‘I'll play soccer for as long as I can!’ Analysis of the educational choices of professional soccer players in Germany

ABSTRACT Given the comparatively high salaries of professional soccer players during their active athletic careers, investments in education during their career seem to be less prevalent than among other athletes. This exploratory study analyses to what extent professional soccer players participate in vocational training, and what factors influence their cost–benefit assessment of participating in such activities during their athletic career. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 25 German professional soccer players (9 still active, 16 retired). Of these, 18 had competed in the top two leagues, while 7 had played in the 3rd and 4th leagues. The data were interpreted using qualitative content analysis. The results reveal a range of investments by players in education during their careers: from pursuing high-quality education to not investing in further education at all; from low to high opportunity costs of vocational training; from high willingness to take risks to low willingness to take risks. Our findings shed light on the decisions not only specifically among professional soccer players when choosing an education path, but also more broadly among individuals that face high occupational career risks and earn high salaries, to develop approaches for sustainable education planning (e.g. career goal development or guidance on educational pathways).