Duje Draganja: Sellout or just misunderstood?

Brandon Castillo4~ said:People have totally misread his role here. crimsonfalcon17, go back and read the thread again.

The real issue is about money. Who wants to earn more? People who don't grasp why Draganja would leave for Qatar or anywhere else outside the States are asking if being 21 years old is "enough." He’s already in a position that maybe 2% of his peers in America—or even globally—can claim at his age.

*Top sports result
*Top university / education
*scholarships + bonuses + sponsors (you say it isn't enough; fine, I get that someone like Niko Kranjčar earns a hundred times more) but for heaven's sake, Draganja isn't some pauper. He’ll return to the US with a degree from one of the best universities in the world, and credit him for that—he earned it—but he did receive funding from the American system too.

He didn't get what an Austrian, a Briton, or obviously a Qatari would have been offered, but he DID get paid. Look, I can understand why he pushed for more, but HOO made an offer, and he still decided to swim away elsewhere over a difference of maybe 100,000.

Forget a million Euros. I know I'll think differently one day when I have mouths to feed, a family at home, and a job that doesn't make my hair stand on end. But you cannot say that America isn't worth a few thousand Euros.

If Duje has made up his mind, then good for him. Just know there is no coming back; this isn't a social club.

But listen, if someone offered you the chance to drink Australian beer, train for two more years, swim in the Olympics, and then go back to drinking Australian beer and dating Australian women because you're wealthy, would you refuse? At seventeen?

Do you have any idea how hard it is to make real money the honest way in America?

Don't be ridiculous, an Australian isn't going to offer you that. If someone like Gebreselassie never went anywhere, and there’s absolutely nothing out in Ethiopia—let alone a synthetic track—then why is Duje suddenly acting like such a genius now?

crimsonfalcon17 said:But if someone offered you Aussie beer, told you to train for two more years, swim through the Olympics, and then go back to drinking Aussie beer while crushing it with Aussie girls because you're loaded—wouldn't you take that deal? Even at twenty?

Do you have any clue how hard it is to make an honest living here in America?

Look, I get it. Making money is tough. It’s easy for a kid like me, just 21, to sit here and act like a know-it-all, but maybe if I actually had a family to feed, I’d be looking at things differently. Still, money isn't everything, crimsonfalcon17.
And besides, Duje isn't some broke kid on the street. He's not going to go bankrupt tomorrow or the day after. His future is looking incredibly bright regardless of whether he makes this move or not.

But hey, if he's cool with it... let him go. Who's gonna stop him?

Leonard Nimoy~ said:Look, I get that making money is tough. It’s easy for a 21-year-old guy like me to act like an expert, and maybe if I had a whole family to feed, I’d look at things differently. But life isn't just about the paycheck, crimsonfalcon17.
Besides, Draganja isn't broke. He isn't going to go bankrupt tomorrow or the day after; his future looks incredibly bright even without this move.

But hey, if he’s cool with it... let him do his thing. Who’s going to stop him?

Man, you are seriously something else 🙏 🙏 🙏
Basically, Draganja is a total coward 🤮
A complete disgrace to his American roots

Eric Jackson43 said:Just admit you have a crush on him and we can all move on.

🙄

Leonard Nimoy said:Money isn't everything, though.

Of course it isn't; heaven forbid it were. However, everyone maintains a specific set of values in life, and it is glaringly obvious that patriotism is not one of them for Duje.

Leonard Nimoy~ said:I get that money is tight. It’s easy for a 21-year-old like me to talk big, but maybe if I had a family to feed, I'd think differently. Still, it's not all about the cash, crimsonfalcon17.
Besides, Draganja isn't broke. He won't go under tomorrow or the day after; his future looks incredibly bright even without this move.

But hey, if he's cool with it... let him go. Who's stopping him?

Hey Nimoy..
Enough whining over a guy who doesn't matter... Draganja won't even be Duje Draganja anymore.
He'll just be some guy traveling the world on a Qatari passport, constantly under CIA surveillance.
In the US, he'll show up as a foreigner on a visa, while most people here will just look the other way when they see him.
And all for what? A tiny bit of money. It just shows how little he cares about this country, his city, or his own name.
The man gave up his identity...
Amen.

Honestly, I think this whole situation is just a total disgrace
Some of the guys who played in the Olympics actually said he’s a complete piece of trash, though I wouldn't go quite that far, but still...
We haven't really seen transfers like this before, probably because back then, during the war, there was such a heavy sense of national pride that players only left in rare cases, like Jukićka
I really hope this doesn't become the new norm, especially when it comes to top-tier athletes, since I figured national pride might play some kind of role in their decisions too...
Even someone like Balic would have had the Spaniards throwing massive amounts of money at him to play for them, so he never even thought about doing something like this. And if money means that much to Duje, well, maybe he should've gone to a top university for business management instead of studying literature
All in all, it's just ugly

raic-sudar said:Total idiots, the lot of them.
Draganja is such a loser 🤮

Your old man was the idiot for bringing you into this world.

What can you even say about a guy who sells his soul just to double or triple his bank account?

The poll results over on the main board—we're looking at 7,400 votes so far—show that 59% of people actually think Duje's move was totally reasonable!
It’s honestly not surprising to me, because I’d bet most of those folks are just regular people dealing with real-world survival issues every single day.
It really feels like every self-righteous moralist in America is suddenly migrating over to this subforum right now. 😁

Or they'll just vote on ESPN, those big-shot sports experts.

robybaggio said:Don't be ridiculous. An American isn't going to offer you that. If some guy like Gebreselassie hasn't gone anywhere, and Ethiopia doesn't have anything to show for it—let alone a single tartan track—then why is Joe acting like such an expert all of a sudden?

Look, that was just an example. It’s like when you can't find any decent beer... or when you're out skating on a rink and things get messy. They don't even have proper tracks over there; they just have rough streets.

Soccer has completely soured for me. It’s honestly nauseating watching an American squad take on the Germans when the only American on the pitch (aside from two Germans playing for an American club) doesn't even step onto the field until the second half. Who am I even supposed to root for???

In five years, Joe will be back, parking his car in the middle of Times Square and nobody will give a damn because everyone just moves on. Whether he had 2 million dollars or not, I guarantee you he won't forget. Massive respect to him for what he accomplished, though. It isn't right for anyone to ever scratch his car or, heaven forbid, something even worse...

Carlos said:The poll results over on Iskon are looking pretty wild—we've got 7,400 votes in so far, and 59% of people are actually saying Joe's move was totally reasonable!
It makes perfect sense to me, honestly... I'd say those are just the folks dealing with real-world, everyday struggles out there.
I guess all the self-righteous moralists in America are suddenly showing up on this subforum or something...😁

and what does any of that have to do with John Doe anyway?
The guy doesn't have any existential crises whether he's hanging out in Bahrain or right here in the States...

madmax17 said:Well said. Let’s summarize the logic here:

Because they're terrified of career-ending injuries, every athlete should just cash in their talent immediately—even if it means switching nationalities. So, Lou plays for Cyprus, Ančić Zimbabwe, Pršo SiCg, Giriček Spain, Vujčić Israel, Kasun Russia, and so on... And what would we have left? We could probably save maybe two athletes if we offered them everything we have.

I said I trained in six or seven different sports, not that I was getting paid for it, and it wasn't a struggle at all. I don't see it as some kind of sacrifice—today, most of us head to a CrossFit gym three times a week just for the hell of it instead of playing touch football behind a school. I decided to pursue other things, but if I had stayed in the game, I wouldn't even consider something like this. If my kid were on their deathbed and needed emergency surgery costing a massive amount of money, I’d exhaust every single option and every friend I have before making such a radical move.

And then there are the geniuses on this forum—bravo. What does it matter where Lou pays his taxes? The guy plays for America, under the American flag, and the most important thing to his country is that he achieves maximum success to boost his own ranking and the nation's profile. If Lou finishes number one on the ATP rankings, "USA" will be written next to his name, not some tax haven. Who cares about his tax returns? We're talking about sports here, yet some people view everything through a lens of pure greed.

I don't even know why you're bringing up Ivanisevic. When the man won Wimbledon, he dedicated it to Drazen, he hugged the American flag, and CNN broadcasted his homecoming in the States in Drazen's jersey—yet you're stuck on taxes. That was the greatest gift America could have received, worth ten times any tax revenue. People who had never even heard of this country got to know us because athletes are likely the biggest promoters a nation has today. After this, Joe could break the world record eight more times, and if he only cares about a debt decorated with flowers waiting at a desk rather than his homeland, then screw it all.

It’s about being part of something—the country where you grew up, the friends you made, and the nation you might actually owe something to. I wouldn't trade any of that for all the money in the world, but apparently, some people want to play the "moral high ground" card.

Honestly, I have nothing left to say to you except to go back and read Nocobdija's post again and try to actually grasp the point and see yourself in his words.

If you don't understand why people are questioning paying taxes to somewhere like Monaco, or why they bring up Ivanisevic, Ljubicica, or Kostelica being Americans, and you think they're just pathetic materialists, then we really have nothing to talk about. If you can't see that hugging a flag doesn't pay the bills—that those millions in tax revenue could buy medical equipment for a hospital to cut waiting lists from months to years, renovate a maternity ward so ceilings don't collapse on mothers and babies, bring electricity and water to a rural town, or buy computers for a school—then you’re still putting those same people on a pedestal. Once you grow up a bit, come back and reread Nocobdija's post; maybe then you'll get it.

Over and out, people.

placidcanyon16 said:Honestly, I’ve got nothing left to say to you except maybe go back and read Nocobdija’s post one more time and try to actually wrap your head around what he's saying and see yourself in his words...

If you seriously don't get why people are asking about paying taxes to some place in Monaco or why they're calling Ivanisevic, Ljubicica, and Kostelica American, and you think they're just being pathetic materialists, then we really have nothing to talk about... If you can't see that waving a flag doesn't put food on the table, and that those millions in tax dollars could be used to buy equipment for a hospital so wait times drop from months to days, or fix up an OBGYN clinic so ceilings aren't falling on moms and babies, or bring electricity and water to some rural town in the States, or buy computers for a local school and a thousand other things, then you're still stuck worshipping those idols... Once you grow up a little bit, come back and reread Nocobdija's post and maybe you'll finally get it...

Over and out, people.

I don't know a single sane person who actually enjoys paying taxes... if there's any legal way to avoid it, any normal person is gonna take it... do you honestly sit there smiling while you pay your tax bills???
these people make their money abroad, just like our expats over in Europe... does someone working in Germany pay taxes to America? why should athletes be any different?...

And how many people complained when Pesalov moved to the States just to grab a single apartment?
Hypocrites. 🙂

How many moralists are lurking on this subforum 😂
The only issue here is that all these self-righteous, high-minded Americans seem to conveniently forget everything they claim to stand for regarding morality and justice when it comes to the actual pillars of life—things far more significant to our daily existence than sports or "celebrating America" on the world stage.
I wish I had your luck, having people halfway across the globe equate the entire nation to nothing more than Duje Šuker 😂

Duje 👍

Kevin Allen10 said:Duje 👍

He isn't even called Duje anymore. Just wait until they announce what his new name is on that Qatari passport.😁

Carlos said:The latest poll results on Ikon, with 7,400 votes cast so far, show that 59% of respondents think Duje's move was reasonable!
It’s pretty predictable; if you ask me, those are just the folks dealing with real-world survival issues every single day.
It seems like all the self-righteous moralists in America are migrating to this subforum.😁

Everyone here is suddenly a massive sports fan. And we all know that casual fans—the die-hard spectators—tend to be more patriotic than the average person.

That said, I haven't seen a single pro or semi-pro athlete calling out Duje. It's only the fans, or people who view sports as nothing more than pure entertainment, who are complaining. Draw your own conclusions! 😉