Just like it is for many things, you’ll find that there’s a time when becoming a professional soccer player is easier than other times. For a sport like soccer where the level of competition is too high, becoming a professional player requires you to meet certain requirements. While anyone can work hard to enter into the expert player category, what you should take note of is that it doesn’t come easily. It’s a journey of process that not many people make it through.
So, when is it too late to become a professional soccer player? Simply put, there isn’t a standard time for when it’s too late to become a professional player in the soccer world. There’re multiple factors that affect one’s ability to become a pro player. However, considering that soccer is a sport that requires one to develop through different stages, it’s, generally, too late to become a professional player when you’re past 23 years old.
Soccer is one of those sports that you can’t play effectively when you’re past a certain age. If you’re an ardent soccer fan, you’ll agree with me that most players begin to lose their athletic performance after the age of 33. Why is this so? While there are other reasons, the fact that they aren’t able to keep up with the high intensity involved in the sport makes them experience a performance dip. So, this means that there’s a lot of justification in one being too late to become a professional soccer player when past 23 years old.
What Does It Mean To Be A Professional Soccer Player?
Let’s begin by first understanding the meaning of a professional soccer player. In simple terms, a professional soccer player is one who plays soccer as a profession. In other words, you’re a pro player if you’re paid for your skills as a soccer player. So, one has to be playing for a particular club or team to be in the category of a professional soccer player. Just because you’re so good in the sport and you regularly play for your local team doesn’t make you a professional.
You’re only a professional if you’re earning money from what you do. Remember, for you to be a professional, you have to be at a certain level of skill and development. It doesn’t come by sudden flight. That’s why one’s age, skill, and level of development contribute greatly in one becoming a professional soccer player.
If you are still young and aim to earn living through soccer, make sure to check my article about The Only Way You Can Become a Professional Soccer Player.
Where Does It All Begin?
If age is a major factor in the professional development of a soccer player, then there must be a place where it all begins, right? Certainly, this is true. If you look keenly at what happens in the major clubs and teams where soccer is a big thing, you’ll notice that they recruit players at a very young age. You’ll even find players as young as 12 years in their development systems. The reason as to why they do this is because they have to develop these players at a very young age for the long and competitive journey ahead.
Soccer isn’t like other sports where mastering the skills and dynamics required is easy. Instead, it takes a lot of dedication and patience to be at the peak. It will take a miracle and a mountain of hard work for you to begin the journey of football when you’re past 23 years and make it big. Of course, you can play soccer for fun, but if you want to be a professional, you have to go through the developmental stages to reach the top. Now you understand pretty well that you can’t just show up and jump into the professional category.
Without a doubt, there’s where it all begins. At the teenage age bracket, that’s where the systems of major clubs recruit young players and begin preparing them for their future. In short, for you to be a professional soccer player, you have to go through the developmental stages. So, if you haven’t gone through that by age 23, it will be difficult for you to break through the professional ceiling.
What’s The Place of Supervised Coaching and Training?
Does supervised coaching and training have a place in being a professional soccer player? Yes, it does. This brings us back to the point on the development of young players up to their professional level. Coaches understand that this sport requires consistent hours of training and dedication for one to become a pro. That’s why they have to instill such discipline when a player is young.
Supervised coaching comes in handy in developing a player through the ranks. If you do your research on the best players in the world at the moment, one thing that they share in common is that they started their professional development at a young age. Therefore, it’s right if we say that being a professional doesn’t begin when you get your big contract signed. Rather, it starts when you’re learning how to kick and dribble a ball. The bottom-line here is that if you didn’t go through supervised coaching and training at a young age, it might be too late for you to begin your journey to a professional when you’re older.
Tools that might increase your chances
As you’ve seen in the article, soccer is very competitive and it requires something more than just hard work to make it. It is true that age will determine a great part when telling if you will be able to make it pro or not, but most of the time, when you already have certain skills that set you apart from most players, all you need is to go the right direction.
A tool that might be helpful for a lot of people is an online soccer training program. If you don’t have someone to coach and you don’t know how to keep getting better or if you are already playing for a team and you want to give the extra mile that will set you apart, this is the way to go. If you don’t know which one to purchase make sure to see my article about The Best Soccer Training Program Online.
The Rate of Competition Is Too High To Begin Late
There’s so much competition in the world of soccer today. As you already know, soccer is the most popular sport in the world, thus the rate of competition to be at the highest level is extremely high. Players from different countries are trying as much as they can to play for the best clubs in the world. Imagine being a 26 year old competing for a place with a highly skilled and talented 19 year old. If you can’t match the skills and be better than the young player, you’ll come second to him.
Clubs are investing so much in young professionals than older players. The value of young players in the market is higher than that of older ones. Why is this so? Simply put, younger players have a longer stay in their professional life than older players. For this reason, if you’re 23 years and above and you’ve never played at a professional level, it might be too late for you to become a professional soccer player.
Competition calls for one to prove that he is better than the other. There must be something that you have that the other person doesn’t have. If all you have is your desire to start a career as a professional soccer player and you don’t have the background to show for it, it will be hard competing with those who have done much so far. Hence, bearing in mind the level of competition that exists in the soccer world, starting your professional life when you’re in your mid 20s can be a challenge.
Exposure Is an Integral Factor for a Professional Soccer Player
When players begin their professional development at a young age, they are exposing themselves to the sport at the right age. They are learning all the important lessons at the right time. In other words, they are gaining the much-needed understanding of the sport before going professional. Usually, when young players are playing at their level, they are also involved in competitive matches, which translate to them being professionals. Though their level of professionalism is lower than their senior counterparts, they are on their way up.
It’s this level of exposure that makes 17 year old players to push for their way into the senior team. If they’re good enough, they actually have an opportunity to play alongside experienced players. What does this tell you? If you’re lacking exposure and you’re past 23 years, you’ll have to fight your way to become a professional soccer player. Without enough exposure, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for an older player to become a professional.
Is It All Over For Those Coming In Late?
Undoubtedly, when you think of the investment and dedication that a soccer player’s professional development costs, it’s easy to think that older players don’t have a chance. Of course, if you start early, you have a better chance of becoming a professional soccer player compared to one who comes in late. However, this doesn’t always translate to doom. Though one might not play at the highest level professionally, there’re still clubs and teams that you can play for even if they’re at a lower league. This gives you hope that you can still make your dreams come true.
The bottom-line here is that if you’re thinking of playing professional soccer, you have to start early enough. Given the level of competition that exists in the sport, aspiring players will do themselves a favor if they begin their professional development during their teenage years. With such, transiting into high-level professional players isn’t much of a challenge. Though there isn’t a particular time when it’s too late to play at the highest level of the sport, if you’re past your mid 20s, you only have a short period of time before your game begins to slow down.