How can crowdfunding serve as a viable option for someone pursuing a career in sports? Financing your sporting journey requires careful planning and consideration. In this article, we provide a few references to be made and how one can acquire the necessary resources to pursue one of the top sports in India.
Sports in India are no longer considered a niche pursuit for a career. Gone are the days when cricket was the only sport people wanted to play as a profession. Football, hockey, volleyball, tennis, golf, and Kabbadi are viable career paths these days. However, a career in sports in India is only lucrative for a select few people who can make it to the top ranks. For the rest, some financial planning is required to ensure a stable life. While certain sports may be more expensive, each requires some financial resources for the following reasons.
Equipment
When it comes to equipment, some sports are more expensive than others. Sports such as golf, polo, Formula 1 and shooting require a lot of financial resources to procure the necessary equipment. Kabbadi, volleyball, and football are possibly the most affordable. What matters is not just the equipment’s price but also its quality. Additionally, while some sports may seem inexpensive to play, they can be pricier when practicing at a higher level. For instance, it is not expensive to play football. But playing professionally requires many more resources, such as cones, shoes, and jerseys. Any investment of more than 10% of one’s income on sporting equipment is too much.
Even the most skilled player needs some training if they plan to play a sport at a competitive level. While it is best to start training at an early age, there are now academies available in India in almost every top sport.
Again, golf and polo are possibly the most expensive sports in terms of training. However, the popularity of sports such as cricket and football also seems to drive up the prices for people who want to train.
Any investment in an activity that is more than 15% of one’s income is possibly too much. Exercise is necessary, but if the cost of the classes is making you bleed, it probably means you need to look for a different academy or consider another sport.
Tournaments
It is one thing to play a sport for fun or as a hobby, and another to play it competitively. If one wants to pursue a career in one of the top sports in India, one needs to be able to find a way to pay for participation in tournaments.
Generally speaking, the more competitive and popular the sport, the harder it is to get investment returns from games. However, once the player starts playing at a recognizable level, substantial returns come from being paid a match fee.
For instance, while cricket might be an expensive sport in terms of tournament fees at the state level, it can be pretty lucrative for people who can play competitively in the Indian Premier League.
The same cannot be said for golf, where there is no premier league, as the sport is not at the same level of popularity. Essentially, an investment of 5% of one’s income is already a substantial amount to be spent on participating in tournaments.
Funding Your Sports Career: Ways to Do So
Now that we have highlighted some places where finances are directed when pursuing top sports in India, we offer ways to raise these necessary financial resources:
Mutual funds
While they might be some of the safest ways to raise funds, investments in mutual funds require time to mature and yield any substantial benefit. Mutual funds are possibly not a viable option for someone who immediately wants to raise financial resources to pursue a career in a particular sport.
The only case where mutual funds are beneficial is when the funds are introduced to support the sporting career of someone from the next generation. For instance, if my daughter or son wishes to, I can start a mutual fund to help with her career choice in ten years. The fund can then be used to pay for equipment, training, and tournament fees.
Loans
While loans can provide a valuable way to raise funds immediately, they come with an added risk. Success in a sport is not a guarantee for most. Unless you are a prodigy or exceptionally lucky, you will not become the next Baichung Bhutia or Mahesh Bhupathi.
In other words, loans might be too risky of an investment for most. Additionally, loans come with an interest rate, which can accumulate substantially over time. Unless you are confident about your capacity to excel in your chosen sport, loans are not something we would suggest going for.
Crowdfunding
We have clarified that loans and mutual funds are options only worth pursuing a select few. Then what does the average individual who decides later in life that they want to pursue a career in one of the top sports in India do?
Here is where crowdfunding can be so beneficial. Although it requires the work of setting up one’s campaign, the returns can be almost instantaneous. Additionally, there is no requirement to repay the money raised.
By sourcing from your social network, you can create a solid foundation to meet your training and equipment expenses. If you do succeed, there is an option to thank those people that came forward to support your sporting dreams. It can prove to be a win-win situation for everyone.
We have now covered the main reasons why sports can prove to be an expensive pursuit and provided ways to meet those needs.
We at Ketto provide a simple platform for those who wish to set up a campaign to finance their sporting dreams. If you have been dreaming of playing for your favorite hockey or volleyball team, you can start a campaign at Ketto with a few clicks right away. Provide us with some information, and you will be one step closer to living your happiest sporting life.
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