Quote:
Originally Posted by The Nephilim
The NFL was around and very popular in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, etc. So why didn't it impinge on US boxing in those eras as well?
The reason American HWs are not where they used to be is the fall of the Soviet Union and the freeing up of Eastern Europeans to fight professionally.
Had the Soviet Union not existed, the history of the HW division would likely be very different.
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Do you honestly believe the best America can produce is Chris Arreola and Chambers? Can you not see the quality of fighters going down?
The HW division has been declining for some time now, the NFL/NBA weren't nearly as popular as they were back in the 70s. Especially collegiately! A big factor is TVs becoming more affordable, the civil rights movement, etc.
Just look at the average salaries per year:
NBA:
1970-$20,000
1980-$90,000
1985-$300,000
1990-$860,000
2000-$4,000,000
2012-$5.15 mill
The same thing with the NFL, it's practically the same thing except they earn a bit less than NBA players, they both sky rocketed at around the same time.
College isn't free in America, we must pay A LOT of money to attend a university, we can get things like Sports scholarships to pay partially or all of our education though.
"The cost for one year of tuition and fees varies widely among colleges. According to the College Board, the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2011–2012 school year was $28,500 at private colleges, $8,244 for state residents at public colleges, and $20,770 for out-of-state residents attending public universities."
You're 18 years old straight out of school, do you have that kind of money?