Written by As a coach, athletic director, trainer, general manager, or a host of other positions in an organization that focus on athlete safety, health, and performance, an athlete should be ready for competition. That is what all of the practices are for. That is what coordinating transportation or lodging is for. Everything is there to support the athlete and team.
But what happens when something is left out? If transportation is not provided to the competition, how is the athlete supposed to compete? Same goes for if an athlete does not get enough training time, they would probably be less competitive.
Dani Alves, a professional soccer player in Sao Paulo, Brazil, was not ready for club competition last week as he had not been paid in a while. His club, Sao Paulo, stated that Alves was no longer playing for the club “due to delayed salary payments” owed to the player. How delayed these payments were, we do not know. However, we do know that Alves was owed over $2 million USD and the club did not say that Alves was not performing to the contract or some other reason that he was not getting paid.
While $2 million dollars may seem ridiculous to some people as a reason for an athlete to stop playing with a club, if you were to replace his pay with something else, say safety, nutrition, transportation, or training facilities, how else would a professional athlete be expected to practice and compete? Sao Paolo stated that they are actively trying to get Alves paid so he is back on the pitch.
The club made a commitment to Alves, just like he made a commitment to them. Sao Paulo needs to meet their end of the agreement so Alves can be mentally, physically, and emotionally prepared for each practice and competition. Without Sao Paulo meeting Alves’ needs, he would maybe not be mentally or emotionally prepared for a match because he may be worrying about paying bills, providing for his family, or financial investments that cannot be sustained due to not being paid. It is a precarious situation for any professional athlete, whether they are making a league minimum in a developing country or making tens of millions of dollars a year.
And if Sao Paulo are not paying Alves, what other players or staff are they not paying? Without pay, it is a difficult proposition to employees and athletes to perform to their best of their abilities. This is where leadership and culture come in, if athletes and staff feel safe, in this case financially safe, they will perform when you need them to.