The profession has seen a push for tailored financial advice for athletes following increased media scrutiny of sportspeople who have lost money due to poor financial advice or limited financial education.
Several firms have burst onto the scene, advertising their advice services; inking sponsorship, planning and career coaching deals with clubs; and even launching focused units.
Titan Wealth became one of the latest firms to launch a sports division offering professional athletes financial advice in March this year.
Private bank Arbuthnot Latham has a sports team and expanded its services to work with individual and businesses in the horse racing and wider equine sector earlier this year.
In 2022, Evelyn Partners set up a financial education programme for boxing professionals as many earn amounts that require "careful planning" to establish financial security.
Evelyn Partners also partnered with Manchester City Women's Football Club providing education in managing their finances, planning for the future and financial considerations as professional sports women.
There are firms who have zoomed in on the service to professional athletes for far longer.
FLM, an SJP appointed representative firm, has been offering money coaching for over 15 years.
Money coaches at FLM offer tailored financial advice to professional athletes at any stage of their career, aiming to give them financial freedom.
Some of the athletes who have struggled
The push comes amid many examples of former athletes who have struggled financially despite having been big earners while playing for major teams.
An estimated 40% of professional footballers go bankrupt within five years of retirement, according to Xpro, an organisation helping individuals adapt to life after their footballing career.
In a recent example, former Liverpool and England footballer John Barnes was declared bankrupt by HMRC in September 2025.
The issue also extends to the world of rugby.
Former England rugby player Paul Sampson told The Telegraph in April 2026 how he was convinced by a fraudulent business to invest £450,000 into what later turned out to be a scam.
In the article Sampson explained that he had initially invested the money in properties after taking his father's advice to invest his rugby earnings.
While some sportspeople faced challenges because they did not seek financial advice, others did look for help but may have been taken advantage of.
Former Arsenal football player Ian Wright previously openly spoke about being close to bankruptcy after receiving what he labelled poor financial advice, according to a report by ITV.
Another case highlighting poor financial advice offered to athletes includes the V11 footballers which the BBC documentary Football's Financial Shame: The Story of the V11 reported on.
A group of former Premier League footballers, including Danny Murphy, Michael Thomas and Rod Wallace, formed a campaign group, known as V11, made up of individuals who invested through Kingsbridge Asset Management in the 1990s and 2000s.
The players were advised to invest in tax-incentivised film financing schemes and foreign property resulting in hefty tax liabilities.
Murphy reportedly lost £5m due to "financial abuse".
The issue with ‘unpredictable' careers
According to Titan Wealth financial planner and former professional rugby player Ethan Waller, athletes face financial challenges because their careers "move quickly and can be unpredictable, with major decisions made early on."
"Many begin earning a significant income at a young age without the financial experience or education to manage it, while performance pressures keep their focus on the next game or contract rather than long-term planning," he added.
MH Wealth head of sports financial planning Curtis Anderson was previously a professional footballer before becoming an adviser.
Footballers in particular have seen earnings soar in recent decades.
Anderson described how he went from earning a smaller amount to earning far more once he signed a professional contract.
"You go from earning nothing to earning a lot," Anderson said.
Additionally, he noted it can all "change so fast", with footballers typically having short earning years with only around three to five years of "good" money.
"You're constantly playing back and forth in your head that you want to spend what you've earned because you've worked really hard for it. But then you also need to make sure you're planning for the future."
An education gap
As players receive their new-found wealth they are often left in the dark about how to manage it.
"There is clearly a lack of support and education," Anderson stated.
He acknowledged that it is difficult for the clubs to step in because they are still players' employers.
However, he does believe clubs have "a duty of care to at least include some education".
St James's Place appointed representative Hildreth Financial Management director James Hildreth also spoke about the financial education gap in cricket.
Hildreth was a professional cricketer for Somerset County Cricket Club for 20 years before becoming a financial adviser.
He said that during the time he played cricket, the Professional Cricket Association (PCA), was increasingly more aware that the players needed financial support.
"I was made aware through the PCA of basic financial education, but it was not a lot at all," he told Professional Adviser. "A lot was still on the players to go and find out stuff for themselves."
Mind the UK financial literacy gap
University of Cambridge research has suggested that children start forming money habits by the age of seven, while speakers at PA360 North last year cautioned that the UK has a financial literacy gap problem.
Former cricketer Hildreth noted there is "a systemic issue within the country" with a lack of financial education in schools.
Could socioeconomic differences, and exposure to money management and financial education at an early age also be playing a role in how some professional sportspeople handle newfound wealth?
Research shared by the Institute for Fiscal Studies has suggested that, in addition to wealth transfers and returns, children of higher-earning parents tended to save more, though this could be attributed to them receiving more top ups from parents.
Of professional sportspeople, footballers – likely to have the highest earning potential at the top level – were most likely to be state educated compared to rugby and cricket players, according to Social Mobility Commission analysis from 2019 (see graph below).
Balanced advice is the way forward
Due to the nature of professional athletes' earnings, the nuts and bolts behind the financial planning on offer can differ to what might be offered to other clients.
Titan Wealth's sports division offers investment planning, retirement or second career planning, tax planning, including inheritance tax, and financial protection planning.
However, the division also plans for "issues such as injury risk; irregular earnings; early peak earnings; planning for life after sport".
Waller explained: "Understanding the athlete's mindset is critical.
"They are naturally focused on short-term performance, while dealing with the emotional and financial ups and downs of injuries, contracts and selection.
"The role of advice is to balance that, enabling them to enjoy the rewards of their career while building long-term security."
This often means professional athletes need to save more earlier while also receiving financial education.
"Ultimately, athletes are no different to any other client, they have families, responsibilities and ambitions beyond sport."
However, Anderson said his approach centres around investing.
"My main objective when I'm talking to players is getting them to be consistently investing every month."
The push for tailored advice
The national media and social media highlighting many cases of athletes struggling financially is likely partly responsible for the seemingly recent push for tailored advice.
Waller also acknowledged there are a lot of professional sports still in their infancy.
In 1985, the average salary for a professional footballer was £1,000 a week. This has risen to £60,000 a week in in 2025/26, according to sports salary and prize money database Salary Leaks.
Meanwhile rugby was not a professional sport until 1985.
"It's only now that we're starting to see the first generation of athletes retire from these sports – and not all in comfortable financial situations," Waller said.
"As these stories have become more visible, particularly through social media, the issue has come into much sharper focus."
Waller added there is now greater awareness of the risks athletes face during their careers, including short-term contracts, irregular earnings and injury, alongside exposure to unsuitable investment opportunities or, in some cases, financial scams.
"This has led to increased scrutiny and a stronger emphasis on getting the right support in place earlier."
Financial education has existed, with firms such as FLM having offered support for a while.
However, Waller noted: "There is growing recognition that it needs to be more tailored, practical and continuous to truly resonate.
"In response, wealth managers are evolving their approach, with a greater focus on delivering more relevant, experience-led support for athletes and the wider sports industry."
Hildreth believes the push has stemmed from an increased awareness that athletes have struggled.
He explained: "Player welfare is increasing more and more as sports go global, and there's franchise tournaments.
"There's awareness that players do need a lot more support than they might have been used to."
Anderson added that firms may also be advertising their existing services more, which is why it feels like a more recent development in the financial advice industry.
"Social media is also a bigger thing now so you might just be seeing it more," he commented.
Anderson concluded: "Financial advice for professional athletes is important now more than ever because players are at the top of their game earning more than they ever have."
