Chapter 16: Sport or Just Entertainment
It was one week before the Pound Ball Grand Final between the Capital City Chiefs and the Agriah Rural Scarecrows. James and Jeff were meeting with all the team owners to discuss the season, the Grand Final, and the upcoming season. The meeting was held in the conference room at the Kingdom Stadium in the Capital City.
Everyone took a seat around the large conference table. James and Jeff sat next to each other at the top of the table. Once everyone was seated, Jeff rose to his feet to address the owners.
‘This has been an historic season,’ declared Jeff as he broadly gestured to the room. ‘Every team is already in the green, and I haven’t even announced the shared revenue distribution from radio and television.’
‘You mean even the Cultivators and the Farmers turned a profit?’ asked the owner of Miners.
‘Success and winning are two different things,’ interrupted the owner of the Phoenix Rural Cultivators. ‘We may have only won one game, and that was thanks to bad refereeing. However, that didn’t matter. We packed our stadium with enthusiastic fans from popular opposing teams such as the Chiefs, Generals, and Flyers. They fully enjoyed the pommelling we took. I’m sure my niece’s beautiful singing during the halftime show enticed a few more into the crowds. We also had record sales of merchandise from our one good player.’
The owner of the Miners rolled his eyes and shook his head in disdain. The owner of the Farmers calmly continued to chew on the straw in his mouth.
‘So you’re not hankering for a championship any time soon?’ asked Jeff.
‘If it’s on the cards, why not?’ said the owner of the Cultivators. ‘It does sound a bit too much like hard work. Losing is the easy money.’
The other owners sighed in annoyance at his attitude.
‘Okay, enough chitchat,’ said Jeff forcefully. ‘Time to announce the shared revenue for the season.’
‘Total shared revenue for the season was 4.2 million coins,’ announced Jeff with a big smile on his face. ‘That is five times what we got last season. All teams get 3% of that chunk.’
Most of the owners stood up and applauded. The owners of the Priests and the Miners did not appear as happy.
‘This jump in revenue would not have been possible without my brother, James,’ said Jeff as he looked at James, who was smiling smugly. ‘For his work, he will receive 10% of the revenue.’
Most of the owners continued applauding.
‘Now, we get to the shared revenue for the playoffs,’ said Jeff. ‘A very nice 0.2 million coins. Each playoff team brings home 10% of this chunk.’
The owner of the Miners finally smiled a little as he looked over to the owners of the Cultivators and the Farmers.
‘I would now like to hand over to James,’ said Jeff. ‘He will take us through what we can expect from the Grand Final.’
The owners applauded as Jeff sat down and James stood up.
‘To the diehard fans, Pound Ball is a sport,’ said James as he quickly scanned the room with his eyes. ‘To everyone else it is entertainment.’
James paused, and the room remained quiet.
‘Entertainment is not a dirty word,’ said James firmly. ‘It is the future of everything. I have quadrupled my wealth in the last six months. With my help, everyone in this room can do the same.’
‘Hell yeah!’ shouted the owner of the Cultivators.
‘That’s the attitude,’ said James firmly. ‘I bet you don’t even know how the game is played.’
The owner of the Cultivators turned slightly red and smiled.
‘There is no shame in that,’ said James confidently. ‘It’s the responsibility of your coaches to know the game. Your job is to make your business as successful as possible. That means bringing in the profits, and I can see your head is in the right place.’
James could see the owners’ interest had perked up.
‘Television has changed everything,’ said James as he stretched his hand above his head. ‘The upcoming Grand Final is going to be a live spectacle like none other. The whole continent will be watching, and they will be amazed. We will have both a pregame and a halftime show. There’ll be marching bands, fireworks displays, and the continent’s most popular artists all performing together for the first time. The highlight will be Saliyah’s halftime concert. She will perform her three most popular songs from her latest album. That’s not all! Something else very special will be happening at halftime. I don’t want to spoil the surprise.’
‘So you’re saying the actual game is just an afterthought,’ said the Priests owner, sounding a little frustrated.
‘Not at all,’ replied James. ‘The game is what pulls all of this together. Everybody loves a great celebration. However, they also need a reason to celebrate. The Grand Final is that reason.’
The Chiefs owner began to clap. Gradually, all the other owners joined in. Even the Miners owner eventually joined in.
While they applauded, Jeff’s assistants entered the conference room carrying trays of glasses containing pineapple juice. They placed the glasses in front of the owners. The assistants left the conference room as the applause finally died down.
‘I haven’t even told you the real good news,’ said James, chuckling. ‘There has been an insane bidding war between sponsors. Every company wants their products on display for this huge audience. The revenue for this Grand Final will match the revenue for our entire season. Everyone in this room is getting another huge payday.’
The owners began stamping their feet as they chanted, ‘Coin! Coin! Coin!’
‘I say let’s drink to that,’ bellowed James as he raised his glass of pineapple juice.
All the owners stood up and raised their glasses.
Two days earlier, Jeff arrived at the Scarecrows training ground. They had just finished practice. He walked over to Ryan. Ryan was the Scarecrows start catcher. He had a record-breaking season. He had scored more points in one season than any other player in Pound Ball history.
‘Hey Ryan,’ called out Jeff.
‘What’s up, boss?’ replied Ryan as he turned around.
‘I wanted to check in on the league’s greatest player,’ said Jeff. ‘I was a little worried when I saw you limping off the field after that stunning performance against the Miners last week.’
‘It hurt at the time, but I’m feeling great now,’ replied Ryan. ‘Thanks for asking.’
‘Music to my ears,’ said Jeff as he walked beside him. ‘It’ll be a big day for both you and your lady.’
‘She’ll steal the show like she stole my heart,’ said Ryan as he softly smiled.
‘It’ll be the biggest day of both your lives,’ said Jeff as he patted Ryan on the back.
‘Well, I’m hoping there’ll be an even bigger day coming up soon,’ said Ryan as he looked down towards Jeff.
‘What could be bigger than playing and most likely winning the Grand Final?’ said Jeff, sounding a little surprised by Ryan’s response.
‘I’m going to ask Saliyah to marry me,’ said Ryan as a tear formed in his eye.
‘Going to!’ exclaimed Jeff. ‘Why wait? Tell her now. We can announce your wedding at the Grand Final.’
Ryan looked down and shook his head slightly. ‘I don’t have the money to pay for a wedding or even a ring,’ he said as he looked over to Jeff.
‘You’re a megastar Pound Ball player,’ said Jeff, sounding surprised. Then, a few seconds later, he sighed. ‘You are also on a rookie contract for the Scarecrows.’
Ryan embarrassingly grimaced a little.
‘I’ll cover it all,’ said Jeff enthusiastically. ‘I’ll offer you a selection of the finest rings in the Capital City for you to choose from. I’ll organise the wedding and everything else. And next season, I’ll make sure you get a real contract.’
‘Boss, you don’t need to,’ said Ryan, sounding a little nervous.
‘You have made the league, especially the Scarecrows, a lot of money this season, said Jeff firmly. ‘Don’t think of this as a handout. I’m merely giving you what you deserve.’
‘Thank you so much, boss,’ said Ryan as he smiled broadly.
‘If you really want to thank me,’ said Jeff, ‘propose to Saliyah on the field after her halftime performance.’
‘Oh geez, wow, that’s so dramatic,’ replied Ryan as they left the practice field.
‘Great way to celebrate your lead or inspire another epic comeback,’ replied Jeff.
Sapien Loop: End of an Era
Sapien Loop: Frozen in Time is the sequel to the book Sapien Loop: End of an Era. Sapien Loop: End of an Era is available on Amazon, in collection series on my @spectrumecons account, and in individual chapters in my @captainhive account.
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