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Is Steph Curry Cheap and How Random is Random?

Evaluating the biggest basketball contract in NBA history, plus Ryanair’s seat allocation.

Are top basketball players underpaid? The American basketballer Stephen Curry has just signed the biggest contract in NBA history. The new deal will pay him $200 million over 5 years but amazingly, according to fellow superstar player Lebron James, he’s probably being underpaid. It may sound ridiculous but economists agree. How can this be true? We look at the economics of superstar sports salaries.

The Mystery of Ryanair’s Seat Allocation
Ryanair carries more international passengers a year than any other airline. The European budget carrier is renowned for its low cost seats. If you want to guarantee seating next to people you book with, you have to pay extra. Otherwise, Ryanair says it will allocate seats randomly. We speak to statistician Dr Jennifer Rogers from the University of Oxford about her doubts over the ‘random’ nature of the seat allocation.

Presenter: Charlotte McDonald
Producer: Charlotte McDonald and Richard Vadon

(Image: NBA Finals: Game Four, Credit: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Available now

9 minutes

Last on

Tue 11 Jul 2017 01:50GMT

Broadcasts

  • Mon 10 Jul 2017 12:50GMT
  • Tue 11 Jul 2017 01:50GMT

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