Key Takeaways:
- Professional athletes need a comprehensive financial team — including business managers, accountants, tax specialists, and consultants — to manage their complex financial lives.
- Your financial front office provides critical visibility into your finances, prevents potential problems before they arise, and creates a coordinated strategy across all aspects of your wealth management.
- While you may only interact with one or two people on your financial team, there should be an entire network of professionals working behind the scenes to protect your wealth and secure your future.
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Behind every winning team in pro-sports is a strong front office. From the general manager to the scouts, trainers, and analysts, each person plays a critical role in a team's success. But what about your personal financial team? As a professional athlete, you need an equally robust front office of your own to manage your finances and secure your future.
The Game Changes When the Checks Get Bigger
When you sign that first contract, everything changes. Suddenly, you may be dealing with more money than you've ever seen before. You're getting big paychecks coming in, but also big expenses going out — including taxes, which nobody likes to think about.
It's a common misconception to think: "I make a million dollars, so I can spend a million dollars." In reality, that million might actually be $600,000 or less after taxes. Without proper financial management, you can quickly find yourself in trouble.
Your Financial Front Office Lineup
Just as you wouldn't play without a complete team on the field, you shouldn't manage your finances without a complete financial team. Here's who should be in your financial front office:
Business Manager
Think of your business manager as the quarterback or point guard of your financial team. They coordinate everything and serve as your primary point of contact. They handle:
- Bill payments and expense management
- Budgeting and financial projections
- Cash flow analysis
- Personal CFO services
- Coordination with other financial professionals
Your business manager is the person you go to for everything financial. They provide a "seamless experience" by coordinating with all the other specialists working on your behalf.
Accounting Team
Behind the scenes, you need strong accountants who specialize in providing visibility into your financial world. These professionals handle:
- Consolidated financial statements for both personal and business accounts
- Monthly cash flow reporting
- Real-time financial visibility
- Tracking all financial activity across your accounts
The accounting team picks up all the activity in your financial universe — the salaries coming in, all the expenses going out on your credit cards, bank accounts, brokerage accounts, etc. — making sure that it's all captured in one place.
This financial visibility is crucial. You receive comprehensive reports showing exactly where your money is coming from and where it's going. This real-time tracking allows you to make adjustments before problems arise.
Tax Team
Tax planning is critical for professional athletes. Your tax team handles:
- Income tax preparation and estimated tax payments
- Multi-state tax compliance (crucial for athletes who play in multiple states)
- Entity structuring (including "loan-out" companies)
- Tax strategies for salaries, bonuses, and endorsement deals
- International tax planning
For athletes, tax planning is complex. You're often earning income in multiple states and through different channels. Without proper tax planning, you could face significant penalties and unexpected tax bills.
Specialty Consulting Services
Depending on your needs, your financial front office might include professionals who can assist you in areas like:
- Brand licensing, publishing, and royalty consulting
- Name, image, and likeness (NIL) planning
- Insurance and risk management
- Film, TV, streaming, and media production
Much like position coaches who focus on specific aspects of your game, these professionals provide knowledge and experience when and where you need it.
The Benefits of a Complete Financial Front Office
Here's what you gain from having a full team working behind the scenes for you:
1. Financial Visibility and Control
Perhaps the most important benefit is having complete visibility into your financial situation. Until you see it on paper, it's hard to really understand how much is entering and leaving your bank account on a regular basis.
With monthly reporting, you can see exactly where your money is going — allowing you to make informed decisions about your spending and saving.
2. Proactive Problem Prevention
Your financial team can identify potential issues before they become problems. If your spending starts to exceed your income, your business manager can have a conversation with you about adjusting your habits.
In some cases, they might recommend specific monthly spending caps to help you maintain positive cash flow.
3. Coordinated Financial Strategy
With everyone working together, you get a coordinated approach to your finances. Your business manager ensures your accounting team has all the information they need, which then provides your tax team with accurate data for tax planning.
This coordination is seamless to you — you have one point of contact who manages everything behind the scenes (your business manager), but you benefit from the specialized expertise of each team member.
4. Relief from the Burden of Financial Management
Perhaps most importantly, a financial front office frees you to focus on what you do best: play your game. You don't have to worry about paying bills, tracking expenses, or preparing for tax season. Your team handles it all, giving you the mental space to excel in your career.
The Invisible Gears of Your Financial Watch
Your financial front office works like a precision watch. You might only see the time (the final reports and recommendations), but behind the face is a complex system of gears working together. While you may only touch base with one or two people, there are several different teams of people — business management, accounting, tax, consulting — working on your behalf.
This behind-the-scenes work keeps everything running smoothly, even if you don't see all the moving parts.
Build Your Winning Team with MGO
Our dedicated Entertainment, Sports, and Media team understands the unique financial challenges professional athletes face — multi-state income, endorsement deals, loan-out companies, and a career span that requires careful planning. From business management to tax, accounting, and consulting, our experienced professionals work together seamlessly to provide the support you need at every stage of your career.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
