You've all been following the recent developments in the world of Quidditch, I'm sure, but I'll recap it in this article in case you haven't. Last month I did not produce an article about the first four weeks of the season, because they didn't happen; at least not yet. There are several reasons for this, and all will be covered.
Death and Death Eaters
What a lovely section title, no? Rather unsurprisingly, the Quidditch world suffered losses during the last stretch of violence from the Death Eaters. Still others were Death Eaters themselves, and now reside in Azkaban. Nearly all of Puddlemere was lost to death, while almost all of Tutshill sits in Azkaban. Scattered about the league, lives and allegiances have been lost, causing a slight delay of 8 weeks of Quidditch. I think I speak for everyone when I say that Quidditch can wait in the wake of such tragedy and deception.
Labor Disputes
Prior to the battle, while Death Eaters in the league were still in the dark, and families were still whole, there was talk of a strike. Many players felt as though they were being treated unfairly by the league. In fact, 100 of the 178 members of the QGB League were prepared to walk out. They claimed they didn't get paid enough in relation to the danger they faced playing the sport, and the amount of money earned from merchandising; money they say they don't see enough of.
I'll attempt to break it down, but a warning: math and I are slightly at odds.
Average Player Salary: 900,000 Galleons (yikes, right?)
Average Player Bonus: 20,000 Galleons (the poor saps)
Average Ticket Sales: 9.5 Million Galleons
Average Merchandising: 20 Million Galleons / team
Player percentage Tickets/Merchandising: 2 percent.
Player money from Tickets/Merchandising: 590,000 Galleons
Total money earned per season: 1,510,000 Galleons.
Players, prior to the strike, earned an average of 1.5 million Galleons a year. They claim this isn't enough money. Well, players of the QGB League, I make 25,000 Galleons a year. I say take your money, be quiet about it, and just play some Quidditch. We need Quidditch after such a dark and trying time.
I look forward to reporting on Quidditch sometime very soon, almost as much as I look forward to actually watching it. For now, my thoughts are with the families and teams who lost players. Of course, a little farther back, my thoughts are with the players who think they don't get paid enough. Those thoughts are not kind thoughts.
What say we get back to Quidditch, while the season still smells like Quidditch? More importantly, before we lose the entire season.
