I saw the headline to this news story earlier:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/t/tottenham_hotspur/8027257.stm

Now I've got nothing against Darren Bent or Tottenham but it's not me is it? I am right in thinking the word "star" has changed meaning in recent years?

I'm sure I remember a time when the word "star" would only be applied to the two or three very best players in a football team or the two or three principle characters in a TV series. But now it seems to be a by-word for player or actor.

See this too from 2007
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-503251/Man-Utd-star-Rape-victims-jealous-boyfriend-attacked-I-danced-her.html

At the time Evans was a reserve player for Man Utd but still the word "star" is used, as it is for pretty much any soap actor or person in a film, however minor their role.

My question is "When did this shift happen? Is it as recent as I think or has it been going on for years?"