WNBA basketball star Angel Reese shared a shocking story about the financial reality she faced in her sports career. Despite becoming one of the most prominent players in the women’s professional basketball tournament, the $73,000 per year salary Reese received from the WNBA wasn’t enough to cover her living expenses and basic costs, including the $96,000 annual rent on a restaurant.
Before the fans’ shock, Reese said, “I’m losing money just to play.” This is a shocking truth, highlighting the irrationality of the financial system for women’s sports tournaments, when players face revenues that are not commensurate with the effort and talent they expend.
Reese’s story sheds new light on the difficulties faced by female athletes in professional sports. Despite her talent and fame, her salary remains much lower than that of her male counterparts in the corresponding tournaments. This makes female athletes carefully consider maintaining a sports career in the context of rising living costs.
Angel Reese is not only a star on the soccer field, but also a person who dares to stand up for the rights of female athletes. She shared that having to do more work than just playing basketball has become indispensable for her and many of her colleagues. Still, Reese was determined to continue playing and stated that these financial difficulties did not diminish her love for the sport she pursued.
The Reese trade has garnered significant attention from the sports community and fans. This not only sparks a discussion about injustice in women’s sports, but also calls for change to ensure female athletes receive more decent compensation. In particular, this story could be an impetus for the WNBA and other women’s sports organizations to review athlete salaries and funding.
Is this the time for the WNBA and other women’s sports to truly look back and improve the financial situation for female athletes? This question remains open, but at least, through Angel Reese’s story, change may one day be not far off.
