The Individual from Germany Earning More Than Their Hockey Counterparts Globally
Originating from Cologne, German prodigy Leon Draisaitl outperforms all NHL players in terms of earnings. He holds the title of the highest-paid player globally. Although the earning potential in ice hockey is frequently overshadowed by other sports due to the salary cap, this constraint is dynamic, allowing Draisaitl to maintain his aspirations.
For several decades, the thought of a German player ruling the financial realm in ice hockey was deemed almost unattainable. However, this unbelievable feat has now been accomplished by Germany's foremost talent, Leon Draisaitl, with his recent NHL mega-deal with the Edmonton Oilers. Over the next eight years, commencing from the subsequent year, he will pocket a staggering sum of 112 million dollars, equating to 14 million dollars annually. By the time this contract concludes, Draisaitl will turn 37 years old.
Upon the announcement of this remarkable agreement, Draisaitl humbly stated, "Now it's my turn to repay". Draisaitl, who hails from Cologne, is not known for loquaciousness, and that trend likely won't change soon. Draisaitl, who is scandalous-free, consumes his summer with utmost dedication to honing his skills instead of cultivating his popularity within Germany. In the public eye, he still remains somewhat elusive.
Despite being proclaimed Germany's "Sportsman of the Year" in 2020, alongside the legendary basketball player Dirk Nowitzki, his appeal in North America significantly surpasses his profile in his native country. At that point, Draisaitl's mesmerizing displays on the ice were no longer overlooked in Germany. Four years ago, he was crowned the league's best scorer and was bestowed titles as the league's most valuable and best player, thereby ranking him as the best globally.
Draisaitl yearns to finally claim the Stanley Cup
"There's hardly a player in the world who can play hockey like him," Oilers general manager Stan Bowman justified Draisaitl's contract. The devoted Draisaitl, who shares a relationship with Canadian actress Celeste Desjardins, makes regular appearances at NHL All-Star Games, accumulates more than 100 scorer points annually, and has achieved a minimum of 50 goals per season for the Oilers on three distinct occasions. Akin to Dirk Nowitzki in the NBA, the long-awaited NHL championship would undoubtedly catapult Draisaitl to a higher echelon in Germany.
This season, the Oilers narrowly missed out on the Stanley Cup due to Draisaitl's injury during the crucial playoff phase. "We've yet to complete the job," Draisaitl noted. He is relentlessly pursuing "the ultimate goal with the team, and we are all aware of what that entails." The team will reunite next season, and only then will Draisaitl's new contract take effect. However, this new contract could potentially escalate the challenges they face in the ensuing eight years.
In the NHL, each team is restricted by an annual salary cap, which prohibits exceeding an upper limit in salary. The Oilers possess another star player: captain Connor McDavid, who is widely considered the present-day best player in the league. In the upcoming year, it is speculated that McDavid will renew his contract and surpass Draisaitl as the highest-earning player globally again. This situation theoretically translates to fewer fiscal resources available for the rest of the team. Nonetheless, apprehensions of the team substantially deteriorating due to the necessity of sacrificing other skillful players are unlikely to materialize. Instead, the salary cap is expected to increase annually.
Since this increase is tied to the league's annual revenues, which are flourishing due to the repealed betting ban and the opening of new locations in Las Vegas and Seattle, substantial upticks are anticipated in the forthcoming years.
However, the 2005-introduced salary cap within the league is also responsible for constraining the wage disparity between top-tier stars and players in the lower ranks compared to other sports. The era of German players outearning their counterparts in the NHL for years has now become a thing of the past, given the exponential growth in revenue sources such as the English Premier League or the European Champions League.
In contrast, the top earners in other American major leagues, including baseball and basketball, exhibit significantly larger salaries for the absolute elite. For instance, the highest-paid athlete worldwide is a baseball player: the Japanese Shohei Ohtani, who signed a mind-blowing $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers over a ten-year period. Basketball stars also amass considerably more earnings than Draisaitl. In Orlando, German player Franz Wagner, whose athletic value pales in comparison to Draisaitl's, brings home a substantial $40 million annually.
However, the contrast between the NHL and NBA can also be attributed to two other factors: The NBA is capable of global advertising more successfully than ice hockey, owing to its exclusion of certain parts of the world. Furthermore, players in the NHL must share their earnings among a larger number of players compared to NBA players. A basketball squad comprises just around half the number of players as an NHL squad.
Despite the salary cap in the NHL often being overshadowed by other sports, it allows top-earning players like Leon Draisaitl to maintain their aspirations. In fact, sports like soccer and basketball have larger wage disparities between top-tier stars and lower-ranked players due to higher revenue sources.
