Not just for kicks

Soccer players get serious about financial future

Soccer players get serious about financial future

Mic Smith
The Post and Courier

Battery goal keeper Dusty Hudock teaches Gabriela Esnaola, 9, at left, and Alexis Polcyn, 9, proper goal keeping skills at Patriot's Point Tuesday. In back behind Polcyn is Sara Costanzo, 9. Hudock teaches soccer through his business Professional Soccer Instruction.

Mic Smith
The Post and Courier

Mark Watson, an assistant coach with the Charleston Battery, closes the attic door after inspecting the attic, with his wife Hannah seen in back, inside a house on Daniel Island Tuesday. Watson and his wife run their business Daniel Island Property Concierge.

Watering another person's plants or checking for leaks in a crawl space may be a far cry from the professional soccer fields of North America and Europe. But like many players, Charleston Battery coach and former player Mark Watson has a life outside what is known as the Beautiful Game.

With his wife Hannah, he runs a business that keeps Watson, 37, busy during the off-season and helps meet the couple's long-term goal of financial security.

With a season that's only about six months long — slightly longer for coaches — U.S. soccer players can find themselves with time on their hands. The Battery closed out its season earlier this month.

In June, the Watsons started Daniel Island Property Concierge, a business that looks after the homes of permanent and part-time residents. They collect the mail, ensure the air conditioning is working, even check whether rodents are living in the garage.

After playing soccer in his hometown of Vancouver, British Columbia, and for teams across the United States and in England, Watson married and settled in Charleston. Like the Battery's field, the Watsons found a home on Daniel Island and started to grow their business.

"Everyone who lives here is super-loyal to Daniel Island. If we can use local businesses, we do," Hannah Watson said. "So far, that's been working to our advantage."

In a sport with a retirement age of about 35 years for most players, the Watsons aren't the only local professional athletes with businesses on the side. Experts say self-employment suits athletes' lifestyles by providing flexible working arrangements. Furthermore, they're often able to tap into a deep networking pool and make the most of the name recognition they enjoy, albeit mostly locally.

A tiny percentage of U.S. athletes earn megamillion-dollar playing contracts and product endorsements that set them up for life. Even fewer secure lucrative television jobs or appear in commercials when their playing days are over.

Not everyone's a David Beckham. This is the real world.

Juggling skills

Players in Charleston's league — the United Soccer Leagues, or USL — typically earn around $1,500 to $2,000 a month for six months, plus added benefits such as an apartment. Earnings may vary for younger or more experienced players, or at larger clubs.

For Battery goalkeeper Dusty Hudock, 35, that means juggling his playing career with a one-on-one coaching business while studying to be a civil engineer.

"I've played soccer for a long time, but it's going to end, and I'm going to have to do something else," he said.

Hudock started his coaching business, Professional Soccer Instruction, about five years ago with a former teammate. When the teammate left, he carried on by himself.

He usually runs eight to 10 sessions a week, mostly for 13- to 14-year-olds, but students can range from 10 to 18. Hudock said he saw a need to provide the personal attention younger players often don't receive at their schools or clubs, and he comes with more experience than most local coaches.

Like many players, Hudock has moved around. He's lived in Seattle; Miami; Colorado; Rochester, N.Y. While coaching is "a nice way to earn some extra cash," it's not going to save the bank. To that end, he enrolled at Trident Technical College to become an engineer.

"Coaching is a passion, but I'm not going to get rich off it," he said.

It's a reality all players must face sooner or later. Even players who earn $250,000 a year for three or four years can't just retire, said Mark Nagel, associate professor of sport and entertainment management at the University of South Carolina's College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management.

It's simply not enough of a nest egg to live on, he said. Even players who make it to the top level of their sport still have 35 years or more to live before full retirement. Players should waste no time before they start developing employable skills in other areas, he said.

"The worst time to think about what you're going to do after you're 30 is when you turn 30," Nagel said.

Fulltime

When that time comes, former players can benefit from their on-field careers in two distinct ways: understanding the value of teamwork and understanding the importance of branding, said John Clarkin, director of the Tate Center for Entrepreneurship at the College of Charleston.

Successful businesses are built on teamwork, Clarkin said, and players understand the value of surrounding themselves with talented people. They also come with instant brand recognition, which helps overcome what Clarkin calls the "newness," or the "Who are you?" factor.

For example, legendary Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway owns a huge car dealership in Denver. It's not that he sells better cars than anyone else, or that he can sell them better than anyone else, Clarkin said. His success stems from the trusted and highly recognizable face he brings to the brand.

"It's not the product. It's the feeling people get from being associated with them," Clarkin said.

But the teammate network is no guarantee of success.

Current Battery player Ian Fuller recently decided to sell his 1 1/2-year-old business and regroup.

Fuller owned a Royal Restrooms franchise, a business supplying portable toilets to festivals and other events. But in the face of stiff competition from a larger local rival, Fuller has decided to try a different venture.

He enjoyed working for himself, he said, and remains upbeat while considering his future — which may include taking a "real" job working for someone else.

But becoming an employee often doesn't provide the flexibility that comes from owning a business. And of course, there's the money.

"Even if you're (a successful player), you may as well earn more," he said.

Reach Peter Hull at 937-5594 or phull@postandcourier.com.