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A semi-professional athlete is one that is paid money to play and are thus not an amateur, but for whom sport is not a full-time occupation, generally because the level of pay is too low to make a reasonable living based solely upon that source, thusly making them not a full professional athlete. Semi-professional athletes and teams were far more common in the early and mid-20th century in North America than they are currently. Today there are many benefits, such as collegiate eligibility and the attendant scholarships, in maintaing amateur status. Olympic eligibility in some sports is still dependant upon maintaining a fully amateur status (although far less so than was previously the case) and such athletes may be supported by government money, business sponsorships, and other systems. At the same time professional sports have become such a massive and renumerative business that even many low-level feeder teams can afford to have fully professional athletes.
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