Financial Security for Life for Athletes!

By Athena Constantinou, Managing Director, APC Sports Consulting, Nicosia, Cyprus Elite athletes can earn substantial amounts of income but only within the limits of a short time span of a professional career, which usually lasts between 10 -15 years. The average annual salary of an athlete can be anywhere from 50-100 times more than the average household income both in the US and Europe. The end of the athlete’s field play usually marks the end of these substantial earnings. Within the limited time period of most athletic careers, it is imperative for athletes to utilise their earnings from sport as best as possible whilst they are able to do so, in order to build up some long-term wealth and thereby become financially independent for life. So how can athletes build long-term wealth during their sports glory days, when their sports earnings are at their peak? With proper planning, prudent spending and careful investment, sports earnings can turn into life-long money-making machines for athletes. How athletes choose to attain such financial freedom is a personal decision in each case, but the choices are abundant. Amongst other things, investing in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, new businesses, can all create parallel sources of income, which are not dependent on the athlete’s sporting abilities or performances on the field of play. In a nutshell, to achieve life-long financial security, athletes need to observe the following basic rules:

• Start being money smart early on in their sporting careers;
• Live on less and invest the rest;
• Learn the rules of money;
• Start investing once basic financial needs have been covered; and
• Engage a professional financial coach (adviser).

After all, financial freedom is not about how much money you can earn while working, but rather how much money you can earn when you are not working! That is the name of the game! Athena Constantinou may be contacted by e-mail at ‘This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.’