Globalization and social networks have transformed the perception of the players in front of the public

The contemporary soccer has great players who will enter the history of the sport for their extraordinary skills, great careers, and several record. Casillas, Lionel Messi, Buffon, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Iniesta are just some players who will enter the Olympus of soccer. However, this new generation of players seems not to have the same professional dedication as the players of yesteryear.

Globalization, the constant advance of technology, and social networks have opened new markets, which generates that many people produce income on these platforms. The players are no strangers to these dynamics. For this reason, there are more and more players who enter different markets different from their real profession: soccer.

Modeling campaigns, clothing companies, footwear, jewelry, videogames, real estate companies, advertising campaigns, or social media publications of any product are some of the activities unrelated to the sport of soccer players. These activities have increasingly distanced athletes from their real work.

Several former players consider that the footballer's commitment is no longer 100%, and that soccer no longer occupies the entire mind of those who make this sport possible. "We loved to play soccer, we did not play at the Play, we were not interested in showing that we were walking the dog, or dancing after the game, now nobody puts anything related to soccer, nobody puts on the Champions or National B games … they post pictures with the hairdresser in the concentration", affirmed Juan Román Riquelme, idol of Boca Juniors and one of the most acclaimed retired players in the world.

Many people in the world yearn for the old days of soccer, not only because each team had its own legend, its own banner, but because now the contemporary soccer player seems to be disinterested in the sport. "I love meeting all the players and I thought that by watching football I would learn every day, I felt I could learn. Now I see new things that I do not know if I could hold on, thank goodness I lived in the previous era. Before it depended on me, now I suffer a lot with each game. I get angry, I swear a bit … because I cannot do anything anymore", Riquelme said in an interview with Fox Sports.

The priorities in the world of soccer have changed, leaving aside the true passion that this sport arouses. "When I lost a game I went to the lockers and hit everything because of frustration. Today, when the players lose a match, they take a selfie and upload it to social networks, they make me sick," said Gennaro Gattuso, retired footballer, considered one of the legends of AC Milan, the club that currently he trains.

Contemporary soccer is abysmally different from the one played a few decades ago. The world has changed and with it soccer and its pupils. However, there will always be the hope that sportsmen of great seriousness and commitment will arrive at the best clubs in the world and fight for the real goal of sport: to achieve glory.

LatinAmerican Post | Javier Aldana
Translated from “ ¿Los futbolistas de ahora son menos profesionales?”