Ghana’s all-time top scorer, Asamoah Gyan, has cautioned footballers to plan for life after football while they are still actively playing.
The former Black Stars captain made the call during an address at the 2024 Afro Summit in Accra, where he shared his own experiences and insights on the importance of financial planning.
Asamoah Gyan, who has established several businesses, including a water company and boxing promotion, emphasized that footballers should not wait until they retire to start building their future.
“As football players, we don’t think about tomorrow because we feel like we are earning every month, you know, a lot of money,” he said.
However, Gyan highlighted that football careers are short-lived, with the prime years typically ranging from 25 to 30 or 32.
He urged his fellow players to take advantage of this time to invest and build something for themselves.
“Football is a temporal job. Maximum, you start from 18, the professional level, and then your prime is around 25 to 30, 31, 32. That is when your prime ends. The rest is just bonus.”
Gyan’s words of wisdom come as many former football stars have struggled financially after retiring from the game. He himself turned his focus to entrepreneurship after retiring from professional football and has since built a successful business empire.
“When I got to England, my brother called me and he said, listen, it’s time to invest. Let’s try and build something. That was when everything started,” he recalled.
The former Sunderland and Al Ain striker believes that it is crucial for footballers to think about their financial future while they are still playing the game. With an average career span of just a few years, Gyan argues that it is essential for players to plan ahead and make wise financial decisions.
“We have a very short career. Football is a temporal job. So around this time, and if maybe God says you have another 60 years to live, how are we going to manage it?”
