Top football stars who went bankrupt

At age 20, Royston Drenthe was presented as a future Real Madrid superstar - but 13 years later he's been declared bankrupt, reportedly losing his £3.2m fortune following a failed move into music and acting.
But, Drenthe is not the only bankrupt footballer. Here are some top football superstars who were declared bankrupt, some names will definitely surprise you! 

Diego Armando Maradona

Maradona has to be the biggest name on this list of bankruptcy. The great Maradona, who sadly passed away last week, filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after Italian tax authorities demanded that he pay back $54 million (R821 million) worth of unpaid taxes from his playing time with Napoli between 1984 and 1991.

Ronaldinho 

Brazil and FC Barcelona legend Ronaldinho, who spent a few months in prison this year, is another star on the list. According to The Sun, he had just £5 (R106) in his bank account in April. It was further gathered in Ronaldinho was in debt to the tune of £1.75million. He mortgaged his property and despite that, he could not pay up the debts and the presiding judge ordered the seizure of his passport.

Royston Drenthe 

Royston Drenthe was declared bankrupt by a court in Breda, Netherlands, earlier this month after a career that never lived up to expectations.
He joined Los Blancos in 2007 after a stellar performance at the U21 UEFA European Championship that year but left the club in 2012 having made just 65 appearances.

Willem Vries 

Bloemfontein Celtic legend Willem Vries is a broken man in a desperate situation now that his football career has ended. Besides battling with health challenges, the former Siwelele midfielder is also battling financially, which has forced him to work as a gardener at the Mangaung club. 

Vries told Kick Off magazine in May that he last worked as a gardener and cannot even afford a TV. Vries never earned telephone numbers during his career and his biggest signing-on fee was R30 000, with a R2 500 per month salary during Ntate Petrus Molemela's days, before he sold the club to Jimmy Augusto.

 Asamoah Gyan 

Remember Asamoah Gyan? Well, he's hit rock bottom. 
Former Ghana superstar claimed in 2018 that he was 'broke' and had Just £600 in his bank account despite being on a massive contract whilst playing in China. 
Gyan was asked if he had any other bank accounts in the countries where he has played football.
"My front and back, up and down is that money (£600) you see there," he told.

David James 

David James's name on this list may surprise a lot of people. Former England goalkeeper's footballing career was a high-profile one. On top of his half-century of England caps, he played for the likes of Watford, Liverpool, Aston Villa, West Ham and Manchester City.
At the height of his success, he was earning £50,000-a-week while playing for then-bankrolled Portsmouth.

But before he called it quits on his 26-year career as a goalkeeper in 2014, he lost it all. James was declared bankrupt and was forced to auction off a host of personal belongings.
It is unclear just how James descended into bankruptcy, but it is widely believed to be on the back of debts that were built up following his divorce from his wife Tanya in 2005.

Paul Gascoigne 'Gazza' 

Troubled Toon legend Paul Gascoigne faced bankruptcy over tax debts in 2008. 
Gazza was once one of football's highest-paid stars. He became a millionaire overnight when he was transferred from Newcastle to Spurs in 1988. He was earning £600,000 a year and over the years, the money poured in.
His divorce from former wife Sheryl cost him a one-off payment of £1m plus maintenance and he had lost huge sums in failed business ventures including a clothes store which went bust.

While a cult hero in the England team, he was given £2m sponsorship from Puma, £500,00 to plug Brut aftershave and £300,000 for Walkers Crisps ads. He also secured a £2.5m deal with sports giant Adidas. But as the money flooded in, it went out as he lived the high life, including stays in swish hotels and drink benders.

Celestine Babayaro 

Celestine Babayaro who represented the Nigerian national football team between 1995 and 2004 was declared bankrupt in 2011 despite him spending eight years at Premier League club Chelsea. 
In a 12-man list of players who went bankrupt on Soccer Laduma and cited in SunSport, the former left full-back at Stamford Bridge and St James' Park in the 2000s was wealthy during his playing days. 

But by January 2011, the defender was declared bankrupt on the public record of the London Gazette.

Brad Friedel 

Former US national team goalkeeper Brad Friedel had been declared bankrupt with debts of 5 million pounds back in 2011. His reported £5 million debt came from a failed football academy in America.

John Arne Riise 

Not many players are declared bankrupt during the height of their career, but the Norwegian full-back was.
He was playing for Liverpool when he was declared bankrupt in 2007 after reported business enterprises failed.

Eric Djemba-Djemba 

The Cameroonian was an infamous signing at Manchester United but also went on to play for Aston Villa in his career. He blew his money on fast cars and his wages were almost always going to loan repayments.

He was declared bankrupt in September 2007 shortly before his Aston Villa contract was terminated, amid rumours he had 10 4x4 cars and 30 bank accounts. Djemba-Djemba denied the speculation about his finances but revealed his struggles in dealing with the extravagant lifestyle of a professional football star.

Keith Gillespie 

The former Manchester United and Newcastle United midfielder was declared bankrupt in 2010 – after admitting to blowing over £7 million.
Most of his debt stemmed from a gambling problem. An order was made against the player following a petition by HM Revenue and Customs lodged at Belfast High Court.