1 in 6 NFL Players Bankrupt After Retirement
JPMorgan Chase CEO Kristin Lemkau highlighted an alarming statistic about financial pitfalls in football at the Game Changers conference. According to her, one in six NFL players files for bankruptcy after retirement.
This figure is based on a 2015 paper by Kyle Carlson, Joshua Kim, Annamaria Lusardi, and Colin F. Camerer, which found that nearly 15.7% of players file for bankruptcy within 12 years of leaving the league.
The researchers gathered data on roughly 900 players drafted between 1996 and 2003, all with careers that began and ended between 2000 and 2013.
Lemkau emphasized that this issue is not limited to struggling athletes. Even those who earn millions of dollars during their playing careers can fall into financial difficulties once they retire.
Examples include Andre Rison, Terrell Owens, Warren Sapp, Vince Young, and Mark Brunell, all of whom have filed for bankruptcy despite earning significant amounts during their NFL careers.