What the NHL Lockout Reveals About Capital and Labor • Hacker News Board

Re: What the NHL Lockout Reveals About Capital and Labor

#31

Post by correctifier » Sat, Jan 12, 2013, 2:41 AM UTC

rprasad wrote: post #23

correctifier wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Contracts would still exist, as well as a few other rules, but for the most part there wouldn't be things like a salary cap. European club soccer is much closer to this model and it both creates really strong competition at the top end and a large spread between the top and bottom teams in a league. It is also very difficult to move from the bottom to the top without a huge amount of outside revenue. Pro sports leagu…

European club soccer is much closer to this model and it both creates really strong competition at the top end and a large spread between the top and bottom teams in a league. It is also very difficult to move from the bottom to the top without a huge amount of outside revenue. No, it doesn't. The disparity in athlete talent and revenues between teams which make the Champions League and those which don't is greater t…

I may not have picked the best wording, but basically I'm agreeing that overall the disparity is very high. The upside is that games like Man City v Man U or Real Madrid v Barcelona end up being very entertaining.

Re: What the NHL Lockout Reveals About Capital and Labor

#32

Post by SeanLuke » Sat, Jan 12, 2013, 2:41 AM UTC

mattm wrote: post #25

SeanLuke wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your approach is more or less what happens in world soccer. Clubs like PSG or Manchester United essentially purchase their championships. Libertarianism doesn't make for very interesting games or teams. I think sports leagues could do with a little less privatization and a little more Green Bay.

And yet the Premier League is one of the most successful leagues in the world...

Perhaps in much the same way that McDonalds is one of the most successful restaurants in the world.

Re: What the NHL Lockout Reveals About Capital and Labor

#33

Post by NoPiece » Sat, Jan 12, 2013, 6:18 AM UTC

sethist wrote: post #19

NoPiece wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Also, don't you think wages would be higher without unions? The collective bargaining is allowing professional sports owners to suppress all salaries. If there were no unions/collective bargaining, at the very least, the top players would immediately start to see much much bigger contracts. No sure if the journeyman player would benefit as much.

Yes, wages for the best players would be higher, but wages for everyone else would be lower. The unions are designed to protect the majority of the players at the cost of the truly elite players.

I don't think that woud be true across the board - financially successful teams, like the New York Rangers, would likely pay more across the board in order to get better players.