‘From the penthouse to the shithouse’: a social constructionism investigation of Rugby League players’ experiences of transitioning to retirement

The transition to retirement out of elite sport is complex with many ongoing transitions across an athlete’s career impacting the outcome. This qualitative study investigated transition experiences of 21 male Australian professional National Rugby League (NRL) players to provide insight into the challenges they faced during and after their professional playing career and to understand what resources are needed to support them. Due to the potential for unpredictability of timing of retirement from elite sport, it was found that transitioning was an ongoing series of transitions, and the concept of ‘transitions’ encompassed elements of participant’s playing career, perceived need for and access to preparation for retirement and career development, the transitioning into retirement process and beyond. It was found that players’ transitions into and out of a professional sporting career were impacted by the social construction and perceived expectations of life as a past and present professional athlete.