What do players do away from the pitch?

By Jack Shiels - Head of Player Pathways

📢 🚨 Football can only be a few hours per day, what else are you doing?

One of the experiences I am the most grateful for is going to play and study in the USA, for a number of reasons, but the number one reason is that it was a completely positive experience. 

After the two hours of training per day, your schedule is filled up with classes, socializing, home work or extra curricular activities, which means you are always on the move and are always doing something productive. 

A lot of times players who don't go this route and try to become a pro are in danger of training and then...nothing until the next training. I am a firm believer that regardless of the level that you are playing at or are striving towards, it's important to keep your brain engaged and working towards something outside of football. Not only does this put you in a better position moving forward, but it is also good for your mental health, and therefore will positively affect you on the pitch!

This is not me saying the US college route is the only option, but what I am saying is that if you are a young player at 18/19 chasing the dream, there is no reason why the rest of your time can't be spent productively (online education/internships/volunteering in an industry you're interested in) so that you are in a good position regardless of whether the football works out how you want it to!

Football is a ruthless industry, and even those at the top often regret not up-skilling in their time off, so start something today!