Here's are athletes who found success after
their careers! 10 - George Foreman How many of you guys out there have owned
a George Foreman grill?! Maybe you still do! Considered a heavyweight champion in pretty
much all categories of life, George Foreman might actually be more known for the grills
he pushed than actually being a boxing champion! To one generation, Foreman became a symbol
of strength after his gold-medal victory in boxing at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. From then on, he became almost unstoppable. He won every single fight he had until finally
losing to Muhammad Ali in 1974. However, to another generation, he was the
newest and oldest heavyweight boxing champion who happened to be on TV selling an interesting
grille. Foreman was approached by Salton, Inc. to
push the grilles, since he credited his comeback success to his new healthy diet. Foreman said yes, and the rest is history. The venture gave Foreman a $138 million bump
in his fortune, with sources saying he still earns 40% of all sales. Since 1994, the George Foreman Grill has sold
over 100 million units! Selling 100 million of anything is just ridiculous! 9 - Jamal Mashburn
Remember when Jamal Mashburn was lighting it up back in the day at Kentucky?! After a successful career in college basketball
and the NBA, Mashburn turned his sight to the business world. Mashburn has always said that it wasn't a
surprise decision. Apparently, ever since he was a teenager,
he not only dreamed of becoming a world-renowned basketball player, but also as a hardworking
businessman who carried a briefcase to work. Mashburn today owns more than 80 restaurant
franchises nationwide in the US, has ventures in real estate, and even has interest ownership
in thoroughbred horse racing. Doing the business thing hasn't been easy,
as he says he gets approached by other former athletes who claim to have the next big business
idea all the time. The funny thing is, a lot of athletes themselves
get approached with business deals all the time during their playing days! He says saying no is what he says if the project
just doesn't seem profitable. After all, accumulating and protecting a net
worth of $45 million doesn't happen by investing in random projects. However, he still does believe in picking
up the appropriate risk. In 2013, he teamed up with with former NFL
star Winston Justice to create a venture capital firm to invest in the tech industry. 8 - Magic Johnson Can things get better after you get voted
as the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 1987, 1989 and 1990? If your name is Ervin Johnson but you go by
Magic, then yea, things CAN get better. Do I really need to go into how his playing
career went? Being the orchestrator of the Showtime Lakers
in the 80’s with his ridiculous display of basketball skills and earning $45 million
along the way isn’t too shabby. But what he did as a player somehow fails
in comparison to the now ever-growing wealth he’s created since he’s been retired. Known as a very intelligent businessman, Johnson
has been able to venture in many different areas such as real estate and media. Even though he publicly announced he was HIV
positive back in 1991, the success didn’t really change for Magic. The media frenzy created by his announcement
didn’t stop his successful business mindset. After establishing Magic Johnson Enterprises
and investing in a variety of businesses that includes buying a minority ownership in the
Dodgers, he keeps on growing his net worth. He’s ranked 10th on Forbes' list of Highest-Paid
Retired Athletes, having a net worth of $500 million! 7 - Bill Bradley Successful doesn’t exactly describe the
amount of achievements Bill Bradley has been able to achieve after his playing days. Bill Bradley was a former college basketball
star at Princeton. He then played professionally with the New
York Knicks, where he won two championships; after he retired, his number was retired as
well, being the fourth Knick to have his number retired. In 1977, he decided to run for the senate,
coinciding with his retirement from the NBA. Once in the senate, he was known for being
something of a nerd, specializing in complex policies. He even decided to run for president in 2000. Even after receiving high-profile endorsements,
his 2000 presidential candidacy for the Democratic Party wasn't enough for Bradley to beat out
Al Gore for the nomination. On many occasions he has mentioned that his
success in sports and in life is based on his respect for practice time and preparation. During his NBA career, Bradley used his fame
on the court to explore social as well as political issues, meeting with journalists,
government officials, and social activists. He also worked as an assistant to the director
of the Office of Economic Opportunity in Washington, D.C., and as a teacher in the street academies
of Harlem. However, interestingly enough, Bradley has
said that he felt uncomfortable using his celebrity status to earn extra money endorsing
products as other players did. 6 - Vinnie Jones Did you guys know that Vinnie Jones actually
was a professional soccer player before he was playing tough villains in such movies
as Lock stock and 2 smoking barrels and Snatch? His professional soccer career started back
in 1986 and ever since then he became known as an enforcer in soccer. Known for his rough playing tactics, Jones
became popular for his enforcer role, and to this day he holds the record for the fastest
foul ever in a soccer match, with Jones receiving a foul just 3 seconds into a match! Being a quote,”hard man” in soccer certainly
proved to be useful for Jones, helping him land roles in the British films I mentioned
before, and it also helped him make the leap into American films such as Gone In 60 Seconds
and Swordfish. With a real life background as tough as this
guy, how would you not expect him to be the go-to bad guy when it comes to these intense
and rough characters? 5 - Phil Jackson Phil Jackson is a case of several types of
retirement. Most people on this list have retired from
their sports life, some have even done it several times. But Jackson is known as a retired player and
multiple-time retired coach of the NBA. He first started his professional career when
he was drafted by the Knicks in 1967, where he became a fan favorite because of his energy
on defense. After playing for a couple seasons with the
Nets, he retired as a player in 1980. However, his best days in regards to basketball
were still ahead of him. Jackson was able to coach MJ and the rest
of the bulls to six championship during his time as coach. As if this wasn't enough, he took his zen
magic to the Lakers and he gave Shaq his first ever championship win, as well as helping
coach Kobe to his 5 titles. Jackon’s unusual zen coaching techniques
allowed him to get the most out of the superstars playing for him at any given time. 4 - Michael Strahan Transitioning from the NFL to home screens
nationwide proved to be fairly easy for Michael Strahan. Although he was once someone that pretty much
all quarterbacks feared, as Strahan still holds the record for most sacks in one season,
Strahan has become the lovable, friendly guy everybody wants to watch on TV. But this scenario wasn't exactly what he first
thought he would do as a teenager. After only one season of high school football,
he earned a scholarship to Texas Southern University, where his record-breaking career
in college football would officially start. Shortly after that, he was drafted by the
New York Giants where he spent his entire career. He won the Defensive Player of The Year award
in 2001. When he finally decided to retire, he did
it in a big way, by going out a winner after the Giants won the Superbowl by beating the
Patriots in 2008. After having an amazing career, Strahan then
jumped right on TV and somehow became a star without skipping a beat. Becoming a commentator on Fox NFL Sunday? He seemed like a pro from day one. From sports television he then jumped into
the mainstream, landing a hosting gig alongside Kelly Ripa in Live With Kelly and Michael. Then he became the face everybody sees on
Good Morning America. Needless to say, he actually now earns a lot
more than he did in his playing days. 3 - Terry Crews There’s no way the most famous pecs in the
world weren’t going to be on this list. It comes as no surprise that Terry Crews has
become one of the most well-known names in the entertainment industry, given his multiple
talents. A lot of people didn’t know that one of
his talents include a career as a linebacker in the NFL. He was drafted back in 1991 by the Rams, then
he bounced around to different teams. He was on the Chargers in 1993, and he also
went to the east coast playing with Washington and Philadelphia. However, it wasn't until 1999, two years after
his retirement from football that he got into the the entertainment industry. After a few minor roles in movies, commercials,
and music videos, he got his big break in the Wayans brothers' 2004 film White Chicks. From that moment on, Crews has continually
found work. From his hilarious Old Spice commercials to
his role as Sergeant Terry Jeffords in the comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine to hosting Who Wants
to be a millionaire, it’s safe to say Crews’s acting career has been much better than his
football career. 2 - Oscar De La Hoya The world of boxing has its ups and downs
for most boxers, even if they were once well-known champions. But for Oscar De La Hoya, his fortune has
been well taken care of on and off the ring. The former gold medal-winning and world champion
boxer became a prominent name in boxing by winning 10 world titles in six different weight
classes. His ability to earn in boxing was unprecedented
before someone named Mayweather came along– some of his fights have been the biggest-earning
fights ever, with over $700 million just in pay-per-view income. After announcing his retirement in 2009, De
La Hoya has become one of the most steady-earning retired boxers in the world. His continued success is because of his creation
of Golden Boy Promotions, his boxing firm that consistently puts on some of the best
fights in the business. Although he’s messed with the idea of coming
back to the ring, De la Hoya seems to have found a safe place backstage promoting the
biggest fights now, instead of being in the middle of the ring. 1 - Ion Tiriac Known for his unfiltered comments about women
and his love life, this Romanian former tennis star has created a completely ridiculous empire
after his tennis career. For example, Ion Tiriac has turned the Mutua
Madrid Open in Spain into one of the most popular sporting events in the country. When he decided to retire, his fortune didn't
disappear; he became the manager of tennis super stars such as Boris Becker and Guillermo
Vilas. At the same time, he did what any smart business
mogul would do with his fortune: he opened up his own bank, and that’s where the majority
of his wealth has come from. With over 50 branches nationwide, UniCredit
Bank has become one of the largest private banks in Romania. Tiriac has managed to extend his business
to insurance, hotel and car businesses. He’s actually one of the richest men in
all of Europe, with a fortune close to 1.7 billion euros! Some say that the reason behind his success
is because of the attitude he has being born in Transylvania, only 40 kilometers away from
Dracula's castle. During his long career, he won 22 double titles,
with one grand slam title in men’s doubles at the 1970 French Open. Here's what's next!
