Ranking the 8 Footballers Who Became Much Richer After Retiring

• Footballers earn a pretty penny for playing the professional game
• But many football players have gone on to amass enormous wealth after retiring
• Here are eight stars who became wealthy after hanging their boots

Footballers make a level of income that most people can only dream of.

They decide to take a quiet retirement after having a successful run for years chasing the league titles and Champions Leagues among other things.

However, most focus their efforts on their own businesses, investing the millions of dollars they made playing football after retirement.

According to Aljazeera, Al-Nassr superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest-earning player in the business, nabbing a cool $200 million in wages alone, while Kylian Mbappe and Lionel Messi made up second and third in 2019.

But there are also some football players who, as a result of their business acumen and entrepreneurship, ended up becoming even wealthier after retiring.

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Sports Brief looks at eight footballers who increased their wealth after retiring.

Mia Hamm

Even though Hamm was arguably the first female football superstar, she made the majority of her money from activities unrelated to the game that made her famous.

Although the US legend only made an estimated $100,000 per season, the majority of her reported $10 million fortune came from endorsement deals with well-known brands like Pepsi, Nike, and Gatorade.

After hanging up her boots, Hamm continued to exert her influence, joining the AS Roma Board of Directors in 2015 and becoming a co-owner of LAFC the year before.

Asamoah Gyan

One of the most well-known African players in recent memory, the Ghanaian striker scored six goals in three World Cups, the most of any player from the continent.

Toward the end of his career, he travelled to many different nations, including the UAE, China, India, and Turkey, and undoubtedly amassed enormous wealth.

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According to Daily Star, Gyan's impressive £16.6 million worth, however, is the result of his business ventures into a variety of industries, including rice and noodles, gasoline stations, bottled water, real estate, and boxing promotions.

Louis Saha

During his 16-year career, Louis Saha played for Premier League teams Man United and Everton, but it seems the Frenchman is just as shrewd a businessman as he was lurking in the penalty area.

One of Saha's companies, ‘AxisStars’, deals with connecting athletes and business brands so they can better negotiate their careers and even rate their experiences afterwards.

After retiring in 2013, the 45-year-old had the idea, and since then, he hasn't looked back, working with A-listers like Didier Drogba, Robert Pires, and Florent Malouda.

Mathieu Flamini

The aggressive and tenacious playing style of Mathieu Flamini did not exactly scream biochemical entrepreneur, but that is precisely what the former Arsenal midfielder has evolved into.

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Together with his business partner Pasquale Granata, he founded GF Biochemicals, a company with an estimated market value of £20.26 billion that produces levulinic acid, a fuel derived from plant waste that can be used to make environmentally friendly plastics.

Flamini was also a member of the group that developed BIOCIRCE, the first master's program in Europe aimed at advancing bio-economy education.

Michael Owen

Before injuries caused his career to crash and burn, the former Liverpool sensation Michael Owen had the world at his feet as a youngster, winning a Ballon d'Or and becoming England's youngest-ever goal scorer.

However, the 41-year-old managed to experience even better luck in the world of horse racing by co-owning Manor House Stables, a stable that has produced champions at Ascot and the Dubai Gold Cup.

His favourite horse, "Brown Panther," which he sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars, also brought in millions more in prize money.

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Owen's current market value is estimated to be around £36 million.

Thomas Gravesen

The former Everton midfielder was a complete maverick in his position, thrilling fans with his antics on the field and his shocking switch to Real Madrid.

His post-retirement life off the field, where he reportedly amassed over £70 million in poker winnings as a high roller in Las Vegas, has been even more shocking.

The Danish gambler once lost £39 million in one evening, but he has since made up for it and chosen a more tranquil life as a TV pundit in Denmark.

Robbie Fowler

Following in the footsteps of his former teammate Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler is another former Liverpool striker who has amassed wealth from horse racing.

But the 48-year-old's real estate business, which he reportedly owns more than 100 of in north-west England, is his main source of income.

It's estimated that Fowler has a net worth of more than £30 million today.

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Sun Jihai

Jihai, who became China's first player and Premier League goal scorer after hanging up his boots in 2016, has transformed the landscape of Chinese football.

The Manchester City hero established his own business with support from China Media Capital, an equity firm with assets worth more than $60 billion, including 30% of City Football Group.

In just three years, Jihai's company has 400 million Chinese users, which is more than the combined populations of the seven largest countries in Europe.