Is Quality of Life a Reason Related to the Retirement of Professional Male Soccer Players?

Introduction: Limited knowledge exists regarding how retirement from a professional soccer career may influence players’ future quality of life and overall health status. This study aimed to explore the reasons for ending professional soccer careers and to examine the postretirement health and quality of life among former soccer players in Kosovo. Materials and Methods: Seventy-three retired male professional soccer players from Kosovo participated in this cross-sectional study with a retrospective design. The participants completed a questionnaire covering demographics, career details, reasons for retiring, history of soccer-related injuries, current health and activity status, and psychological aspects associated with their professional careers and retirement. Players were divided into two groups: medical retirees (MRs) and nonmedical retirees (NMRs). The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare continuous data between the two groups, and cross-tabulation methods were employed for categorical data. Results: Nonmedical reasons were the main cause of retirement among Kosovar soccer players (p < 0.001), with job-related issues (58.8%) as the main retirement reason. The NMR group retired later and had longer careers than the MR group, though this was not statistically significant. Lower extremity injuries, particularly ankle and knee injuries, were the most prevalent among all players. After retirement, the NMR group engaged more in physical activity and continued playing soccer significantly more than the MR group (p < 0.001 and p = 0.021). The MR group reported significantly more pain (p < 0.001), analgesic use (p = 0.001), fear of career-ending injuries (p < 0.001), and depression symptoms during their careers (p < 0.001). Overall, NMR had significantly better quality of life and health status than MR (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). Conclusions: This study highlights the impact of retirement reasons on the long-term health and quality of life of soccer players in Kosovo. It calls for enhanced support systems to prepare athletes for life after soccer, mitigating negative health outcomes associated with forced retirement due to injuries.