Rugby is not considered a high-earning sport for its average player, especially compared to other popular sports like American Football and soccer. Whilst, this full-contact sport has been steadily gaining popularity, most people are surprised when they find out how much rugby players make.
The average rugby player earns 110k-170k USD per year, far less money than the average player from other popular sports. Unfortunately, rugby sells fewer tickets, and signs smaller television and sponsorship deals than, for example, soccer and American football, hence the lower earnings.
For several reasons, including the significant risk of injury, many people believe that rugby players should be paid more than they currently are. So, why are rugby players paid so little?
Are Rugby Players Really Underpaid?
Contrary to popular belief, rugby players are not poorly paid for their work. The narrative that rugby players are poorly paid comes up when people start comparing a rugby player’s average earnings to the average earnings of a player from another more popular sport as the table below demonstrates:
Highest Paid Team Sport Salaries Compared
| Sport | Average Annual Salary (Local Currency) | Average annual salary (USD) |
| Rugby Union (English premiership) | 100-150k GBP | 140k USD |
| Rugby League (NRL) | 370k AUD | 240k USD |
| Football/Soccer (English premiership) | 2.6 million GBP | 2.9 million USD |
| American Football (NFL) | 2.8 million USD | 2.8 million USD |
| Basketball (NBA) | 8 million USD | 8 mllion USD |
| Baseball (MLB) | 4.5 million USD | 4.5 million USD |
| Cricket (IPL) | 3.7 crore IR | 490k USD |
| Ice Hockey (NHL) | 2.7 million USD | 2.7 million USD |
It is true that, compared to other beloved sports, rugby players earn less on average, but that does not necessarily mean they do not make good money relative to the average person. First and foremost, let us see how much rugby players make before considering why they earn less compared to athletes from other popular sports.
How Much Money Do Rugby Players Make On Average?
The average rugby player makes around $110 000- $170 000 a year. Like in any sport, player earnings in rugby can vary greatly as popular players make much more than the average player. Professional rugby players at the top of their game and in popularity make between $500 000 and $1 000 000 a year.
In England, a developed country where the average person makes around $50 000, the average professional rugby player earns about four times as much as the average person.
So, although the standard professional rugby player is still not making big money that sets them up for a lifetime of luxury without worry, they still make a good amount of money compared to the average person.
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Rugby Franchises Have To Respect The Salary Cap
One of the reasons that rugby players earn less money than soccer players and NFL players is due to the salary cap imposed on rugby clubs. Simply put, the salary cap limits rugby clubs regarding the spending allowed on rugby players.
Salary caps have been introduced in many major rugby leagues, including Premiership Rugby and Super Rugby, and Top 14. When it was first introduced, the goals of the salary cap were to achieve the following:
- Provide a level playing field for Rugby Clubs
- Give Rugby Clubs a chance to compete internationally
- Control inflationary pressures on costs
- Ensure all Club’s financial viability
The salary cap is constantly evaluated and increases or decreases based on how well the business is doing. Thus, as the sport grows and increases in popularity, Rugby leagues can increase the salary cap and compensate their players more for their efforts.
Currently, the salary cap in the English Gallagher Premiership is 5 million, each club then has a playng staff of about 50 players and coaches to pay out of that, and so you can see straight away why salaries are where they are. Its an average of 100,000 GBP per squad member.
In contrast, there are no salary caps in soccer, so clubs are free to buy players for millions without worrying about exceeding any limit. This is one of the reasons that rugby players are not making as much money as people think they should.
Sadly, the salary cap in English rugby is likely to be reduced further as clubs across the entire league are losing money each year and are only surviving due to the influence of generous wealthy businessmen who are in fact keeping the clubs going.
Unfortunately, when those same businessmen run out of passion for it then clubs can be made bankrupt and be lost forever, witness the sad story of Worcester Warriors recently.
Do Soccer Players Earn More Than Rugby Players?
At this point, comparing the average earnings of rugby players to soccer players feels like comparing apples to oranges. Soccer players earn around twenty times more money than rugby players.
When you look at an area where both sports are popular, namely England and Europe, a player in the European Premier League (EPL) makes about $3 000 000 million.
In comparison, the average Rugby premiership player earns around $150 000. When you compare the top earners from both sports, Christiano Ronaldo earns around twenty-seven times ($35.6 million) the amount that Handre Pollard makes ($1.3 million).
In truth, only a few rugby players have signed with clubs with seven-figure deals, while countless soccer players worldwide are earning millions of dollars.
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Why Rugby Players Earn Far Less Money Than Soccer Players
Rugby players earn less than soccer players because, despite what some rugby fans may think, rugby is far less popular than soccer.
Popularity is a key aspect in professional sports that determines a player’s salary. The more popular the sport is, the more opportunities they have to make money. Because soccer is so popular, soccer clubs sign bigger television and sponsorship deals and sell more tickets than rugby clubs giving them more money to spend on acquiring players.
To put matters into perspective, around five billion people watch the EPL yearly, whereas only eight million people tune in to watch the Rugby Premiership the same year. This massive discrepancy in viewership directly translates to the massive discrepancy in player salaries.
Understandably, sponsors wanting to expose their brands and products are willing to invest a lot more money in the sport, which has several millions of viewers watching every game compared to the one with several hundred thousand.
Companies are not afraid to spend millions up millions of dollars to sponsor soccer clubs and soccer plays, as it is a certainty that their brand will be seen around the world by millions of viewers. If rugby was as popular as soccer, there would be no shortage of sponsors spending millions of dollars on rugby.
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Why Rugby Players Earn Less Than American Football Players
Compared to NFL players, rugby players also earn little pay. The high popularity of American football in the U.S. is the primary reason American Football players earn more than rugby players. Annually, the NFL has double the viewers as the Rugby Premiership.
Interestingly, much like in various Rugby Leagues, The NFL teams also have to respect a salary cap. However, there is huge difference between what NFL teams and Rugby Premiership are allowed to spend on players.
The NFL salary cap is currently set at $208.2 million, while the Rugby Premiership cap is only $6.7 million.
Should Rugby Players Get Paid More?
Rugby player pay is a topic of hot discussion. Many fans find it hard to believe only a few rugby players make over a million dollars a year (excluding sponsors). Many also feel that rugby players should earn more than they currently do, as this sport takes a heavy physical toll on the body and has a high risk of injury.
The issue is that a player’s salary is proportional to the sport’s popularity. Rugby is simply far less popular than sports like soccer and American football, explaining why players are paid far less in rugby than in those sports.
However, there is the issue of the salary cap in rugby, which hinders clubs from spending more money on players. If the cap were removed, there would undoubtedly be an increase in player salary, but it would still come nowhere close to what soccer or American football player make.
Rugby players are paid little money compared to other popular team sports, like soccer and American football. Rugby players earn less than soccer and football players because the sport is not as popular, and rugby clubs have a salary cap they may not exceed.
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Image credits
Beauden Barret v Josh Adams 江戸村のとくぞう, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
