10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

There is something intrinsically sad about a soccer player retiring much too early, much like reading a book and finding the last couple of chapters missing. You’re right in the middle of getting hooked, and that’s where it would end, leaving you to your imagination as to how events could have unfolded.

It does beg the question: whether a career curtailed by injury, personal choice, or forces beyond their control, these players walked off the pitch long before the talent fell away. Some bowed out during or at their peak, but equally, you can’t help but wonder what if they had just a few more seasons?

Today, we look at 10 soccer players who retired too early, be it by the player’s own choice or by fate itself. Every one of them left us wondering what magic the player had yet to give.

Contents

1. Enock Mwepu – Retired at 24

1. Enock Mwepu – Retired at 24

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Enock Mwepu got football fans in Brighton and well beyond the city talking.

Nicknamed “The Computer” for how he reads the game as few others do, he was on the fast track to being a household name. He had put in some sterling performances for Brighton while at only 24 years of age, he was already an established member of their midfield.

But in 2022, this rising star was cruelly extinguished as he was diagnosed with a hereditary heart condition. His career was over before it had even begun.

He said in his retirement statement, “I’m grateful for the opportunity to have lived my dream and play in the Premier League“; Brighton gave him a role as their under-9 coach to keep him involved in the sport.

Though his playing days are behind him, it is a story of perseverance and passion, a true footballing talent taken far too soon.

2. George Best – Retired at 28

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Best is the ultimate “what if” story in football. A mercurial talent, he was as renowned for his on-field brilliance as for off-field antics. In his prime, Best was unstoppable, able to dribble through defences with their limbs tangled.

He famously helped Manchester United lift the European Cup in 1968; he won the Ballon d’Or that same year.

However, his love affair with booze finally caught up to him. At the age of 28, in 1974, he called it quits for a second time. He returned for a few more stints in football, but the magic was gone.

That early retirement of Best marked the decline of one of football’s most gifted and troubled players. Talent, no matter how dazzling, just isn’t always enough to keep the wheels from coming off.

3. Just Fontaine – Retired at 28

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

The name Fontaine might not ring as many bells as it should, considering that the Frenchman’s 13 goals in one World Cup are the stuff of a footballing fairy tale.

To this day, nobody has managed to beat Fontaine’s goal-scoring record from the 1958 World Cup, and it is quite safe to say it probably never will be. Despite his heroics on the international stage, Fontaine’s career was tragically short.

Poor guy, Fontaine had to call it a day at 28 due to recurring injuries.

His body could not match the pace of his talent during those days when medical treatments were not as advanced as they are today. And, naturally, his premature retirement from football made the world wonder how much more he could have added to such an already incredible tally.

He left behind a glowing, brief legacy that shines as bright as any.

4. Pierluigi Casiraghi – Retired at 28

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Casiraghi was meant to be the missing puzzle in Chelsea’s attack during his move in 1998.

A proven goal-scorer with Juventus and Lazio, his £5.4 million move to Stamford Bridge was seen as a coup. However, Casiraghi’s stay in London would be brutally short.

The tragic collision with West Ham’s goalkeeper Shaka Hislop left him with a shocking knee injury that eventually forced him into retirement at 28, with just 10 appearances for Chelsea.

Despite undergoing ten surgeries, his comeback never came through.

Casiraghi would later express annoyance with the club for not supporting him enough throughout his recovery, but the sad truth is that football lost the talented striker far too early.

His Chelsea chapter was over before it even began, a signing that left fans and pundits alike wondering what could have been.

I Quit Football To Concentrate On My “Berbeque And Beer” – Osvaldo

5. Hidetoshi Nakata – Retired at 29

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Nakata was more than a footballer; he was the hope of Asian football. As Japan’s finest export, he made waves in Serie A with style and flair for Perugia, Roma, and Parma.

On and off the pitch, he was ice-cold cool. He had a sharp footballing brain, and he could always play his teammates into space with ease.

In 2006, Nakata sent shockwaves to the football world by announcing his retirement at the age of 29 years.

Why? Well, because he just stopped enjoying football. That’s a brutally honest reason and while most players make it through the grind, Nakata opted out and turned to his other passions: fashion and revitalizing Japan’s sake industry.

It felt like football’s loss, given he had much to offer, but his choice was one from the heart of a man so bent on living life on his terms.

6. Alan Shearer (International) – Retired at 29

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

When Alan Shearer retired from international duty at 29, the English were scratching their heads. This was the all-time top scorer of the Premier League, a man who terrorized defenders across Europe single-handedly.

Shearer had just finished leading England through Euro 2000 and still had plenty left in the tank.

He, on the other hand, opted to attempt to see out his club career at Newcastle United. As he continued to break records at the club level, England struggled without him.

No doubt, it is one of those retirements that come into the head-scratcher category and will be one of those that will have all of us asking “What if?” for eternity.

7. Eric Cantona – Retired at 30

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

If football were an art, Eric Cantona would have been its Picasso. The charismatic Frenchman was perhaps the catalyst for Manchester United’s dominance of the 1990s, which lured a generation of players and fans alike.

His bold personality was matched only by his skill on the pitch, and his ability to turn a game on its head with a flash of genius second to pretty well none.

Then in 1997, at 30 Cantona sent shockwaves throughout the footballing world by announcing his retirement.

He had just led United to yet another Premier League title and was still very much at the top of his game. Why retire? Because, as Cantona himself said, he wanted to leave when he felt he was at his peak.

He would go on to try his hand at acting and beach soccer because of course he would but football was never quite the same after he hung up his boots.

8. Brian Laudrup – Retired at 31

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

If you were to create some kind of prototype for the perfect footballer, then Laudrup would be a pretty good starting point.

The Danish winger had it all: pace to terrify full-backs, a faultless technique to beguile centre-backs and a predictable ability to make defenders look like fools.

He was part of Denmark’s unforgettable Euro ’92 triumph and carved out a rich club career at the likes of Bayern Munich, Fiorentina and Rangers.

But injuries deprived Laudrup of what could have been even more greatness. At 31, following spells with Chelsea, FC Copenhagen, and Ajax, he called time on his career.

His somewhat early retirement may have left fans wanting more, but his legacy as one of Denmark’s finest remains untarnished. He was quite too good for his body to handle.

9. Thiago Alcantara – Retired at 33

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Thiago was destined for greatness right from the very beginning. A product of Barcelona’s highly regarded La Masia academy, he looked every bit the next Xavi or Iniesta.

At Bayern Munich, Thiago truly bloomed into a player, reaping titles and displaying an exquisite quality of passing and control in the middle of the park.

By the time he made it to Liverpool, he was currently regarded among the best playmakers in Europe. But the injuries continued to mount, and by 2024 at age 33, he called it quits.

It felt premature for a player of his quality and without question, he could have played a few more years at the highest level. Instead, he bowed out, leaving us with a frustrating sense of what could have been.

10. Toni Kroos – To retire at 34

10 Soccer Players Who Retired Too Early

Kroos is a footballer’s footballer-smooth, efficient and always one step ahead, for over a decade in control of the tempo of the matches for Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and the German national team, winning trophies in his path that most players can only dream about.

In 2024 Kroos called time on his career at the age of 34 after yet another fruitful season with Los Blancos.

Of course, you’d argue he has won practically anything a footballer would, and his trophy cabinet was full, but somehow it felt there was more to come from Kroos.

Nobody else could dictate the pace of play with a single pass like Kroos, and just as he finally managed to retire on a high, the fans wanted one more season.

You Might Also Want To Read This

(Visited 11 times, 1 visits today)