Soccer phenom Olivia Moultrie’s deal with Nike is reportedly massive.
Sports Illustrated recently released an unreal profile on the 13-year-old soccer star, and it sounds like she’s set to make a boatload of cash after giving up her amateur status.
According to SI, the “incentive-laden, multiyear contract” could be worth millions of dollars. Moultrie currently trains with the women’s pro team the Portland Thorns.
View this post on Instagram
As I told somebody last night, I kind of have a huge issue with this entire Moultrie situation. She’s five years away from being able to play in a pro game, she’s being used to hype Nike products, and it might be time to slow down a little bit. (RELATED: J.J. Watt Gets Engaged To His Girlfriend Kealia Ohai)
Handing children million-dollar contracts isn’t a smart idea. Has anybody heard of Todd Marinovich? He was also a child phenom, his dad trained him to be a football star from the youngest age possible, he dominated at USC, went to the NFL and then flamed out after several issues with substance abuse.
View this post on Instagram
Young children aren’t mentally prepared to handle tons of fame and money. Look no further than Hollywood for countless examples of that fact.
Most kids aren’t like LeBron James coming out of high school. He was more than capable of handling the pressure, but he was also 18 at the time. He’s an extreme rarity.
View this post on Instagram
How is a 13-year-old supposed to do it? It could all come crashing down in moments. Sure, she’d have some money (although it’s unclear how much), but everything else would be gone. Her parents should be smart enough to look at the long game here. She’s a child!
I might not be a soccer expert, but maybe we should let kids be kids instead of trying to turn them into sports stars before they even hit high school.
It seems like common sense to me.
