What Professional Soccer Players Get up to During Their Time Off

Published on: 25 May 2020
What Professional Soccer Players Get up to During Their Time Off
Black Stars

For much of the year, the best soccer players in the world are either training for the upcoming match day or playing before tens of thousands of fans in stadiums.

Those who are truly top-tier will play in domestic and continental competitions for their club, and then they’ll play for their country during international breaks and over the summer.

Everyone needs some downtime, but when soccer players do have time off from training they’ll still look to stay fit and healthy. Many have been known to showcase the other activities that they get up to during their time off. So, let’s have a look at how some of soccer’s biggest stars keep themselves busy during their time off.

Finding the time to tell all

When a soccer player retires, many of the top personalities and national heroes find themselves even busier than they were as a player. There are offers to do punditry, commentary, analysis, columns, work with clubs, become ambassadors, and so much more.

If there’s one very prominent trend that has emerged during time off, it’s that legends of the game have been much more open to taking the time to do interviews with inquisitive journalists and fan groups.

One such former player is Black Stars legend Michael Essien. The Ghanaian midfielder, who played for Chelsea, Real Madrid, AC Milan, and Olympique Lyon, among others, has some incredible stories about his time in the game.

As an example, in his Instagram interview with Carol Tshabalala, per en.as.com, Essien revealed that Mourinho signed him to Los Blancos just to stop his rumored switch from Chelsea to Arsenal.

Playing games: it’s the modern way

Many of the best players in soccer right now fill their spare time with gaming. The global sensation Fortnite is well-publicized by the number of soccer players who have given the game a go.

In the spring break, content creator Ibai took it upon himself to assemble some pros to play a game of League of Legends, with Real Madrid goalie Thibaut Courtois and Achraf Hakimi of Borussia Dortmund on board, according to edition.cnn.com.

Other players are much more classically-inclined and traditional in the games that they play. Cristiano Ronaldo has attended poker events, Ghanaian descendant Mario Balotelli is known to favor roulette, and Leicester’s James Maddison has also been spotted on the casino floor.

As explained by 7casinobetting.com, there are now some extremely good casino sites that offer a superb range of games as well as top-class promotions. So, while at home, there’s no doubt that soccer players who enjoy these games check out the online versions.

Goodbye hair!

It’s become somewhat of an ongoing joke that some soccer players care as much about their hair as they do their performances on the pitch. However, with the time away from the pitch, many soccer stars have decided to shave their hair off.

Outlet theguardian.com details Eden Hazard, Héctor Bellerín, and even Paul Pogba as having shaved it all off. Anthony Martial, Douglas Luiz, Ander Herrera, and Jan Vertonghen have also buzzed down to very short or bald hairstyles.

As you can see, soccer players find very different ways to keep themselves busy when they’re not training or competing on the pitch.

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