What happens to a Championship / League One level player after retirement?

[LawCharltonBest]

They'll be wealthy, but not monster rich. Although it depends how careful they are with money i guess.

Then generally in their mid-30's their football playing career is done. Usually with no proper job since school.

I've heard some start their own businesses. But I'm curious to know what happens to a lot of them

 

[macheda14]

They'll be wealthy, but not monster rich. Although it depends how careful they are with money i guess.

Then generally in their mid-30's their football playing career is done. Usually with no proper job since school.

I've heard some start their own businesses. But I'm curious to know what happens to a lot of them

Coaching. Most will try their hand at coaching across all levels.

 

[Santos J]

A lot go into coaching which is still a decently paid gig in the second tier. Average salary for a first team GK coach in the Championship is £84,000. There's a significant drop in salary across the board from Championship to League One though.

 

[Tiber]

Some league One players will be on very good money. Others may have played at a higher level for much of their career and some will have been lower league squad players for their entire career.

There is a million different possibilities and I suppose it all depends on what they did with their money/how much they saved. Some no doubt saved up to retire comfortably , some might end up working in a supermarket etc.

 

[Rhyme Animal]

Coaching. Most will try their hand at coaching across all levels.

Most? Surely the minority... there's what, 650 players in the Championship alone?

That's a lot of coaches!

Maybe a more interesting topic would be - what happens to the players that don't go into coaching?

 

[SilentWitness]

A lot of them have a business on the side/property portfolio etc.

 

[Gio]

Most ex-pro's find jobs like anybody else who needs a wage. Many will use their contacts or clout as recognised faces to get a leg up in certain fields (coaching being an obvious one, but replicated in all sectors).

 

[Wumminator]

I’d say it is quite rare for them to have a massive plan. I know some lads who knocked around in league two/conference level and they had to go and get normal jobs.

 

[africanspur]

I’d say it is quite rare for them to have a massive plan. I know some lads who knocked around in league two/conference level and they had to go and get normal jobs.

I know its probably difficult as you don't usually talk explicitly about this but do you know roughly how much they would have earned a year?

Are we talking well above the average UK salary even at that level (ie few hundred thousand a year at least)? Or a much more average salary?

Edit: Actually, just googled it and it seems that in league two, we're talking a pretty average salary. 40/50k on average a year. Not very much when your career only lasts 20 years and not even really enough to be saving up a good amount for retirement.

 

[GazTheLegend]

I'm not going to name names because of doxxing reasons but I worked with one.

Generally even league one and championship players have a certain level of fame and that's enough to get you in the door. There's life outside football

Same goes for a few even lower level players and part timers I know, plenty of whom got trades or went into full time education after the game.

 

[balaks]

I know its probably difficult as you don't usually talk explicitly about this but do you know roughly how much they would have earned a year?

Are we talking well above the average UK salary even at that level (ie few hundred thousand a year at least)? Or a much more average salary?

Edit: Actually, just googled it and it seems that in league two, we're talking a pretty average salary. 40/50k on average a year. Not very much when your career only lasts 20 years and not even really enough to be saving up a good amount for retirement.

That's above average salary in UK. Nowhere near enough to retire on though after maybe 12 years of playing on that.

 

[africanspur]

That's above average salary in UK.

It is indeed. By average, I just meant it wasn't very high sorry.

Someone earning 50k a year from (let's be optimistic) 18-35 has earned about £900k over the course of their career.

Definitely not enough to be living on after they retire.

 

[Focusmate]

Nowhere near that salary level. Average league 2 salary is 40k and often skued by a few senior guys who used to play at a higher level on say £2k + a week, so most would be on less.
Conference level would often be well below this.

 

[Lynty]

Run kids football camps and flirt with the moms.

 

[FujiVice]

Most of them find "real jobs." If you ever listen to any of the current podcasts featuring lower level players, they pretty much slip back into society. Sadly, there's not many jobs in football, for the amount of footballers that retire each year.

 

[limerickcitykid]

I work with a Conference South player who makes about £500 a week.

We also share office with a company who gave a Premiership Rugby player part time working with them. He was saying basically 90% of his teammates have no plan for when their rugby careers end. Although it’s increased slightly with corona virus worrying them since they’ve all had massive wage cuts.

 

[Focusmate]

It is indeed. By average, I just meant it wasn't very high sorry.

Someone earning 50k a year from (let's be optimistic) 18-35 has earned about £900k over the course of their career.

Definitely not enough to be living on after they retire.

Once you take off Tax and NI Its not even that much. Its a decent working salary but in no way “sets you up”

 

[Havak]

https://www.manchestereveningnews.c...s/life-after-sport-swapping-football-12580847

Not quite a long-term League One player, but he did play there a bit and in lower leagues. I went to school with this lad so it was nice to see him 'make it' to a degree. No idea how much money he was actually making, but forced to retire due to a couple of bad injuries at only 28. Now working in recruitment so probably on the more average wage. Obviously, players in these leagues often aren't going to earn enough money to be able to retire in their mid-30's and not need to make more money for the rest of their lives. Although, I'd be interested to see how much money a player would have who had done say, a 20-year career and never been at more than a mid-table Championship side for the whole time.

 

[RedTiger]

If they aren't taken to a farm to live out their life in peace then they usually open a pub or get into property management

 

[charlenefan]

Great idea for a thread and not something I'd ever thought about, must be pretty demoralising going from a good level of professional football to potentially a 9-5 mundane job (I mean in a sense it's welcome to real world but still)

 

[Wumminator]

I know its probably difficult as you don't usually talk explicitly about this but do you know roughly how much they would have earned a year?

Are we talking well above the average UK salary even at that level (ie few hundred thousand a year at least)? Or a much more average salary?

Edit: Actually, just googled it and it seems that in league two, we're talking a pretty average salary. 40/50k on average a year. Not very much when your career only lasts 20 years and not even really enough to be saving up a good amount for retirement.

i used to know people quite high up at Vale. The best player they had (Marc Richards) was on 2k. This was a massive outlay.

 

[TheNewEra]

Great idea for a thread and not something I'd ever thought about, must be pretty demoralising going from a good level of professional football to potentially a 9-5 mundane job (I mean in a sense it's welcome to real world but still)

You'd hope they use the money to reeducate themselves at that point and re-skill.

A footballer can easily go and train go be a pilot afterwards for example, or they take 5 years out of work and hire a full-time tutor and become very good in another field.

 

[Red_toad]

They'll be wealthy, but not monster rich. Although it depends how careful they are with money i guess.

Then generally in their mid-30's their football playing career is done. Usually with no proper job since school.

I've heard some start their own businesses. But I'm curious to know what happens to a lot of them

Start their own business, train for a new career, stay in the sport management or coaching.Maybe squander it all on sex, drug and rock and roll. Or just sit back and enjoy their 10 years of earning about 10 times the amount of a regular joe.

I used to work with a lady who's brother in law was 2nd choice keeper at Birmingham 15 years ago, he was on 6 grand a week, I earned 16 grand a year at the time. So that's kinda like mega wealthy to me.... I think he ended up retraining as an electrician when he retired in his mid 30's.