IR Day 18 - Part 6

You pull Michelle’s Macbook closer and look at it. Now that she’s given you context, some of the stuff in the contract makes more sense. You look at the commitment dates. It is a lot. This is a full-time job, and you can say with confidence right now that there’s no way you’re doing any college while this is going on. If it stays in Florida you might be able to see your mom and Kayla once in a while, but yikes.

Michelle is probably right about the money. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Super talented athletes still have to put in the work and make their way to stardom and wealth. Sports opportunities are common enough to be attainable, but this reality TV thing is a unicorn. Something like this will not come along again.

Does Ingrid know about this? Does she have someone like Michelle to help her understand it? She must. She’s probably smarter than you. But still.

“Riley, what’s the problem?” Michelle asks.

“I’m just thinking about Ingrid.”

“Riley, she’s probably already signed.”

You aren’t so sure. Ingrid isn’t miserable with FUTA, but you sense that she only agreed to it because of outside pressure. She enjoys soccer but has no pro ambitions. She has zero interest in being a celebrity. You’re pretty confident about those things. You could see her going for it for just summers or something, but to make FUTA her whole life?

You put your chin in your hand and gaze hard at Michelle’s screen. Michelle eats a few bites of her salad and looks out the window.

“I don’t know if Ingrid would go for this,” you say finally.

“Why does it matter?”

“Because I really care about her,” you say honestly.

“Riley, you’ve known her two weeks.”

“Three weeks,” you correct her.

Michelle rolls her eyes. “I know how much it means to you to finally have a girlfriend. But you need to be clearheaded about this and you’ve already wasted some time. The window’s closing here. The producers are not subtle about this. They need to know how many players are returning before they can seriously start scouting.”

“My mom always said to be suspicious of people who try to rush you into commitments. It’s a car salesman thing,” you say. “I think.”

“Yes. It is,” Michelle says with a nod. “But this is why I’m your manager instead of an actual pro. Because you can trust me to prioritize your well-being over a payday. You need to seize this opportunity, Riley. It might make certain things more difficult, but it beats the hell out of throwing it away and then regretting it for the rest of your life.”

Yeah. You trust Michelle.

She’s probably right. FUTA could be great or it could be a disaster. Or somewhere in between. Either way, it’s your two great passions meeting in one place: girls and soccer. You want to be a part of it.

“Are you in or out?” Michelle asks. “This matters to me too, Riley. My future is in flux right now too, remember? If you go all in, I have to represent you. If you don’t, I need a job. And that’s OK. You don’t owe me anything. But I need to know so that I can make plans. You know?”

“It’s just sudden,” you say.

“You’ve been putting it off for a week!”

She’s right. You gaze down at your sandwich, which you have not touched.

“How much time do I have?” you ask.

“Until they’re full. Applications opened this morning. Do you know how many conventionally attractive, college-aged girls there are in the world who like soccer and want to be on TV?”

“A lot?” you say hesitantly.

“Yeah, I’m thinking it’s a lot!” Michelle snaps.

Commit?

Or talk to Ingrid first?