In the ranking of the most successful athletes in Russia only three skaters – Alina Zagitova, Evgeny Medvedev and Elizaveta Tuktamysheva. Despite the high popularity of figure skating, the earnings of the main stars here are decently different from what the same players or hockey players get. So, for winning the Grand Prix stage you can get no more than $ 18 thousand. The finale of the prestigious series costs a little more expensive – $ 25 thousand. With the maximum result, the prize money for the first half of the season is $ 61 thousand. Alain Kostornaya earned about that.
The most decent prizes are at world championships: $ 64 thousand for a victory in single skating and $ 90 thousand in doubles, but the amount is divided into two. It is important to understand: skaters get even more modest money on their hands. All prize money must be paid on personal income tax. The rate is 13%. In addition, depending on the terms of the contract or existing agreements, up to 20% may be deducted by the figure skating federation and about 30% by the coaching staff.
Another source of income – performances in various ice shows. New Year holidays are the best time for such work. Thanks to a pause in the competitive calendar (between the national championship and the Euro – about a month) even active skaters can afford holiday rentals.
Sport24 understands the economics of the process.
When it all started
Until the early 2000s, work in the show almost inevitably turned into a move to North America and was available only to those who had already completed a sports career. Everything changed in 2002, when Ilya Averbukh, the world champion in ice dancing, graduated with professional sports and started producing. True, Averbukh made his debut show before the official end of his career. The first spectators were residents of Novosibirsk. Two years later, the first performance took place in Moscow. Then the production company “Ice Symphony” appeared.
From the very beginning, performances and tours have been dominant in the income structure, their share is about 60%, the rest is TV projects. They appeared a little later. It all started after the presentation “Russia is waiting” in 2006, which was shown on Channel One. Russian skaters have just returned from Olympic Turin, where they won three of the four possible golds (the fourth medal – bronze – went to Irina Slutskaya) and immediately went on the ice. It was a great success. Due to the high ratings, Averbukh and his team were invited to participate in the creation of the TV show “Stars on Ice”, which over time turned into the “Ice Age” and still appears on the air of the First in one format or another.
“I am at the forefront of this business in Russia,” says Ilya Averbukh Sport24. – Everything that is happening now, including a large number of different ice shows, is a derivative of what I planned more than 15 years ago. At first there were just demonstrations. And to dream that it would gain such proportions was bold enough. It was very lucky that at some point the tour coincided with a television project. The crazy popularity of the first two seasons has shown that, in principle, we are doing everything right. ”
At the same time, the first two years of its existence, the production company of Averbukh actually worked at a loss.
“We had to close down the disadvantages in different ways – I sold one car, then there was Saab, it was re-credited several times. The maximum losses were after the first tour – more than $ 100 thousand. At that time, just a lot of money.
Making a quality presentation is expensive. And I immediately positioned my show as a show in which champions from champions performed. Only the best. And I understood that a substantial part of the costs will be fees. The average bet for the main characters is $ 2-3 thousand per exit, regardless of my financial condition. Everyone received royalties, even when the tour was unprofitable. It was important for me to maintain the composition. ”
For over ten years, Averbukh has not had a clear competition in the Russian market.
Maria Butyrskaya, and Alexei Urmanov, and Arthur Dmitriev tried to organize their show at different times. But each time they came across a cool reception from Moscow spectators.
“Shaking a city like Moscow is a very difficult task,” Averbukh explains. – I trained for a long time in the regions. It did not generate income. But I studied, gained experience, understood how everything should be, starting from the advertising layout and ending with the search for sponsors. ”
How it works now
Over the past five years, the number of ice shows in Russia has increased markedly. Following Averbukh, Evgeni Plushenko took up production. And in 2017, Tatyana Navka was also interested in this business. These are the largest players in the Russian ice show market.
According to data from open sources, Averbukh’s revenue is about 250 million a year, net profit is about 29 million. Plushenko worked at a loss for several years, and Navka, too (primarily because of impressive material and technical costs). At the same time, according to the state contract, for seven performances at the start of 2018, the Rosconcert accountable to the Ministry of Culture transferred about 6 million rubles for Ruslan and Lyudmila. Of course, there is no data for 2020, but, given the scope of the Sleeping Beauty with the participation of Alina Zagitova, Navka Show LLC may well count on self-sufficiency.
Counting on serious income is more difficult. For organizers, the cost of one show in Moscow starts from 15 million rubles. The main expense items are the fees of top participants, advertising campaigns and rental of the site, including training. To reduce its cost, staging work goes even at night. All payments are in rubles.
“We have been working in the ruble zone for a long time. They stopped counting everything into currency after the crisis, ”says Averbukh. – In the currency, everything became sadder. The average athlete’s fee is about 150-200 thousand rubles per exit. ”
The premiere of any show is almost always held in Moscow. And then the big tour begins, which can stretch for several years at once. So, the musical on ice “Ruslan and Lyudmila”, whose official premiere took place on December 25, 2017, reached Turkey in July of this year, and Ilya Averbukh has been showing Alice in Wonderland for several years in Sochi. You can look at Tatyana Volosozhar as the white queen and Maxim Trankov, the mad Hatter, even now.
Not all headliners can afford a many-month tour. For such cases, the organizers of Russian shows have a second composition. In the West, many are trying to integrate into the competitive calendar. Organizers of the Swiss Art On Ice almost every year invite the current champions. This year’s headliner – Alina Zagitova – gave her consent before she announced that she wants to suspend her career. Tatyana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov traveled to Zurich even in the winning seasons.
Art On Ice is generally popular with skaters. They appreciate attentive attitude, interesting performances and very decent fees. An athlete with a name involved in mass numbers receives about $ 2 thousand per exit. Soloists are paid even more – up to $ 5 thousand.
Only the Japanese can compete with such amounts right now. Elizaveta Tuktamysheva, for example, said in an interview that over the summer in Japan you can earn a good foreign car. This was before the end of the 2018/19 season, in which Lisa really returned to the top of the world figure skating.
In the new status, they are ready to pay $ 5-6 thousand for participation in Japanese shows. The fees of Zagitova and Medvedeva are even higher – up to $ 10 thousand for a performance. For current athletes, approximately the same principle is relevant as with official prizes – coaches receive their percentage.
50 most successful athletes of Russia. Sport24 and PwC Rating
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