Why did football superstars in Spain see their incomes skyrocket during the 2007–2008 crisis while most workers struggled? We look at research that challenges the idea that these huge salaries simply reflect talent or contribution. Instead, we explore how much of footballers’ wealth comes from rent—the profit generated by their image and brand—revealing how professional football mirrors wider inequalities in capitalism.

Arrizabalo-Montoro, X., & Ruiz-Villaverde, A. (2023). Wealth production and millionaire footballers: wage-labourers or rentiers?. Critique, 51(2-3), 293-304.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6tYURNFCAAb0OFTgkfsMTA?si=t-EQ1ozTSvuaA_okgOzaSg