Originally by The Round MoundList RulesAthletes who retired too late
Athletes who waited too long to retire for one reason or another made the choice to continue playing, sometimes for several years, when really they should have thrown in the towel. These football, basketball, baseball, and hockey players, along with fighters, were once at the top of their respective sports but couldn't quit while they were ahead. Instead they played into their 40s, 50s and sometimes 60s, and sometimes hurt their teams in the process of their denial.
Arguably, this list contains some of the best athletes ever to play in their respective sports. Professional basketball player Michael Jordan, hockey player Gordie Howe, and boxer Muhammad Ali are all regarded as some of the best ever but sadly they also come in as athletes who played well past their prime. Instead of stopping when they started to decline, they continued to compete and a small part of their legacy suffered because of it.
Perhaps the most erroneous case of not knowing when to stop is former National Football League quarterback Brett Favre. Number four played atop the league for 17 seasons, mainly with the Green Bay Packers, before retiring after the 2007 season. What followed was what was called the annual Brett Favre unretirement, a process that lasted THREE YEARS. In 2008 he played (poorly) for the New York Jets, then he retired again. A few months later he returned to the NFL with the Minnesota Vikings for the 2009 campaign. Lather, rinse, and repeat again in 2010. Spoiler: None of those final seasons led to a Super Bowl victory.
Athletes on this list prove that just because you are great at what you do does not mean you can do it forever. We feel bad for those athletes whose careers ended too soon due to circumstances out of their control but we also go sick of the athletes who refused to retire when they were old and washed up.1
1,181374Brett Favre
Age: 51Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Gulfport, Mississippi, United States of America
Teams: Green Bay Packers, New York Jets, Minnesota Vikings
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747286Muhammad Ali
Age: 78Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America
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621256Evander Holyfield
Age: 58Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Atmore, Alabama, United States of America
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584285Mike Tyson
Age: 54Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Bedford-Stuyvesant, New York City, New York, United States of America
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322140Ric Flair
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400149Hulk Hogan
Age: 67Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Augusta, Georgia, United States of America
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427206Larry Holmes
Age: 71Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Cuthbert, Georgia, United States of America
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615370Shaquille O'Neal
Age: 48Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Newark, New Jersey, United States of America
Teams: Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics
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215104Phil Niekro
Age: 81Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Blaine, Ohio, United States of America
Teams: New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Braves
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11658Roberto Alomar
Age: 52Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Ponce, Puerto Rico
Teams: New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, Baltimore Orioles, Toronto Blue Jays, Chicago White Sox
11
292217Kobe Bryant
Dec. at 41 (1978-2020)Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
Teams: Los Angeles Lakers
12
285274George Foreman
Age: 71Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Marshall, Texas, USA
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184159Patrick Ewing
Age: 58Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Kingston, Jamaica
Teams: New York Knicks, Orlando Magic, Seattle Supersonics
14
278133Jimmy Connors
Age: 68Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: East St. Louis, Illinois
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16863Julio Franco
Age: 62Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Hato Mayor Province, Dominican Republic
Teams: Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers
16
420265Chuck Liddell
Age: 51Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Santa Barbara, California, United States of America
17
14369Sachin Tendulkar
Age: 47Nationality: India
Birthplace: Mumbai, India
Teams: Mumbai Indians, India national cricket team, Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Mumbai cricket team, Cricket Club of India
18
365454Michael Jordan
Age: 57Nationality: USA
Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States of America
Teams: Chicago Bulls, Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards, Washington Wizards, North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball
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9244Guy Lafleur
Age: 69Nationality: Canada
Birthplace: Thurso, Canada
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9346Tony Esposito
Age: 77Nationality: Canada, United States of America
Birthplace: Sault Ste. Marie, Canada
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379314Terrell Owens
Age: 47Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Alexander City, Alabama, United States of America
Teams: San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Bills
22
7337W. G. Grace
Dec. at 67 (1848-1915)Nationality: England
Birthplace: Downend, United Kingdom
If Grace retired in 1880,aged 32,he would have averaged 50 with the bat when it was hard to average more than 30 and averaged 5 wickets a match at an average of 14.He retired in 1908 aged 60 with a batting average below 40 and 3 wickets a match at an average of 18.23
6732Lleyton Hewitt
Age: 39Nationality: Australia
Birthplace: Adelaide, Australia
24
11176Joe Louis
Dec. at 67 (1914-1981)Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: La Fayette, Alabama, United States of America
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1710Charlie Hough
Age: 72Nationality: United States of America
Birthplace: Honolulu, Hawaii, United States of America
Teams: Miami Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Texas Rangers, Chicago White Sox
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