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Tottenham academy graduate Alfie Whiteman has reflected on his decision to retire from the game and has explained why he was always an odd fit for the professional football industry.
Alfie Whiteman has called time on his career in professional football, a few months after being released by Tottenham.
The goalkeeper came through the ranks of the Spurs academy to make it into the first-team, a dream for a boy who grew up supporting the club.
However, he was always a long way down the pecking order and did not make a single appearance for the Spurs first-team despite spending some time on loan and being part of a few matchday squads.
The Athletic have now revealed that the 27-year-old had several offers after he left Spurs, including ones from the Championship.
However, he had no interest in playing in the lower leagues and decided to begin a new career as a budding photographer and film director, signed to Somesuch, a global production company with offices in London and Los Angeles.
The former Spurs man told the outlet: “I signed for Spurs at 10 years old. Then I left school at 16 and went straight into this full-time life of football. When I was around 17 or 18, living in digs, I just had this feeling inside of, ‘Is this it?’ Getting on the mini bus, going to training, doing the Sports Science BTEC (he also did an A Level in Economics) and going home to play video games. I realised, ‘Oh, I’m not happy here’ from quite a young age.
“The stereotype of a footballer is generally quite true. It’s the golf, washbag culture. I was that young footballer. I wanted the Gucci washbag and I drove the Mercedes. You all just become a reflection of each other. You’re a product of your environment. It’s the way football is in this country; it’s so shut off from anything else. You go to training and then you go home, that’s it.
“I guess I always felt a little bit different. My teammates — who I got on well with — called me a hippie. That was their definition. But then, when I was 18, I met my ex-girlfriend, who was a model. She was a bit older than me. Her best friend was a director. It just started opening my eyes to what life has to offer.
“So as I was getting a bit older around 18 or 19, I started meeting new people and realising a bit more about myself, and understanding the football bubble, because it’s so insular.”
Whiteman reveals funny Europa League trophy parade story
Alfie Whiteman got to experience Tottenham’s Europa League triumph first-hand in Bilbao, and he has a funny story about the trophy parade back in London.
He continued: “My house is two minutes from the stadium. I used to walk to the home games. So the bus goes past my road, my sister, my best friend who lives at the house with me, they’re there waving from my street. I spotted a girl who goes to the youth centre that I was volunteering at; I did her headshots because she wants to be an actor. I was like, ‘Hey!’ And she was there in disbelief like, ‘What are you doing on the bus?’ It was funny.”
Whiteman also explained how his love for photography came about and why he decided to give up football to pursue his passion.
He added: “There was a weekend when I went home, and I started contemplating all my options. I had other things I’ve been building on the side and it was more exciting to me. To put it plainly, I saw happiness in these other avenues.
“It got to this point where I’d rather end this on my terms than go to a club that I just didn’t want to go to. When I was younger, I always said I didn’t want to play in the lower leagues; it was always about the highest level. Otherwise, I’d rather do something else. So I just took this step into the unknown, and I was like, ‘Oh, holy s***. I’m actually doing it.’ Anything can happen. I’m in complete control of my life, and it’s really exciting and really scary.
“I ended up going to assist my friend for this photography job for Vibram (a footwear company known for their ‘five finger’ shoes) at the World Toe Wrestling Championships,” says Whiteman. “I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ll come hold the lights!’ And the day before that shoot, they asked for a video, too, so I was like, ‘I’ll do it. I’ll do it!’
“There was no budget or brief, nothing. I turned up with him on the day and ran around with my camera, and then took it to an editor, sat with him, and made this thing and it got posted.
“I ended up going to assist my friend for this photography job for Vibram (a footwear company known for their ‘five finger’ shoes) at the World Toe Wrestling Championships,” says Whiteman. “I was like, ‘Yeah, I’ll come hold the lights!’ And the day before that shoot, they asked for a video, too, so I was like, ‘I’ll do it. I’ll do it!’
“There was no budget or brief, nothing. I turned up with him on the day and ran around with my camera, and then took it to an editor, sat with him, and made this thing and it got posted.”
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