Although players these days earn a lot more, many find the need to continue working in some form which is why you’ll find footballers owning and working in a variety of organisations and businesses. Stuart Ripley, who won the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers, is now a successful solicitor and lecturer. Former Northern Ireland international and Man City midfielder, Jeff Whitley, is a used car salesman, and former Wigan Athletic League Cup winner, Arjan De Zeeuw, is now a police officer in the Netherlands.
Players who never played in the top flight and plied their trade in the lower leagues will nearly all find the need to continue working with many retraining into a variety of careers once their football careers are over. You can find former professional footballers in a whole range of jobs, from bakers, postmen and builders, to accountants, fitness trainers and salesmen. Football as a career is highly competitive. Only a minority of aspiring young hopefuls secure paid employment with a league club and only a few amateur clubs offer salaried positions.
