Does big money take away the true spirit of sport?

Once upon a time sportsmen played their best for the reward of being the best he or she could be. If they made it to the top so much better. Now the sporstmen put out their best as a means of making money.....huge money which with it come the match fixers, the bookies, and in too many cases a corrupted sportsperson who has to maintain an image to retain their sponsors. Being a good sportsperson with no advertsing value other than a good game is not enough these days. Once infected, sport generally cannot return to the days of "it matters not if you win, but how you play the game."

Yes it can. Especially when one person or team literally dominates a sport. The impression may be without them the sport won't exist. So do you dare to criticize them?

In the States, every aspect of pro sports is strictly for the money:

A university football program signs a 13 year old to a scholarship.
A pro basketball team signs a high school grad for a $30 million dollar contract.
Some baseball players publically admit to steroid use. And the owners won't do anything because of the power of the players union.

From the fans to the teams to the MSM, all that matters is profit.

This is how the Corporates take you (the ordinary people) for a ride, and this is what most of the people/investors never got to understand, even during the 'boom' and the 'bubble burst' in the markets, before the global economic disaster occurred; For them, the IPL is a glaring example to cite, to enable them to know the Corporates' so-called working, only for the benefit of the so-called 'elite classes' or the ultra-rich of the modern society. They will soon get to realize, that, big money not only take away but destroys the true spirit of sports; it also corrupts the societies by getting them enticed and hooked to the crooked/unethical and corrupt practices of making 'quick buck'.

Big money offered the Premier League players opportunities for wealth with work. Isn't this first in Mahatma Gandhi’s list of deadly sins?
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I am not surprised at all. India is one of the most corrupt countries in the world there is corruption at corporate level, government level, college level, school level, pretty much anywhere place you look at.

It's the timing of the declaration that bothers me, they waited until the final was over with and then came with the announcement. This proves that even the people who are involved in law enforcement are somehow tied with the prepetarators to ensure that the league does not loose any money due to bad publicity.

As a fan of the game, I don't care how these deals are made. It is a league created to make money and they should whatever they need to benefit their bottom line. It's the tax evasion that's the problem here.

@ gary

One of Mahatma Gandhi's 7 deadly sins is 'wealth without work' and not 'wealth with work'.

You just made him look like a communist!!

Big money offered the Premier League players opportunities for wealth without work. Isn't this first in Mahatma Gandhi’s list of deadly sins?
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ps. Of course the first instance of this comment said "with work," which is incorrect. I once again relied upon a "spell checker" when what I most definitely need is a "stupidity checker."

Yes it does.

I agree with the consensus above that big money spoils sport.
I wonder how many of these sportsmen would pursue their sport so aggressively without the financial incentive.

Yes, and so does big politics, like the cold war competitors like East Germany and the Soviet Union, and what Nazi Germany tried to do in the 1930s.

Solution? I don't know but I'd like to see everything scaled back to a more moderate level. There are rules to each sport that moderate and limit what the athletes can do and I think there ought to be rules that moderate and limit what the spectators, team owners, and sponsors can do.

If we are referring to Indian league - IPL, any controversies surrounding its operations or management is not going to reduce the interest in cricket, because IPL has shown the world that cricket is not a game for few privileged but every good deserving player will get a chance to showcase his talent on a Global platform otherwise in the earlier practice of cricket board only the influential would get a chance to play in national team and the real player's talent would be killed. I would congratulate Lalit Modi for coordinating and establishing such an excellent platform where thousands from different professions come and enjoy a common interest together. Let us understand - a common man is not being asked to contribute money to organize IPL, it’s the already existing Rich that organize IPL and we as an individual only buy a tkt to enjoy the fun and if the masses are accepting this practice then why a few corrupt government individuals trying to spoil the fun. IPL and its spirit will continue if some rogue elements are kept at a distance.