Why it’s time to stop talking to footballers about ‘Plan B’.
An article critiquing the commonly used football phrase "needing a plan B"
PLAYER REALITY CHECK: ‘I need a ‘Plan B’ in case football doesn’t work out or I get injured’.
Whilst this statement may sound wise, it is actually quite short-sighted if you are only focusing on your life between ages 20-35, dangerously ignoring or insufficiently planning for the years that follow. “You need a plan B” is a very commonly quoted phrase within the football industry that needs to be challenged. It’s time for a new approach.
A professional football career for those who make it is, at best, a third of a working person’s life. For someone to focus 100% on this first phase of the working life and nothing else is similar to a coach obsessing about the first part of a training session, planning only the warm up and then ‘seeing how things go’ for the rest of the session. Or a musician who learns only one of three songs for a concert, hoping he will just be able to make it up as he goes along for the last two songs.
What I also don’t like about this talk of a ‘Plan B’ in football is that, by definition, ‘Plan B’ is an ‘inferior plan’ - something that is a consequence of failing to achieve ‘Plan A’. Consequently, it is presented as second-rate, rather like ‘B’ students at school who are given a half-hearted ripple of applause and a “nice try - but shame, you’re not like the ‘A’ students”, after the ’A’ students have made the headlines in the newspapers, and have had their names engraved on the wall. Let’s leave this ‘plan B’ phrase behind…
Aston Villa and England Centre-Back Tyrone Mings first made money in life outside of football. He provides some helpful insights:
“I certainly have seen the other side of the football bubble. I can definitely see where I would fit into society away from football. I just think gathering as much knowledge whilst you play is a great use of your time. It will definitely put you in a better situation and able to make a better, more well-rounded decision come the end of your playing career.”
Away from the pitch, he has been pursuing an education – and hands-on experience – in business. Mings, who was included in the Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe list, has invested in fashion and tech companies as well as setting up the Tyrone Mings Academy.
Personally, I’ve banned the players I coach from saying, “I want to be a professional footballer”. For me, the sentence is incomplete; there must be an “and” included e.g. “I want to play professional football ‘and’ pursue/study/work as…”, or “I want to be a professional footballer and pursue a career in teaching”, or “I want to be a professional footballer and start my own car mechanics business.”