A Premier League footballer playing for a Big 6 club, retiring in his mid-20s, and then pursuing a career entirely different from football is something you don’t see every day.
This is what has happened with Alfie Whiteman. A local boy who rose through the clubs’ ranks to become a Spurs goalkeeper has decided to leave behind his goalkeeping gloves and replace them with cameras and film direction.
Yes, you read that right. Tottenham Hotspur’s Alfie Whiteman has retired from football and signed for the production company Somesuch to pursue photography and directing.
Spurs’ third choice goalkeeper and a boyhood Tottenham Hotspur fan, Whiteman joined the Tottenham academy at a young age of 10.
Despite being at Spurs for almost 16 years, he only ever managed one appearance back in 2020. His solitary appearance came in the Europa League as he came on the pitch against Ludogorets Razgrad in the 82nd minute for Joe Hart.
This is why it comes as a surprise that he decided to retire from football at such a young age. However, if you peel back the curtain, this career move makes a lot of sense.
Whiteman is popular for living a double life as he is quite multi-talented outside the pitch. Despite being a pro footballer, he has always had a strong interest in photography, music, radio, and film.
Currently, Whiteman is a resident DJ and hosts a monthly radio show on NTS Radio called ‘Sweet Tooth’. He has also worked commercially as a photographer.
In interviews, he has noted multiple times that despite his love for football and Spurs, he always felt he had broader creative interests. The switch from football to directing and photography fulfils Whiteman’s creative ambitions, but does it help him financially?
According to Sportrac, Whiteman was earning around £7,500 per week (£390,000 per year) at Spurs. While this would be an impressive figure for your average Joe, this dwarfs in comparison to what an average Premier League player typically makes (£4m per year).
Since salaries at Somesuch are private information, there’s no official way of knowing for sure how much Whiteman is earning in his new venture but according to Glassdoor, the average pay of a Director of Creative Production is anywhere between £51,000 and £90,000 a year.
Although this is low compared to what Whiteman was earning before, he claims he has never been happier.
“There was a weekend when I went home, and I started contemplating all my options. I had other things I’ve been building on the side and it was more exciting to me. To put it plainly, I saw happiness in these other avenues.”
Whiteman has already started with projects, photoshoots, and exhibitions. Within days of retiring, he was already on set with fashion photographer Harley Weir doing a Nike photoshoot. Shortly after that, he was on his way to Norway to help his friend film a feature documentary.
In fact, in an interview with the Athletic, he claimed he isn’t turning his back on football for good. Whiteman claims he has ideas for films and projects he wants to pursue based on the 2026 FIFA World Cup next year.
