Do kickboxers make enough to retire on?

[stmarcus]

Originally Posted by Balthasar

In soccer, everbody who plays pro in Europe gets solid money, and gets good insurance, and if they get injured that is taken care of much better also.

Europe's a big place, bro. Not everybody plays in the Premier League. I am friends with guys who used to play professionally in the lower divisions in Belgium, Holland and Germany. They made about 40k a year in euros at most, with maybe a small bonus if they're lucky. The best players in those clubs obviously made comfortable 6-figure salaries, but the guys who weren't regular starters didn't get anywhere near that. It was enough to live on (though not lavishly), not nearly enough to retire on.

[IGiveItGreek]

dunno
you know
who knows
you know?

[Kentaro]

I once read that Masato got like $75,000-$100,000 a fight.
And Souwer around $30,000 per fight.

[Francis Rossi]

Originally Posted by stmarcus

Europe's a big place, bro. Not everybody plays in the Premier League. I am friends with guys who used to play professionally in the lower divisions in Belgium, Holland and Germany. They made about 40k a year in euros at most, with maybe a small bonus if they're lucky. The best players in those clubs obviously made comfortable 6-figure salaries, but the guys who weren't regular starters didn't get anywhere near that. It was enough to live on (though not lavishly), not nearly enough to retire on.

Guys in the English lower leagues make far more than they would in a regular job, but yeah, there's no way in hell they can just sit back once their playing days are over. The stereotype of our players all being thick isn't entirely unfounded, so £400+ per week is fantastic for low-level pros.

[Escabar]

I think K1 paid well when they did pay badr has a Bentley. I'm guessing the Muay Thai guys get paid less which is why they end up having like 300 fights in their career.

[Escabar]

Sefo did mention that K1 owed him seven figures which means he must have been getting a decent amount before they stopped paying him. Also Sapp, Hug, Hoost etc were huge names as big as the top Pride stars. I think Contender Asia winner got $150,000 or something in that region. I know the gyms take a nice cut though.

[Falconkick]

It is just a frustrating situation when all the MMA fans boo when it is on the ground but choose not too look outside of the UFC or Bellator and do not support Kickboxing and Muay Thai

[Balthasar]

Yeah, not in whole Europe they get solid money (easy bread on the table). But in Holland I know they do, and they get a salary and not prize-fight money, which is way more stable with less ups and downs. Even with injury you get paid, and the revalidation costs are covered. That is the thing with prizefighting, the risk. In soccer you always get decent money, in fighting if you are injured or are on a losing streak as you are just beginning to get a name you almost don't have any income at all. If it would be more stable, more people would try to get to the top, because less risk of falling into a financial crisis. For most people a 100% chance of 30.000 dollars is much much more desirable than a 50% chance at 60.000 dollars. Also might be a factor of why the criminals get into the fightscene in Holland so easily, fighters who are in a rut because of losing a few fights or not being able to fight, and are in a financial crisis. Just guessing.

I don't see why people talk so much about the top dogs, ofcourse they get paid millions. Ofcourse they can buy sportscars if they want, even in retirement. But does that say much about the midtier fighters and up and coming fighters who make up most of the pro fighters? And I guess it is different with every sport. With boxing it's mostly the big main event that people pay for or turn on the channel. MMA gets more views and PPV buys from every fight on the card. Dunno about soccer, but just on the field there are always 22 players, and 22 on the bench, I think? They all need to be good or otherwise the starplayer wouldn't get the ball.

[LeftHandLead]

I'm sure most do, especially if they're making smart financial decisions.

[KoreanZawmbie]

Poor pay, sometimes no pay...

I figure they make most of their money from some sort of sponsorship, and seminars.