A benefit is a match or season of activities granted by a sporting body to a loyal sportsman to boost their income before retirement. Often this is in the form of a match for which all the ticket proceeds are given to the player in question. However hosting one of these matches is a risk for the player in question as they are responsible for paying any relevant receipts and collects any excess income from the match, therefore income from such matches is more often than not reliant on attendance.
Sometimes, the "beneficiary" can opt to give part or all of the money to charity. An example of this is
Paul Collingwood
Paul David Collingwood (born 26 May 1976) is an English cricket coach and former player, who played in all three formats of the game internationally for England cricket team, England. He played for Durham County Cricket Club. Collingwood was a ...
's 2007 benefit with
Durham County Cricket Club
Durham County Cricket Club (rebranded as Durham Cricket in February 2019) is one of eighteen first-class cricket, first-class county cricket, county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the Historic c ...
. This may also occur when sportsmen unite for a cause, for example the
Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal Parera (born 3 June 1986) is a Spanish former professional tennis player. He was ranked as the List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for ...
vs
Roger Federer
Roger Federer ( , ; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked as the List of ATP number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 3 ...
"
Match for Africa
The Match for Africa series is a recurring set of tennis exhibition matches. They are organized by Swiss player Roger Federer to raise money for the Roger Federer Foundation. In the exhibition, Federer competes in a singles match against anothe ...
" (2010) where more than $2.6 million was raised for the
Roger Federer Foundation
Roger Federer ( , ; born 8 August 1981) is a Swiss former professional tennis player. He was ranked as the world No. 1 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for 310 weeks ( second-most of all time), including a re ...
, enabling children living in poverty to realise their potential.
History
Benefit matches originated in English
county cricket
Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales.
Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...
in a time period where playing sport, in particular cricket, for a living didn't offer as big of an income as it does in modern society (2015), holding a benefit at a player's 10 year service mark or retirement mark was considered a form of retirement/insurance policy. Benefit matches are confused with
Testimonial match
A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...
es, it's important to note that this is a direct gift from the club where income is guaranteed unlike in a benefit where income is often dependent on attendance.
Similar events were organised in Baseball in the 1860s, these events often occurred at season end involving the stars of the sport to acknowledge a significant member of the sport. However a rule established by the NABBP in 1859 prohibited any player compensation, the basis of this rule was to maintain fair game in competition and avoid professional vs. amateur situations arising.
Significant matches
Baseball
*1861, Creighton & Pierce
*1911,
Addie Joss Benefit Game
The Addie Joss Benefit Game was an exhibition baseball game played between the Cleveland Naps of the American League and an all-star team composed of players from the league's other teams at League Park in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 24, 1911. The ...
See also
*
Testimonial Match
A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...
*
Benefit Season
References
Sports terminology
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