. This is in no way a justification for bad behaviour. But We do need to look at all sides before we answer.