When you’re a top-level footballer, chances are you’re going to earn lots of money.

What they do with that money is up to them. Some buy cars, some buy clothes, some buy whole football clubs. Because apparently playing the sport isn’t enough.

Here are some footballers who have dipped their toes into the club market…

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From non-league to Premier League champion to…MLS Next Pro club owner? If you say so, Jamie Vardy.

The Leicester City icon was unveiled as the new co-owner of Rochester New York FC (formerly Rochester Raging Rhinos, which sounds way cooler) back in 2021.

The club returned to playing in 2022 after a five-year hiatus.

History will remember Gerard Pique as one of football’s finest ever defenders, a key part of the all-conquering Spain and Barcelona teams at the end of the 2000s and start of the 2010s.

Right now, he’s known as the guy who Barcelona want to retire so they can save millions of Euros, broke up with Shakira and is busying himself with interests away from football.

His re-jigging of tennis‘ Davis Cup is just one high-profile venture, while he also became the owner of FC Andorra in 2018 – they were promoted to Spain’s Segunda Division for the first time four years later.

Alright, ‚own‘ might be a strong word to describe Hector Bellerin’s relationship with League One side Forest Green Rovers.

He became the second-largest shareholder of the vegan club back in 2020, circumnavigating rules which would have made playing for Arsenal a conflict of interest. Bellerin has since returned to Barcelona, while Forest Green have been promoted to League One.

Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta is quite the gamer.

The Spanish defender founded his own esports team in 2020, and two years prior became a board member and co-owner of non-league side Hashtag United, who originated as a YouTube team.

Hashtag United currently play in the Isthmian League North Division.

The most recent addition to this list, Crystal Palace talisman Wilfried Zaha and his brother, Carin, completed the purchase of Espoir Club D’Abengourou in September 2022.

They compete in the fourth tier of Ivorian football and the siblings have high hopes for the club’s future.

„We have a U19 academy. We will play in the Division d’Honneur this season,“ Carin said following the sale.

„The objective is obviously to go up, but first we want our youngsters to be in good shape and gain experience.“