When JPMorgan Chase U.S. Wealth Management CEO Kristin Lemkau took the stage at the Game Changers conference, she shared a number that shows how hard it is to hold onto NFL money. Even after years of multimillion-dollar paychecks, many players struggle once the checks stop.
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“One in six NFL players files for bankruptcy,” Kristin Lemkau said at the Game Changers conference. “One in six. One in six when they retire. This is the most successful, profitable league in the world. These guys, well, maybe the FIFA, but in the U.S. for sure, they put their bodies on the line, they put their brains on the line, they get out of the league, and it’s a bust.”
The figure sits at the heart of JPMorganChase’s recently formed Athlete Council. The group exists to help athletes at every stage, from college to the pros to retirement, take charge of their own financial decisions.
“An athlete’s career and earning power are unique,” said Kristin Lemkau. “Careers can be short and retirement unexpected. We want to develop a program by athletes for athletes to help them from college to professional sports to retirement.”
“Every athlete on this Council has been deeply committed to paying it forward to help the more than 500,000 college, working, and retired athletes avoid some of the same pitfalls they stepped in. At JPMorganChase, we can help every athlete, regardless of income level, manage their financial plan for the future.”
The Athlete Council includes Ally Love, Tom Brady, Dwyane Wade (chair), Megan Rapinoe, Kayvon Thibodeaux, Alex Morgan, Jalen Brunson, Sue Bird and A’ja Wilson.
She isn’t stretching the truth, either. A 2015 paper in the National Bureau of Economic Research showed that nearly one in six NFL players goes bankrupt within 12 years of retirement.
Its authors, Kyle Carlson, Joshua Kim, Annamaria Lusardi and Colin F. Camerer, wrote, “Players with median-length careers earn about $3.2 million in a few years. If they are forward-looking and patient, they should save a large fraction of their income to provide for when they retire from the NFL.”
However, the researchers found that 15.7% of players file for bankruptcy within 12 years of retiring from the league. Their findings are based on data gathered on roughly 900 players drafted between 1996 and 2003, all with careers that began and ended between 2000 and 2013.
The stories behind the statistic are well known. Andre Rison was a central figure in the ESPN documentary “Broke,” which looked at athletes who lost everything.
Terrell Owens earned more than $80 million over a long NFL career but went through bankruptcy proceedings in 2012. Hall of Fame defensive tackle Warren Sapp, who made more than $50 million, also filed in 2012, within five years after his last game. Vince Young and Mark Brunell have filed too.
Former NFLer Nate Burleson, in a conversation with financial analyst Jill Schlesinger, spoke about how there are players who are exposed to a lot of money after practically coming from no money at all. The problems show themselves later on.
“Now you give these guys all of this money without the proper education and foundation. And once they retire, their spending habits catch up with the slowdown of the money, and there comes the avalanche of reality.”
With so many players mismanaging their money, financial education for younger players has become very important. Former cornerback Richard Sherman and defensive lineman Sheldon Day run the Player’s Collective with former NFL sports scientist Tom Zheng, which is dedicated to financial literacy and private-market access.
Football money doesn’t stay put on its own. That’s why Lemkau and the Athlete Council want players to take charge of their finances early.