We all know that sports players are not just in it for the fame, they are also after the fortune too. And being a bigtime, famous, pro-sport player means they get to earn a lot of money. Just take Manny Pacquiao for example, before entering the world of boxing he said he could not even buy a decent meal for himself but look at him now, he now owns several mansions and he could afford to buy his wife any designer bag that she could ever want. These sports players get so much money for their skills and talents that they don’t even know where or how they could spend it in one lifetime.
But that’s not always the case, there are also several situations wherein professional sports players find themselves scrambled up in financial chaos. They actually spend way too much money to send themselves into court and file for bankruptcy. Let’s get to know who these sports stars are and how they’d end up broke.
1. Evander Holyfield
Holyfield was one of the most celebrated professional boxers during his time. He won several championships and had a successful career earning millions upon millions. But he started to deal with some financial difficulties when he encountered child support issues which led him to a major downward spiral. He was in debt with the IRS for almost 200,000 dollars, he was forced to sell his million dollar mansion to pay off what he owed the bank, and later on, he sold all of his worthy possessions just to be able to pay off all of his debts.
2. Vince Young
Vince Young was a former star quarterback for the Tennessee Titans but fate was not in favor of him because, in just a span of seven years after signing on the professional NFL team, Young was already in court filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to Vince Young’s financial advisor, he went bankrupt because he spent his money faster than he made it. He was once the highest paid player with a 26 million dollar contracts with the Titans.
3. Warren Sapp
Warren Sapp’s bankruptcy story was as memorable as him being one of the most acclaimed names in the NFL. Sapp earned a whopping 82 million dollars during his career in the NFL. But when his career ended, Sapp’s bank account was only left with eight hundred dollars. He was forced to sell his mansion and all of his luxurious belongings such as a lion-skin rug and a tennis shoe collection in an auction to pay for all his debts. Clearly, Sapp had more expensive taste than he could afford.
4. Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson was one of the most celebrated names in the boxing industry. Throughout his career, he has won several championships which gave him a lot of fortune. But his career went downwards when he struggled with drugs and alcohol issues. Aside from that, he was also involved with several women whom he had five children. Tyson loved spending his money until he reached rock bottom in 2003 where he made an announcement that he was completely broke with no money left on his bank account.
5. Mark Brunell
Brunell earned about fifty million dollars when he was playing for the NFL on the NY Jets. But reports say that Mark Brunell had bad luck with real estates investments and business choices which left him with about 25 million dollars in debt. He purchased Whataburger restaurants where 5 out of 9 went down.
6. Diego Maradona
Diego Maradona was known to be one of the world’s greatest soccer players. Throughout his soccer career, Maradona played in four World Cups and won during the 1986 championship. He made a great living and a luxurious lifestyle while playing professional soccer but all of it came falling down when it was revealed that he was not paying his taxes. And in 2009, the Italian Tax Authority eventually caught him and demanded that he pay a whopping 54 million dollars back tax figure. The said demand forced Maradona to file for bankruptcy.
7. Deuce McAllister
McAllister made some good fortune when he was playing in the NFL for the Saints. But his tens of millions vanished in just a blink of an eye when he made poor investment choices that cost him millions and left him as a financially wrecked man. His house was auctioned off, he was sued by the bank because of his mortgage, and he lost his Nissan dealership in Mississippi when they filed for bankruptcy.
8. John Daly
John Daly was one of the respected names in the professional golf scene. And for years, he became a household name in the field of sport. That is why he was able to make a lot of money while playing. But Daly admitted to the press that he was struggling financially because of his addiction to gambling. He admitted that he lost a huge amount of money gambling. The numbers were so big that reports say he has lost more money than most golfers made in their career.
9. Rollie Fingers
Rollie Fingers used to play professional baseball for the Milwaukee Brewers during 1979. But reports say that he made several bad investments that led him to lose almost 1.1 million dollars. He eventually filed for bankruptcy to pay for his rent and provide food for his four children.
10. Dennis Rodman
Dennis Rodman was famous for being a basketball player on the Chicago Bulls. Although he made several dollars while playing in the NBA, all of it went down the drain when he filed for bankruptcy because he could not pay his back child support and spousal support payments. He owed a total of 800,000 dollars in back child support and 50 thousand dollars in back spousal support.
11. Johnny Unitas
John Unitas was Baltimore Colt’s quarterback in 1991 when he and his wife filed for bankruptcy. It turns out that he had a debt of 3.2 million dollars. They even have to file for protection against creditors being able to seize their personal property and accounts to repay the debts they owed.
12. OJ Simpson
Before he was accused in a big murder scandal and faced charges, OJ Simpson was a professional football player who had a net worth of a whopping 11 million dollars. The murder trial and all the legal fees it entails left Simpson broke because even if he was ultimately found not guilty in the murder charges, he was found responsible for the killings in a civil suit. A suit where he was ordered to pay punitive damages and compensation for 33.5 million dollars.
13. Leon Spinks
Leon Spinks was a professional boxer and a former heavyweight boxing champion. And his career skyrocketed when he defeated Muhammad Ali in 1978. But twenty years after that, Spinks was seen broke and homeless. He admitted to the public that he spent his 4.5 million dollars mostly on drugs and his many run-ins with the law.
14. Lawrence Taylor
Lawrence Taylor was doing a good job being a professional football player and playing in the NFL until he found himself tangled with his finances. Taylor is known for having a severe drug problem. That is why he spent all of his fortunes on drugs and buying things he could not afford. He got in trouble with the IRS because he filed a false tax return and he was sued for child support.
15. Travis Henry
Travis Henry was a professional football player who played in the NFL for multiple teams. During his career, he was able to earn a huge amount of money until he had a big financial downward spiral because of child support. Apparently, Henry had nine children in nine different women. He ended up broke because he fathered so many children all at the same time.