Why do boxers blow so much money?

[rjj tszyu]

With rumours now circulating that Floyd mayweather may be in financial trouble, I got thinking about how great boxers who make million upon million of dollars manage to lose it all.
I know they pay a lot in taxes compared to lower earners but so do other sportsmen yet it's always boxers making the news for losing theri fortune.
An example that always sticks in my mind is Tyson. I once read that he had career earnings exceeding $270 million. I know he lost some to the bitch and then in court battles and so on but $270 million?
And now there is Holyfield who set the record for PPV sales before ODLH beat it and apparently he has fallen on hard times! HOW Who next? Oscar?
Is it that they get all their sense knocked out in the ring? I really can't get my head round how often this happens in boxing.

[Taeth]

One reason is, I am not sure how you guys get taxed in Australia, but here in Canada you are taxed before you get the money, and that really helps you manage your money better. In the States if you aren't well educated you make 50 million dollars in a year you originally get it all in your pocket, so you figure you spend 34 million dollars, and that you still have 16 left over which is more than enough, but in the States you get taxed after the year is over, so then you only have 16million dollars left and you owe 25 million.

What I don't get is why these guys don't have financial planners, they are idiots if thats the case, and I don't think if they do, the financial planners put their foot down enough because they really need to tell these guys that they aren't making money forever, they need to invest(when the Economy is better), they need to be more conservative, I mean throwing away 30000 dollars at a club is just retarded.

[killersheep]

With rumours now circulating that Floyd mayweather may be in financial trouble, I got thinking about how great boxers who make million upon million of dollars manage to lose it all.
I know they pay a lot in taxes compared to lower earners but so do other sportsmen yet it's always boxers making the news for losing theri fortune.
An example that always sticks in my mind is Tyson. I once read that he had career earnings exceeding $270 million. I know he lost some to the bitch and then in court battles and so on but $270 million?
And now there is Holyfield who set the record for PPV sales before ODLH beat it and apparently he has fallen on hard times! HOW Who next? Oscar?
Is it that they get all their sense knocked out in the ring? I really can't get my head round how often this happens in boxing.

ODLH is being smart with his money, he buys things that will make him money in the future. Boxers are not that different then the average American except for the scale at which they do things. Most Americans spend beyond their means, never buy things that pay them back and don't plan for the future. There was just a story on the news, I'm sure it's old, but the guy that did the 'Girl's Gone Wild' was put in jail for 20 million in fraudulent deductions.

[antimoron]

1. too many yes man around them (they are in the payroll = $$$$$)
2. too many bling bling (what can i say... status symbol = $$)
3. parties every night (to please everyone = $$$)
4. exotic car collections (another for status symbol = $$$$$$$$$$)
5. an acre of a house (utilities, maintenance, etc etc... = $$$$$$$$$$)
6. living like a king of no limits (spending spending = $$$$$$$$)
7. no investments coz they thought they will last long in this sport...


thats all i can think of.. this happens all the time...

[rjj tszyu]

One reason is, I am not sure how you guys get taxed in Australia, but here in Canada you are taxed before you get the money, and that really helps you manage your money better. In the States if you aren't well educated you make 50 million dollars in a year you originally get it all in your pocket, so you figure you spend 34 million dollars, and that you still have 16 left over which is more than enough, but in the States you get taxed after the year is over, so then you only have 16million dollars left and you owe 25 million.

What I don't get is why these guys don't have financial planners, they are idiots if thats the case, and I don't think if they do, the financial planners put their foot down enough because they really need to tell these guys that they aren't making money forever, they need to invest(when the Economy is better), they need to be more conservative, I mean throwing away 30000 dollars at a club is just retarded.

I'm actually from the UK. Our tax system is the same as yours but I manage to get by well enough spending 0.5% of what Floyd manages to spend in a year.

[rjj tszyu]

1. too many yes man around them (they are in the payroll = $$$$$)
2. too many bling bling (what can i say... status symbol = $$)
3. parties every night (to please everyone = $$$)
4. exotic car collections (another for status symbol = $$$$$$$$$$)
5. an acre of a house (utilities, maintenance, etc etc... = $$$$$$$$$$)
6. living like a king of no limits (spending spending = $$$$$$$$)
7. no investments coz they thought they will last long in this sport...


thats all i can think of.. this happens all the time...

Why is it so dominant in boxing as opposed to say Golf?

[antimoron]

1. too many yes man around them (they are in the payroll = $$$$$)
2. too many bling bling (what can i say... status symbol = $$)
3. parties every night (to please everyone = $$$)
4. exotic car collections (another for status symbol = $$$$$$$$$$)
5. an acre of a house (utilities, maintenance, etc etc... = $$$$$$$$$$)
6. living like a king of no limits (spending spending = $$$$$$$$)
7. no investments coz they thought they will last long in this sport...


thats all i can think of.. this happens all the time...

Why is it so dominant in boxing as opposed to say Golf?

Most golfers are born with silver spoon.. Most boxers are not...

[Taeth]

Damnit, I should really look at the flags closer, my bad. These guys never had money though, they don't know how to manage it. They go from rags to riches and its a hard transition to make.

[RP33]

1. too many yes man around them (they are in the payroll = $$$$$)
2. too many bling bling (what can i say... status symbol = $$)
3. parties every night (to please everyone = $$$)
4. exotic car collections (another for status symbol = $$$$$$$$$$)
5. an acre of a house (utilities, maintenance, etc etc... = $$$$$$$$$$)
6. living like a king of no limits (spending spending = $$$$$$$$)
7. no investments coz they thought they will last long in this sport...


thats all i can think of.. this happens all the time...

Why is it so dominant in boxing as opposed to say Golf?

first off, comparing boxing to other sports is tough in this manner.. in basketball/baseball/football/hockey you are signed to a multi-year contract (in many cases).. It's almost like having tenure, where you know that as long as you are performing and are healthy then you will get paid.. with that said, it's much easier to stay healthy and also be EFFECTIVE longer in the aforementioned sports due to the nature of the sport.. In boxing you only are really getting paid when you are still marketable, and for some boxers that is not always the case.. Plus boxers don't make as much as players in the other sports unless you are a big name.. If you are dedicating your life to this sport, you HAVE to be smart about it because you may only get a payday twice a year.. and even if that payday is 15million then you still have to either do work on the side, or be cautious with your spending, this is all assuming you are living the "rich" lifestyle of mansions and bentleys..

with all of that said, it's the nature of the beast.. the more money you make, the more money you spend.. All of my friends who were in college who would always say they did not have a lot of money, now have full-time jobs making good money and still say they don't have a lot of money because they are the ones buying rounds and rounds of shots and drinks at the bar.. they are the ones who just got new cars, etc.. If you have the money it's really hard not to spend it in a fashion that you feel may enhance your life.. i don't think it's rocket science.

[Boom Boom]

The main reason is because most fighters come from nothing.

[Spicoli]

Next time they put a 55.95 price tag on some spectacle Glam fight,I keep asking this question of myself.Alot of it is you are dealing with young minds...tend to show a "Well I never had it in the first place" mentality and take things for granted....read the press clippings and get bad advice from hangers on just trying to stretch out the ride.Sanctioning bodies or SOMEONE should have to take a percentage of sanctioning fees,very small and invest with financial advisor's for a guys future....maybe we would not have soooo many past it fighters trying to reclaim the dollars gone by when they really need it just to pay the mortgage or rent...along with the glory.



Yeah right.

[DaxxKahn]

These guys do not make the money everyone thinks...Only the mega stars do...and after all is said and done they do not go home with what you think..

EG- A fighter makes a $1,000,000 payday to challenge for a world title...at the end of the day this is how it gets broken down

$1,000,000
$225,000--Taxes (Appx)
$200,000--Manager (going rate is 20-25% if they are legit but allowed up to 33 1/3 by law and some take all 33 1/13)
$50-$75,000 trainer
$100,000 for people employed at camp, sparring partners, expenses, hotel's etc
$100,000 fee by the sanctioning body to keep the belt.

$225,000
$200,000
$100,000
$100,000
$75,000
-----------
$700,000 Comes to appx leaving a grand total of

$300,000 to the fighter.....

Now remember during this time the mans bills at home need paid rent, car payments, mortgage, credit cards, food, clothes, etc plus if he has children and what ever bills already accumulated

Also that he will not fight again for another 6 months at least....
Add any medical bills from the fight EG- he needs stitches after the fight at the ER, follow up with Dr for removal, any specialist to examine the eye, plastic surgeon, eye doctor and you have another $10,000

By time all is said and done the man has about $50,000-$100,000 dollars left to himself to do with as he wishes....

put some in the bank spend some on a shopping spree, maybe a vacation with the family there goes another $25,000...you have an accountant to do your books that is another 10,000 a year in expenses, to invest it takes time for a return, if the investment does not pan out there is no return.....

Taxes again at the end of the year on house, cars etc (Yes like in Monopoly there is such a thing as a luxery tax)..

The Million is already gone....

Make $2,000,000 double the expenses of taxes trainers, mgrs etc


Not hard at all to see these guys go broke unless they are very wise with their money..they open resturants and such

[Wayne]

Boxers are dumb the same way the common man is. I don't really mean dumb, but we are indoctrinated to believe certain things that just aren't practical. That to achieve the American Dream we must go into debt. Many athletes are just an extreme version of this. It's why we'll 'buy' a $350,000 house when we only earn like $80,000 a year. That mortgage takes you 30 years to pay off which totals well over a million by the time you have the whole thing paid off. A big house, a big car and all the other accoutrements of wealth without truly being wealthy. True wealth lasts several lifetimes over but these guys' money lasts like a candle in the wind.

[BlackRazor]

The main reason is because most fighters come from nothing.

True.

I forget the % but I heard a very high % (like 80%?) of people who win the lottery are practically broke again within 5 years. Managing, taking care of & properly investing money is a skill & like some boxers, a lot of lottery winners apparently don't have it.

[TitoFan]

1. The number of leeches...er... family and friends in a fighter's entourage increases exponentially with each additional $$ million in earnings.

2. Most fighters do not possess a PhD in advanced finance management (as neither do many of us, I might add).

3. Going from having nothing to earning millions in such a relatively short period of time is a little like going 0 - 60 mph in 5 seconds flat with the crankcase plug having just been removed. Short-lived glory, followed by a piston being blown through the engine block.