love the game so much that they are not ready to walk away from it. FWIW there are 22 semi-pro football leagues in North America. For example the New England Football League (NEFL) has 32 teams with about 2,000 players (max of 55-man rosters). All the players have regular jobs during the week and spend their nights and weekends participating in the league. The players don't get paid for their participation, but it isn't uncommon for players to be paid $200 to be on a team's roster.

Also, keep in mind that some minor league baseball players only make $1,100 per month,

"But Broshuis said he didn’t like trying to make ends meet on a starting salary of $1,100 per month, before additional taxes and clubhouse fees were taken out. He said many fellow players were also strapped for cash. “Guys living either sleeping on some stranger’s futon at a host family’s house, or they’re cramming six guys into a three-bedroom apartment trying to split rent as many ways as possible,” he said."

https://www.marketplace.org/2018/04/05/business/minor-league-baseball-draws-fans-and-dispute-over-pay

Should that mean that the minor league baseball system be scrapped because players are "Destroying their bodies for nothing and so many still seem to think they are gonna get their break and make the big time?"