Recently, both Floyd “Money” Mayweather and Manny “Pac Man” Pacquiao agreed to face each other on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. For years now, fight fans have been debating on who is the better fighter, and finally they have the opportunity to make their cases.

According to ESPN, the money that will be generated by the welterweight title unification fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao—already expected to be a slam dunk to break every revenue record in combat sports history—is growing by the day and could easily surpass $400 million. Furthermore, a staggering $74 million sale of a little more than 16,000 tickets will be generated at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Not only is the sum of money expected to be generated at this event insane, the bets placed on the fighter are even more mind-boggling. For example, rapper 50 Cent recently announced a plan to bet $1.6 million on Mayweather.

Approximately 87% of the bets have been placed on the underdog, Pacquiao, because he’s plus-170, meaning, in the event that he wins, the payout for a bet of $100 will be $170.

The money that is expected to be made, not only by this particular sporting event, but by just about every other sport relevant in today’s society, is superfluous.

Professional athletes are praised for their astonishing capabilities, which are marvelous and entertaining, however, their extremely high salaries are concerning.

A report found that the average NBA player made $4.5 million in 2013. Compare the whopping $4.5 million to the average salary of a teacher here in the United States, which was found to be anywhere from a low of  $27,274 to a sparse $51,539. (nea.org)

To give further insight on insufficient incomes, the average salary for a police officer is $47,829 a year. Additionally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the lowest ten percent of police officers earned less than $33,060.

Teachers and police officers are not the only ones who receive inadequate pay; those figures serve as a general understanding of the meager salaries important individuals who impact people’s daily lives receive. Workers all over the world spend much more time doing much more important things that we all need and benefit from, but the compensation that they see for it is less than chump change compared to the salaries of professional athletes. Sports are great entertainment. There are few things that people like to do more than watch those with amazing talent go head to head in competition, but that doesn’t justify all of them being in the one percent.

We decide what they get paid, though. All of their money comes from their team’s owner, which comes from ad revenue, which comes from us.

The momentous people who dedicate their lives to making a difference in others’ lives, instead of excelling in a personal talent, are not fully recognized and appreciated for their dedication in the workforce. Instead, we have people with talent that entertains millions, by throwing their fists, while law enforcement officials are hardly appreciated for their daily sacrifices (because they’re too busy killing black people).