Ryan Bertrand opens up on life after football as former Champions League winner turns himself into successful businessman
If you don’t prepare, you’re preparing to fail, or so the adage goes. Ryan Bertrand certainly agrees.
The transition from professional football player to retirement can be difficult. For Bertrand, entrepreneurship is the key word.
Best known for starring in Chelsea’s historic Champions League win in 2012, the former England international is showing the same conviction in his new business life as he did during his football career.
“I had already taken steps towards transitioning from professional football when I was playing,” explains Bertrand, who retired in June 2024.
‘I was constantly educating myself and reading. The journey footballers take once they leave the game is well documented.
‘That was something I didn’t want. Staying ahead of the curve and doing as much business and personal development as possible to prepare for the next step before that day arrived became a big focus for me.
Ryan Bertrand has always thought about what he will do after football and founded the fintech brokerage Silicon Markets in 2015 together with business partner and long-time friend Louis Bell (left).
Bertrand drinks Chelsea’s historic 2012 Champions League victory on an open-top bus alongside Didier Drogba (below), Sam Hutchinson (back left) and Gary Cahill (back right)
The defender scored 19 caps for England during his illustrious career
“When the day comes (to retire) it’s not always pretty, I always wanted the chance to finish when I wanted to finish.
‘It got to the point where I was almost looking forward to retirement.
‘Instead of immersing myself in the football world and cutting myself off from the real world, I always had the balance.
‘I could turn my thoughts to the business world that would prepare me for the next step.
‘Footballers must find the time to broaden their mindset to what is happening in the wider world. Football is big, but the world is much bigger.
‘Being at Chelsea, despite all my loans – Bournemouth, Oldham, Norwich, Reading, Forest, Villa and Chelsea – what I appreciate about my career is how well-rounded it was.
‘From League One, to the Champions League final, to Wembley, to playing for England in the European Championship to battling relegation.
“Perhaps from a personal context it has given me more empathy and objectivity in approaching sport from a business perspective because I could understand what they (the players) are going through.”
Bertrand spent seven years at Southampton and was named in the 2015 PFA Team of the Year
Bertrand says his numerous loans, including his time at Reading (pictured), have rounded him out
The 35-year-old ended his career at Leicester City and announced his retirement last June
In 2015, Bertrand co-founded the fintech brokerage Silicon Markets with business partner and longtime friend Louis Bell.
Located next to the all-in-one financial app Revolut – now worth an estimated £45 billion – Bertrand and Bell witnessed first-hand how quickly businesses can grow in the right direction.
“I remember going to China and pitching our company with Revolut’s employee Alan Chang,” Bell recalls.
‘We have seen Revolut grow and that was an eye-opener, great lessons and learning curves.’
Nowadays, in addition to Bell, Bertrand heads the football talent agency FA Sport, which represents the interests of Chelsea and the English defender Levi Colwill and Everton striker Armando Broja, among others.
As Bertrand and Bell talk to Mail Sport about life after football from FA Sport’s headquarters in Knightsbridge, London, their excitement about the fight is clear.
Bell himself has a history in football. He was a former Gillingham youth player before turning his hand to a career in finance and entrepreneurship.
“Competitiveness is what we thrive on; the challenge is the hurdles we face,” Bell explains.
Bertrand played alongside a host of stars at Chelsea, including Spanish midfielder Juan Mata (pictured), winning the FA Cup, Europa League and Champions League.
There was more silverware in Leicester, where the Community Shield was lifted with Jamie Vardy
Ryan Bertrand was selected for Stuart Pearce’s 2012 Olympic team in Great Britain
‘You do what you have to do. The challenges are going back and forth with clubs.
“I would call Ryan in the early hours of the morning if he was a player.
‘When he called back, we got into an argument. He would come back with a solution, I would come back with a solution and we would find a middle ground.
‘Just like with football, it is competition.’
Bertrand, who has an FA Cup, Champions League, Europa League, Community Shield and 19 international caps to his name, insists his achievements in the business world are as profound as his medals.
‘Winning the Champions League was huge for me and it gets bigger as time goes on. But when you’re in the business world, it’s you against everyone else, but now you get to decide what your purpose is,” the 35-year-old said.
Through FA Sport, Bertrand and Bell played a key role in the crucial appointment of Joe Shields as co-director of recruitment and talent at Chelsea – one of the key early appointments of Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali.
Bertrand also recommended Moises Caicedo and Manchester City player Josko Gvardiol for £115 million to Premier League clubs when both players were available for less than £5 million.
Since his retirement, Bertrand’s attention has been fully focused on football talent agency FA Sport
Bertrand insists his achievements in business are as profound as his medals
Bertrand’s FA Sport continues to look to sign talented young players and expand into Africa
Bell also brokered the moves for Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella and Cesare Casadei to Chelsea in the summer of 2022.
Looking ahead, FA Sport will continue to look for talented young players and expand into Africa, where they plan to open a development center for elite and amateur athletes.
“There is a lot of talent in Africa, we really want to be part of Africa’s development in a sporting context,” said Bertrand.
‘Developing sport in Africa so that people and communities can reap the social and economic benefits that a robust sporting landscape can provide.
‘Can we give young people a career in football, in Europe and beyond? Can we find the next Sadio Mane?’
For the time being, however, the focus is on the current operation towards the January transfer window.
“Signing Levi Colwill and Armando Broja at the age of 16, seeing them develop and then having their own ideas about where they wanted to go – the ambition and determination makes you super proud,” Bell added.
‘When you see them playing for England and Albania you understand why you started. You remember being at Cobham and signing them when you were sixteen years old.’
Bertrand added: ‘The secret of our success as an agency is the purpose, we want to help the players, we resonate with the players, the parents and because my experience as a player is complete, our advice is perhaps a little more relevant.
‘I witnessed every move. The loans, the moving processes. I was one of the first players to go on loan to Chelsea with the intention of returning to the first team: it was me and Jack Cork to Bournemouth.
‘I lived and breathed it. We know how to identify a young top athlete, we know the journey and the moments they have to take to reach the top of their game.
‘There are tough conversations with clubs, but our track record shows that we have had those conversations with conviction.
“We’ve had a number of cases where we’ve listened to the club and it hasn’t worked out. There we learned and strengthened our own principles.’