Semi-professional

A semi-professional athlete is one who is paid money to play and thus is not an amateur, but for whom sport is not a full-time occupation, generally because the level of pay is too low to make a reasonable living based solely upon that source, thus making the athlete not a full professional athlete.

North America

In North America semi-professional athletes and teams were far more common in the early and mid-20th century in North America than they are currently. Today there are many benefits, such as collegiate eligibility and the attendant scholarships, in maintaing amateur status. Eligibility for participation in the Olympics in some sports is still dependent upon maintaining a fully amateur status (although far less so than was previously the case) and such athletes may be supported by government money, business sponsorships, and other systems. At the same time professional sports have become such a massive and remunerative business that even many low-level feeder teams can afford to have fully professional athletes.

Related Topics:
20th century - North America - Scholarship - Olympics - Business

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