Why Olympic Athletes Cannot Make Any Money During the Games

The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics are right around the corner, bringing together the top athletes worldwide to compete for medals illustrating their prowess in a given competition. To even reach that level of ability, athletes train year-round. In the process, they ratchet up high bills and expenses for the chance to be a contender. The problem is, however, that most athletes cannot make money during the games.

Due to restrictions put in place by the International Olympic Committee and the complicated web of rules regarding outside sponsorship, these amateur athletes often live in poverty while attempting their pursuit of Olympic glory. Athletes are at the mercy of a history of private-sector funding in the United States. Furthermore, the Olympics' nebulous and shadowy revenue streams prevent athletes from earning their just rewards. In this article, we will explore the background, history, and changing horizons of why Olympic athletes cannot make any money during the games. Some of the reasons may surprise you.(For competitors with tons of accolades, discover athletes with the most medals ever from the Summer Olympics.)

To compile an article about why Olympic athletes cannot make any money during the games, 24/7 Tempo consulted in-depth investigative journalism articles, news articles, and surveys from sites like Vox.com, ESPN.com, and USA Today. Next, we organized the reasons why Olympic athletes cannot make money during the games and the complicated web of sponsorship restrictions and private funding that limit their compensation. After that, we confirmed aspects of the research using sites like NPR.com and the Associated Press.

Even during the previous Olympic Games during the global COVID-19 Pandemic, money stood ripe for the taking. To broadcast the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, NBC paid $7.7 billion for broadcasting rights. The company also sold $1.25 billion for ad rights amidst the games.

According to estimates from The Associated Press, the International Olympic Committee (which runs the Olympic Games), stood to make between $3 billion to $4 billion on television rights alone. This fails to take into account the countless other shadowy financial strategies. These include incentivizing profits off merchandising, the host governments, and countless other revenue streams. This led one NBC executive to suggest that the 2020 Olympics could prove to be the most profitable ever.

Either way you slice it, billions of dollars stream into the coffers of various world governments, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and television broadcasting companies. Next to none of that cash, however, ends up in the hands of the thousands of Olympic athletes competing for glory.

In the American consciousness, Olympic athletes appear as determined folks doing it for the love of the game. Yet every Olympic season, many stories appear in the press, documenting the dire financial straits many athletes endure to get themselves into competitive standing. Be it a veteran multimedalist rower on the poverty line reselling old equipment, or a champion speed skater living off of food stamps, even the best athletes can't seem to make ends meet. Some are forced to start GoFundMe campaigns to help pay their way to the games. Furthermore, Home Depot once ran a series of ads illustrating the number of Olympic athletes it employed.

To be clear: athletes who compete in the Olympics are considered amateurs. Since the mid-1970s, however, the rules regarding amateurism and sponsorships have slowly loosened. This allowed some athletes to earn compensation for their efforts. Except for wrestling, this relaxation gives already professional athletes a chance to compete in any Olympic competition. For this reason, you see professional NBA basketball players playing on the U.S. Olympic basketball team. Yet, of the over 500 athletes representing the United States, most athletes cannot make money during the games.

While there are notable exceptions in the form of high-profile athletes like Michael Phelps or Simone Biles, their outsized successes are not indicative of the general trend for Olympic athletes from the United States. Their lucrative sponsorship acquisitions shadow the tireless, financially demanding efforts many athletes undergo to get into competing shape. Simply put, if they're not household names, the athletes must rely on their own devices in terms of training funding, travel, and more. According to one survey by the advocacy group Global Athlete, more than half of the athletes representing 48 countries remain financially unstable.

The approach taken by the United States toward the Olympics and the compensation of its Olympic athletes takes a decidedly individualistic and capitalist form. According to experts, this is by design. The current paradigm took shape during the 20th-century Cold War period in opposition to the Soviet way of doing things. It was an unspoken fact that the Soviet Union secretly paid its Olympic athletes like professionals. As such, the Olympic Committee relaxed its rules regarding amateurism. In response, the United States decided Olympic funding would occur entirely through the private sector. This ensured both a way to compete and highlight the benefits of capitalism versus state-run communism. In the process, however, many top athletes fail to make the ranks because they cannot make money during the games.

While the American contingent of Olympic athletes stands in far better financial shape than other countries, many still struggle. To help combat this predicament, governing bodies like the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) put in place several programs providing grants to top athletes. These grants, however, vary from sport to sport, with many providing the most meager of compensation. According to USA Today, track and field stipends top out at $1,000 per month. Olympic wrestlers receive money depending on their ranking, with the first place receiving $1,000 per month, the second place receiving $600, and the third place receiving $300. Even the highest-ranking athletes receive compensation that puts them well below the poverty line.

If one of these athletes makes it to the Olympics and wins a medal, they receive no compensation from the International Olympic Committee. Fortunately, the USOPC steps in and hands out prize money for medalists through its "Operation Gold" program. Gold medalists receive $37,500, silver medalists receive $22,500, and bronze medalists receive $15,000. These act as well-earned rewards, to be sure, but illustrate that athletes cannot functionally make money during the games.

To make matters worse, many of these quasi-private governing bodies like the USOPC struggle financially as well. The USOPC claims much of its funding goes toward athlete improvement. This takes shape as training sites, high-performance programs, and media promotion, with little left over. Furthermore, according to The Associated Press, over 70% of Olympic organizations applied for PPP (Paycheck Protection Program) loans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The reality of Olympic organization funding, however, appears more controversial and nebulous. USA Track & Field found itself in hot water a few years ago. That's because its CEO earned over $4 million in total compensation amid layoffs within the organization. Furthermore, the USOPC tried and failed to petition the United States government for a whopping $200 million in federal stimulus money. Where that money would have gone given the paltry compensation for its athletes, however, remains to be seen.(For other Olympic controversies, explore 27 of the biggest Summer Olympics controversies in history.)

To understand the restrictions placed on athletes so they cannot make money during the games, it's best to understand Rule 40. Put in place in 1991 by the IOC, this rule allows only official sponsors and partners (who paid good money for the privilege) to market athletes and the Olympics amidst the games. Meanwhile, companies that are not official sponsors are confined to a blackout period from the weeks leading up to the Olympics to just after the events end.

Furthermore, Rule 40 limits how athletes' names, performances, and images are used without the IOC's express permission. These restrictions extend to how particular Olympic language and symbols can be shown, such as the Olympic rings. This manifests in an increasingly complicated format for marketing materials. While an ad can run showing an Olympic athlete with smaller boxes containing their sponsor's name and product, it cannot feature the classic Olympic Rings symbol or any word referring to the Olympics. The athlete's marketing expressly promotes their taking part in the Olympics. However, it can only contain generic language referring to victory or achievement. Furthermore, it can't even mention the fact the athlete is on Team USA. For marketing that's chiefly designed for air during the Olympics, Rule 40 leaves little space for actual mention of the competition.

According to the IOC, Rule 40 aims to give more opportunities for lesser-known athletes and "preserve the unique nature of the Olympic Games by preventing over-commercialization." Athletes, however, can only post seven thank-you messages to their sponsors. Beyond that, their sponsors can congratulate them publically only once during the games. It seems the IOC takes an approach toward athletes that they should just be grateful they are given a chance to compete, effectively shielding them from money and exposure in the process. Fortunately, changes are starting to appear on the horizon.

For years, most nonprofessional athletes could not make much money off their talents. Times are changing, however. A recent landmark ruling by the Supreme Court made student-athlete payments a possibility. Furthermore, the NCAA changed its rules to allow student-athletes to find endorsements and make money off their personal brands. While these changes have been years in the making, potentially changing the direction undertaken by the IOC, one problem remains. While college athletes train year-round, the Olympics remain an intermittent competition, taking place every four years.

In terms of the United States, progress appears slow but steady. Experts suggest allowing Olympic athletes the chance to get sports agents, or at least, collective bargaining strategies to establish a base rate for commercial appearances. Dionne Koller, who was recently named to the USOPC commission appointed by the United States Senate, suggests a further discussion. This is evident in Bipartisan legislation demanding equal pay for all athletes competing under the United States flag. "When you wear Team USA, you're giving a public good," Koller said.

Fortunately for the Olympic athletes who cannot make any money during the games, new hope appears. Just shy of a few months from the commencement of the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, World Athletics revealed a groundbreaking prize payment plan. According to NBC, "gold medal-winning athletes in the 48 track and field events will receive $50,000 each from World Athletics for their accomplishments. Relay teams will be awarded $50,000 as a group and will split the money between its members." This will make World Athletics the first international athletic federation to award athletes in history. Though more unspoken, it seems the International Olympic Committee agrees with the plan, as much of the prize money will come from the revenue share allocated by the IOC to World Athletics. (For athletic prodigies, discover 16 of the youngest Olympic athletes in sports history.)