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Footballers are today world-famous and extremely wealthy. They rarely require a second job to keep them financially afloat. That wasn't always the case, when players could supplement their income by working in a variety of jobs.
Some of the players that we idolize today have also plied their trade in entirely different areas of work, ones which do not belong to the football field. They have done so for exercising their other talents, to earn a living or just out of pure passion.
Here are ten footballers who were well-known for something other than their ability on the field. Some are veteran players, while others are newcomers.
#10 Ian Wright (Pop star)
Ian Wright was a key player for Crystal Palace and Arsenal between the 1980s and the 1990s. Wright has also had a successful career as a UK television personality, hosting a variety of entertainment, reality, and sports shows. In 1993, he had set his sights on a different goal: becoming a pop singer. Wright's sole single was co-written and produced by Pet Shop Boy Chris Lowe, with assistance from PSB veterans Pete Gleadall and Bob Kraushaar.
Ian Wright, who held the Arsenal record of 185 goals until Thierry Henry broke it, wrote and recorded a single during his all-too-brief musical career. The song's title was "Do The Right Thing."
#9 Nigel de Jong (Car dealership)
Footballers, as we all know, have a penchant for automobiles. Occasionally, a little too much, given that they earn sums of money that some people struggle to earn over the course of their entire working lives. However, Dutch midfielder Nigel de Jong turned his passion for all things four wheels into a lucrative car dealership. It operates in Europe and the Middle East and it is fair to say that De Jong made a wise decision.
His incredible showrooms include cars like Lamborghini Aventadors, Maseratis, and Ferraris, among other prestigious automobile brands.
#8 Peter Schmeichel (Cleaner)
Before making it big, former footballer Peter Schmeichel tried his hand at a variety of jobs, including months as a cleaner in a retirement home.
Before joining Manchester United in 1991, the goalkeeper worked as an apprentice carpet fitter, sold newspaper advertising, and ran a World Wildlife Fund charity shop.
#7 Jamie Vardy (Factory Worker)
Jamie Vardy's rise from non-league to Premier League winner and England starter has been the season's most compelling story.
This long journey to the top of the game began when he was rejected by Sheffield Wednesday at the age of 16. From there, he worked full-time as a factory technician, making medical splints for people with foot problems while also playing non-league football for £30 per week.
#6 Papiss Cisse (Ambulance driver)
Former Newcastle footballer Papiss Cisse revealed in an interview with the BBC's Late Kick Off that as a teenager he drove an ambulance in his native Senegal. He witnessed some traumatic sightings before beginning his football career at the AS Generation Foot in Dakar.
“I saw people die in the past when I was 15 and driving the ambulance,” the Senegal international told reporters in 2013. “I was only 15, which is very young, and that was why I stopped going to school because I had this job. “Some times I had a little money which I gave to my parents. It was hard for me, it was very difficult for me because I was so young. My first time in the job I saw someone die and I cried but I became strong.”
It is uncertain why Cisse was given such a job at the age of 15, but it does put things in perspective. He even dropped out of school to work full-time on the pitch until he made a name for himself.
#5 Clint Dempsey (Rapper)
Clint Dempsey is best known as one of the most prolific American football players of all time, but the USMNT legend also has some serious bars.
Dempsey collaborated with Nike in 2006 to generate buzz for the upcoming World Cup, releasing the rap video "Don't Tread." This was the first time he performed as his rap alter ego "Deuce," alongside Houston rappers Big Hawk and XO.
#4 Eric Cantona (Actor)
Eric Cantona, the Premier League's top foreign superstar, wowed and shocked football fans with his incredible skills and semi-regular outbursts of comic violence.
Cantona eventually grew tired of the off-the-field restraint that football demanded of players and retired from the game at the age of 30 to pursue a career as a full-time actor.
#3 Daniel Agger (Tattoo artist)
Daniel Agger, a former Liverpool footballer, became a tattoo artist after retiring from football in 2016 with Danish top flight club Brondby. The 36-year-old spent the majority of his active days with the Reds despite only playing for two clubs in his entire professional career. He was with them for eight seasons.
The Danish defender studied tattooing and is now a member of Tattoodo, one of the world's largest tattoo parlors.
Agger invested £450,000 in the Danish sewage company "KloAgger" in 2013.
#2 Stuart Pearce (Electrician)
Pearce, a former footballer, was one of England's greatest left backs, appearing in over 700 league games for clubs such as Coventry City, Nottingham Forest and Manchester City.
Pearce previously worked as an electrician. After advertising his services on the Nottingham Forest programme, he was asked to do some domestic work for Brian Clough, the manager at the time.
#1 Gheorghe Popescu (informant for the government)
Popescu, a former footballer, was a shining light of the great Romanian side in 1990s. He won piles of silverware at some of Europe's greatest clubs such as Barcelona, PSV, Galatasaray and Tottenham Hotspur and earned over 100 international caps.
Popescu worked as an informant for Securitate, Romania's secret police force. During 1980s, Securitate appeared to be attempting to bring down Steaua Bucharest.
According to the Guardian, Popescu's past as a spy may have resulted in some conflicts of interest during his playing career.
