Table 1.
Most important (up to three) reasons for ending the football career
| Reason | N | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| I wanted more of a private life | 74 | 47.74 |
| I did not want the physical strain anymore | 48 | 31.00 |
| Good opportunity to change careers | 42 | 27.10 |
| Serious injury | 36 | 23.23 |
| I did not want the psychological strain (pressure, stress) anymore | 31 | 20.00 |
| Fatigued (tired, lacking in energy, burnt out) | 27 | 17.42 |
| Chronic physical complaints | 19 | 12.26 |
| Changed to a lower division | 20 | 12.90 |
| High demands in job/study | 16 | 10.32 |
| Decline in performance | 15 | 9.68 |
| Club related reasons (insolvency, lower or no salary, relegation, Contract was not extended) | 13 | 8.39 |
| Change of residence/stay abroad | 7 | 4.52 |
| Other reasons | 13 | 8.39 |