The most disliked people in sports By Tom Van Riper, Forbes.com Jul 30, 2:47 pm EDT Michael Vick will soon be playing football again, thanks to a decision by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to reinstate the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback effective in week six of the coming season. But getting back to doing his thing on the field should be the easy part. The tougher task for Vick, coming off an 18-month prison term for bankrolling a dog fighting business, will be rehabbing his image. Right now, more than seven in 10 people across the U.S. say they dislike him, according to the latest survey from E-Poll, an Encino, Calif.-based market research firm, making him the most disliked person in sports according to their data. Not that he’s alone among big-time jocks. Some pro athletes just have a way of getting under people’s skin. Whether its brashness, perceived insincerity or crime, some guys can’t buy a break from the public. E-Poll’s latest numbers show that sports fans give their biggest thumbs down to those jocks they see as phony (Alex Rodriguez, Kobe Bryant), selfish (Manny Ramirez, Terrell Owens) and criminal (Vick). The group garnered the most responses among those that fans “dislike some,” “dislike” or “dislike a lot,” according to E-Poll. E-Poll surveys are based a representative sample of 1,100 people weekly, ages 13 and over. The most disliked people in sports were chosen from those celebrities in the athlete, coach or sports broadcaster category with a minimum awareness level of 10 percent. That Rodriguez and Ramirez recently became embroiled in baseball’s steroid controversy is only part of the story. Both have turned off large swaths of fans for years, A-Rod for his perceived phoniness, Ramirez for his aloofness and lack of hustle. Bryant’s reputation still suffers from a rape allegation he endured five years ago. He put the incident behind him after charges were dropped, but he still scores poorly with fans turned off by what they see as an act to curry public favor. Fair or not, Bryant just isn’t seen as genuine, according to E-Poll. Both he and Ramirez are beloved heroes in L.A., but a lot of fans across the country just haven’t warmed up to them. “A lack of sincerity makes it tough to overcome these high dislike ratings,” says Gerry Philpott, E-Poll’s chief executive. “People have their perceptions.” Of course, to make the list at all you have to be good on the field. Few people know or care much about mediocre players or coaches to have strong feelings about them one way or another. Even as he leads the list, Vick has a chance to turn his numbers around eventually. Vick, recently released from prison for his part in an illegal dog fighting ring, saw his stock plummet very suddenly over a single incident. Genuine remorse and good citizenship going forward can get him past his current image problem, as long as it’s done correctly. That means rehabbing his image in a low key way, the better to come across as sincere. Animal volunteer work is great, “but do it without holding a press conference about it,” says Cindy Rakowitz, Los Angeles public relations consultant who specializes in crisis management. “A month later it’s in the paper, it’s a way to do it much more organically.” And, points out Philpott, third party validation goes a long way. Humane Society officials have said that a reach out by Vick to do some work for them seems sincere. The key is whether that holds up long term. Meantime, just playing well and staying clear of trouble would turn him into a new man pretty quickly in people’s eyes. Americans have a way of rooting for second acts. The top five: 1. Michael Vick: Slideshow 2. Manny Ramirez: Slideshow 3. Alex Rodriguez: Slideshow 4. Terrell Owens: Slideshow 5. Kobe Bryant: Slideshow • See more disliked sports figures http://sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slug=ys-forbesdisliked073009&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
that pretty much tops my list! I think Kobe will be #1 for me OH and to add on my personal list...Albert Pujols.
Dido on Kobe. I also dislike Alfonso Soriano for his smirkness when he plays the Stros, Zambrano too.... ah F it just throw in the whole Cubs roster.
They had an argument on First Take yesterday. The black guy (I forget his name but he's equally as dumb as Skip. He also has a snaggletooth) argued Vick did his time and should be forgiven. Skip pretty much said he was an idiot, Vick intentionally killed dogs for his entertainment, and he's the biggest scumbag in sports. At the end, I felt dirty for agreeing with Skip Bayless for once. Then I took a shower.
Meh, as has been posted countless times, Vick has paid his debt to society. I'm getting sick of the double standard people are applying to him, ultimately just because they 'must love dogs'. Stallworth's actions are far more reprehensible to me and further compounded by the fact that he didn't even put in his due like Mike (and maybe worse, bought his way out of it).
The fact that Vick did his time means, to me, that he should be allowed back into the NFL. It doesn't make him any less of a dirtbag, in my opinion.
He's a vile, rat-face rapist who buys Sorry-I-raped-a-woman apology jewelry at the mall. If hating him sends me to hell, I will happily go there.