As a result of the media attention, sports professionals in my Saudi Arabia have become stars an celebrities, and those at the top are paid huge salaries. just like movie stars, they live overstated lifestyles with huge houses and cars. For example, Yaser Alqahtani, he has a huge palace, more than 4 cars, and he gets $20,000,000 annual salary.
Many people find their salary is unfair, especially when comparing these sport stars with those of top engineers or research scientists, or even leading politicians who have the responsibility of governing the country. Any saudi engineer starts with $1600 as monthly salary while the player gets more than $5000 per month. However, sports salaries are not determined by considering the contribution to society a person makes, or the level of responsibility he or holds. Instead, they reflect the public popularity of sport in general and the level of public support that successful stars can generate. So the idea of 'fairness' is not the issue.
Those who feel that sports stars' salaries are justified might fight that the number of professionals with real talent is very few, and the money is appreciation of the skills and dedication a person needs to be successful. Competition is constant and a player is tested every time they perform in their relatively short career. The pressure from the media is strong and there is little privacy out of the spotlight. So all of these factors may justify the huge earnings. I think that the amount of money such sports stars make is more justified than the huge earnings of movie stars, but at the same time, it indicates that our society places more value on sport than on more essential professions and achievements
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