>>47588693I feel like it doesn't differ too much. Maybe some regions have subsidized it if the league is important/fundamental enough. This question depends on the organization, government-political structure and how much society has diverged compared to us. And different writers/fan's interpretations are equally interesting.
Once one anon suggested that Pokemon is a post-scarcity world. I could play with that idea but I still like to imagine social classes/poverty etc still exists. So maybe Gym Leader is a nice position for salary to compensate for all the maintenance. Maybe some gym leaders would have a reputation for being shams or just in it for the money (like "McDojos" IRL).
It depends on how "prestigious" it is too. When Ash visited Flannery in the anime, he basically had to help her clean up her own Gym. In the games, Blackthorn is a very rural town for a place that ought to have a lot of visitors from trainers.
TL;DR it's all headcanon and speculation. But that's okay, because discussing different theories is half the fun.
