From Michael Owen to Louis Saha: 5 footballers who became richer after retirement

Football is one of the most popular sports in the world, besides being one of the richest. The footballers tend to earn handsome bucks, while the top players go on to become one of the wealthiest athletes in the world. However, some become richer after retiring from the sport.

Ayush Gupta

Kolkata, First Published Nov 23, 2020, 3:09 PM IST | Last Updated Nov 23, 2020, 3:11 PM IST

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If we consider some of the richest sport in the world, football and tennis is one of them. Meanwhile, football is one of the most popular sports that everyone likes to pursue, owing to it being less expensive than tennis.

Nonetheless, the sport produces handsome bucks, while the top footballers earn in millions, making them one fo the wealthiest athletes in the world. However, not all become rich by playing the sport.

On numerous occasions, it has been seen that the players make more bucks following their retirement from the sport. Be it through business or other sports; we look at some of the footballers who became richer after leaving the sport.

Michael Owen: The former England international, who has played for numerous top clubs, is a familiar face in football. Although he made quite some handsome bucks from the sport, he became even richer after pursuing horse-racing, following his retirement from football. He is the co-owner of Manor House Stables, as he has earned thousands by selling other owners and countries, while the horses have even won Ascot and the Dubai Gold Cup. His favourite horse 'Brown Panther' itself costs millions. He reportedly has a net worth of $68 million.

Robbie Fowler: The former Liverpool legend is still in the sport, as he currently manages SC East Bengal of the Indian Super League (ISL). While he earns decently in the sport, it is his investments outside football that make him even more decadent. Just like Owen, he too has invested in horse-racing, as alongside Steve McManaman, he also owns a sports company. He has a number of properties to his name as well, which happen to be more than 100 in north-west England, while his net worth is reported to be $50 million.

Mia Hamm: The only female footballer in the list, Mia Hamm happens to be a former footballer from the United States of America (USA). Having won four major titles with the nation, including the FIFA World Cup, she has also won some titles in association football. Nonetheless, when it comes to her richness, it is not football, that earned her just $100,000-per-season, but the endorsements that make her richer. She endorses companies like Pepsi, Nike and Gatorade. Following her retirement, she has joined the Board of Directors for Italy's AS Roma and is also the co-owner of LAFC. As of now, she supposedly has a net worth of more than $10 million.

Mathieu Flamini: The former Arsenal midfielder is not associated with any club as of now. Nonetheless, you will be surprised to know that he is an active businessman as well, as he is the co-founder of a biochemical industry, called GF Biochemicals. The former French international owns the business alongside his partner Pasquale Granata, which reportedly worths $28 billion, as the company produces Levulinic acid, used in the creation of plastic. He also owns a magazine house, which is related to eco-sustainability, besides coming up with a university degree of bio-economy. His currently has a net worth of around $14 billion.

Louis Saha: Another former Manchester United footballer makes the list, who was famous for his goal-scoring abilities during his tenure at the club. Although he did earn hefty bucks from the sport, his sound business mind has helped him gain more. He has started a company called AxisStars, which is on the lines of Tinder and Uber. It allows players to match with brands, as they share their experience, which helps the players with endorsement opportunities as well. As of now, he has an estimated net worth of $4.9 billion.