Footballers often comment about how difficult it is after hanging up their boots – so it's perhaps unsurprising that several have gone on to play different sports.
Having spent 15 or more years training and playing with a big group of team-mates, it's understandable that many footballers miss the camaraderie of the dressing room after hanging up their boots.
Losing the buzz of competition can be hard to take, too – so what better way to scratch that itch by taking up another sport? Here are some players that have done that, plus some who did it while they were still playing football.
Gareth Bale
Bale was arguably the greatest footballer in Welsh and British history, but the former Real Madrid star has turned his attention to his beloved golf since retiring at the start of 2023.
With a handicap of two, Bale played at the Californian-hosted Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February, a tournament at which professional golfers play alongside celebrities.
The highlight of Bale's first round came on the second hole when he chipped to within three feet of the hole, albeit via the kind of huge deflection that was absent from his stinging long-range howitzers.
Petr Cech
Cech called time on his football career at the end of the 2018-19 season, and though he returned to Chelsea as a technical and performance advisor, he clearly missed the buzz of competitive sport.
So he decided to sign for National Ice Hockey League team Guildford Phoenix – as a goaltender, of course.
Cech played ice hockey growing up and has been a fan of Guildford Flames since first arriving in England in 2004 so, even after two decades in football, it's something of a dream come true for the 37-year-old.
“After 20 years of professional football, this is going to be a wonderful experience for me to play the game I loved to watch and play as a kid,” he said.
Paolo Maldini
Quite possibly the greatest defender of his generation, in 2017 Maldini qualified for a professional tennis tournament – the Aspria Tennis Cup, in Milan, of course, with his doubles partner and coach Stefano Landonio declaring: “He does not have any weaknesses.”
If that was the case then maybe Landonio should take the blame for the duo being beaten 6-1, 6-1 in 42 minutes.
Gabriel Batistuta
Batistuta will always be remembered as one of the most lethal goalscorers in world football.
Despite ending his career amid chronic pain due to injury problems with his ankles, Batistuta quite literally got back on the horse by taking up polo in 2009.
After scoring two goals on his debut for the Loro Piana polo club, the Argentine was typically driven. “It's very difficult, but I hope to improve a little bit at a time,” he told Argentine television. “I'm a bit annoyed because I didn't play well, but I will keep trying.”
Less than a year later he was lifting the Copa Stella Artois, which sounds likes the trophy your dad won with his pub's darts team.
Jerzy Dudek
Champions League winner Dudek retired in 2013 and promptly swapped the football pitch for the racing track, where he now competes in endurance races.
“Motor racing was my passion before football,” he told LFC TV. “I raced go-karts but of course that stopped when I became a professional footballer. When I quit football I also missed the adrenaline you got from playing.
“Now I'm taking in new tactics about cars, about different tracks. Of course, there are times when I ask myself why I'm doing this; I have a wife and three kids at home – a very nice life, and when you lose control or focus in the car you can really get into trouble.
“But you need passions in life – they are what keep you going. Motor racing gives me a lot of joy and I'm loving it.”
We really miss Dudek, by the way.
Joe Hart
What to do when you've been given the summer off by the England manager? Head home and knock a new bat in, obviously. Cue jokes about wicket keeping.
The former England number one took to the cricket field in Shrewsbury while England took on Sweden in the World Cup quarter-final, scoring six runs.
Hart, who spent last season with West Ham United, also took a catch for his hometown team.
Ivan Perisic
In the summer of 2017, despite intense speculation regarding his future at Inter, Perisic appeared relaxed, competing in a professional beach volleyball competition.
“This was always my dream, I have been playing beach volleyball since I was 10. I'm very passionate about this game and every summer I have been practicing with my friend,” Perisic said after representing Croatia at the Porec Major event.
“I'd like to thank everyone who has given me the opportunity to play with the best beach volleyball players in the world. It felt amazing – even though I lost.”
Rio Ferdinand
In September 2017, Ferdinand, one of the most decorated English footballers of all time, announced he would attempt to become a professional boxer.
The chance to prove myself in a new sport was a real draw,” Ferdinand said. “Boxing is an amazing sport for the mind and the body. I have always had a passion for it and this challenge is the perfect opportunity to show people what's possible.
“It's a challenge I'm not taking lightly, clearly not everyone can become a professional boxer, but with the team of experts Betfair are putting together and the drive I have to succeed, anything is possible.”
Which sport is the most surprising to you and which player did best?