5 legendary footballers who went from rich to broke
We all love rags-to-riches stories. It's reassuring to see individuals make the most of the cards they are dealt and propel themselves out of hardships and into affluence. If a player breaks onto the top tier of football in Europe, they run into a lot of wealth.
Footballers are paid tens or hundreds of thousands of pounds per week. On top of that, they rake in a lot of money through advertising campaigns and sponsorship deals. However, it is not enough to fill your coffers with gold, it is also necessary to make sure it is managed in a responsible manner.
What most people don't realize is that managing money is just as difficult as making it.
If one is not responsible with his assets and wealth, it can all go away faster than it was earned. This has happened to plenty of world-class footballers.
Without further ado, let's take a look at five legendary footballers who went from rich to broke.
#5 Celestine Babayaro
Nigerian football's golden generation won Olympic Gold in 1996 and Celestine Babayaro was a popular figure in the team. Babayaro had a pretty solid career and played for the likes of Anderlecht, Chelsea, Newcastle United and LA Galaxy.
He was part of Jose Mourinho's Chelsea side that knocked Manchester United off their perch in the Premier League in early 2000s. The left-back was earning as much £25,000 per week in wages at the peak of his powers.
However, Babayaro was declared bankrupt in 2011 after a failed move to MLS. He was taken to court by creditors who had loaned him large amounts of money.
Celestine Babayaro - As well as having one of the longest names in football, he was declared bankrupt in 2011. http://t.co/nK84YQPlBr
#4 David James
David James is widely viewed as a Premier League legend. He held the record for most Premier League cleansheets (169) for a while until Petr Cech broke it. James played for some of the biggest clubs in England like Liverpool, West Ham United, Aston Villa and Manchester City.
Thanks to his ravishing good looks, James was also a model for top brands like Armani and H&M.
The former England number one had a high-profile career too and earned as much as £20 million over the course of it. However, James was declared bankrupt in 2014. He had a costly divorce settlement in 2005 and that was when things started to spiral out of control for the goalkeeper.
Due to his debts, James was ordered by the court to sell his sports memorabilia, DJ equipment and other valuable belongings. A retro Raleigh Chopper bike, the jersey he wore in England's 1-0 win over Argentina in the 2002 World Cup and his 1995/96 Liverpool kit were among the items he auctioned to settle his debts.
James has since served as player-manager for Indian Super League side Kerala Blasters and has also worked as a pundit with several studios.
Bankrupt David James auctions England goalkeeper jersey for £672 bbc.in/1ynI3Lw http://t.co/Prol8cRbRH