After a career that spanned the Premier League and multiple promotions, central defender Phil Whelan knew football wouldn’t last forever. Incredibly, while playing top-flight football for Ipswich Town, he was also studying at the University of East Anglia - making him one of the few athletes to juggle elite sport and higher education simultaneously. That foresight paid off.

In this conversation, Phil shares how he prepared for the future early, and since navigated multiple career transitions. From the pitch to the classroom as a secondary school teacher and headmaster, and now running his own accountancy and payroll business, Phil’s story is a rare example of what career reinvention can look like - multiple times over.

He also opens up about the moment his career ended, the people who helped shape his post-sport path, and why he believes platforms like MOJOE are essential for guiding the next gen of athletes through the uncertainty of what comes next.