7 ‘WAGs’ Explain Why They Date Athletes
1. THEY HAVE MORE TO LOSE THAN I DO
“I’m one of a very few. At any given time, I’m probably talking to a hundred of today’s athletes by text, DM or email. Out of that hundred, I may only meet 25. But I stay engaged because I’m a fan….My safety with athletes is I know they’re not gonna beat me or stalk me. I’ve never had an athlete be inappropriate with me. They have more to lose than I do. Because I’m always dealing with the upper echelon. I’m not a gold digger though. I’ve made my own money and I know when I meet someone I can say, ‘Here’s what I’m bringing to the table.’ Now we have a mutually beneficial relationship where no one feels slighted.”
2. I LIKE SEEING THESE MILLIONAIRES WRAPPED AROUND MY FINGERS
“First let me say I don’t consider myself a groupie. I go to school, I have a job, and I am an independent woman. I do what I do because I want to and it is fun….It is a control thing with me, I like seeing these millionaires wrapped around my fingers. It is the power of sex. I get a rush from it, these athletes and celebrities are use to getting what they want, and they are use to being in control, so when you take it away from them it is a power trip. I once had a player on the Atlanta Falcons beg me not to leave his hotel room. Said he would leave his wife and kids for me. It was like that scene from Harlem Nights with Sunshine. I am talking about a man who is 6’6″ 300 pounds who I have wrapped around my finger, you can’t imagine the rush you get from that.”
3. I THRIVE ON ADRENALINE AND DANGER
“[My fireman dad] was injured many times because it’s as dangerous a job as you can get. He once caught a man who jumped out a third-floor window. My father burst through the second-floor window, caught him mid-air, and his only comment was, ‘’Thank God he was little, or the two of us would have gone down.’ My father was 6-foot-6. I loved him a lot and I miss him a lot. Maybe that’s why I date athletes. And why I’ve driven a Ferrari 180 mph on a test track. I thrive on adrenaline and danger.”
4. THEY KNOW HOW TO SHIFT INTO THAT EXTRA GEAR
“After my divorce, I decided I was only going to date athletes. My decision had nothing to do with body fat percentages or max bench press (although those factors certainly don’t hurt!). Nor was this decision dependent upon the man in question being some sort of professional competitor. In fact, I define ‘athlete’ as anyone who regularly and passionately engages in sports or physical activity….All you have to do is watch the face of a runner in his or her last mile of a marathon to understand that athletes have grit. When the going gets tough, they know how to shift into that extra gear to get it done. This trait is key in relationships when you want a partner that is willing to persevere through the difficult times, rather than simply throw in the towel and walk away.”
5. IT ISN’T AS DIFFICULT AS YOU THINK
“Here is what I don’t get—it is cool in our society to be like one of those Desperate Housewives bitches or Sex and the City bitches and sleep with 10 guys a month, but what I do makes me a prostitute? I am not ashamed because I am doing what I want to do and there is nothing wrong with that….It isn’t as difficult as you think. The easiest way is to just find out what club they are going to while they are in town. Most players go to the same spots every time they come into town, so you put on your best outfit and let them know you are willing to do whatever and they usually invite you back to their room. You can also hang out in the lobby of the hotel, but that isn’t as fun as going to the club….I know the funniest thing that has happened to me is when a coach busted in on a player and I while we were having sex and just started to talk about what the player had done wrong and how he needed to fix it for the next game and then just walked out like he never even saw me there. After getting bitched out by the coach, the player couldn’t get his little soldier to stand up anymore.”
6. GLAMOUR AND ROMANTICISM
“First, there is this sense of glamour and romanticism when it comes to dating an athlete. This was first coined when Marilyn Monroe dated Joe DiMaggio back in the day—and has had quite a ripple effect through Hollywood. It’s alluring because these women get to be the glamorous celebrity and trophy wife, sitting in the crowd, as the cameras roll on. And it’s the one time they can let their hair down and be a giddy fan.”
7. THE NAMES DON’T BOTHER ME ANYMORE
“Call me a jersey chaser, a cleat chaser, a puck bunny. I’ve heard them all. At 27, the names don’t bother me anymore. I date athletes….I was not a gold digger, not a fame whore, I never wanted to fake it just to say I was with an athlete again. I found athletes attractive, sexy, interesting….I once hooked up with an NHL player who had a girlfriend who knew he cheated. He even said as much. “She knows but actively doesn’t pay attention” he told me, trying to reassure me it wasn’t a big deal. Later I learned there was truth to this: They had a convenient arrangement. He got to do what he liked, and she got the attention that comes with being attached to a famous and powerful man, and it worked for both of them. It helped boost her career and for that, she was willing to look the other way and smile through the countless accusations….Obviously it isn’t all about love and serious relationships. I’ve had one-night stands and casual relationships with a lot of athletes. Some have been worthwhile—great sex, hilarious stories, a quiet personal bragging right when I watch ESPN and see them play well. But sometimes it’s tough. I have learned to put walls up to distance myself from the potential hurt that many athletes are more than capable of dealing out, hurt I have felt in ways I can’t begin to describe.”