Professional Athletes and Coaches

Your success on the field, court or rink brings with it great rewards. Unfortunately, too often the pressing demands of athletes lead to little time and resources for money management and financial planning. CrossleyShear Wealth Management understands it’s our responsibility to highlight the difficult and complex issues that accompany being a professional athlete or coach before, during and after your athletic career.

Our team of advisors will work with you and your representation to develop a comprehensive financial game plan that considers your cash flow, spending needs and both your short and long-term lifestyle and legacy goals. We’ll provide unbiased, transparent advice that helps preserve your assets and earnings against injury risk and conserve your wealth – managed confidentially so you can focus on what’s important to your success. When needed, we’ll act as your gatekeeper to buffer potentially tough or awkward conversations with charities as well as family and friends requesting financial support. We’ll also provide career transition support so that you can be confident of income longevity and fulfillment of your long-term lifestyle and legacy goals.

We offer the following financial planning services, tailored specifically to the needs of professional athletes:

Total Cash Flow Management

Managing your cash flow can be challenging with your busy schedule. We’ll make sure that you know where your money is going by providing you with ongoing reporting so you always have a clear picture of your cash flow.

Bill Paying

We work with partners to coordinate paying your bills so you don’t have to worry about managing mail, writing checks or arranging auto drafts, particularly when you are traveling.  Our goal is to manage your day-to-day finances so you are free to focus on the game.

Investment Management

As a professional athlete, you have distinct investment concerns – a condensed career with sizable earnings. We’ll work collaboratively with you to invest your earnings wisely with the goal of preserving your wealth and maintaining your lifestyle when you retire.

Strategic Charitable Planning

As a professional athlete or coach, you have a unique gift and platform to impact the lives of others. It provides the rewarding opportunity to help a cause you’re passionate about. We’ll help you establish a private foundation or charitable trust as a strategy for managing your wealth and fulfilling a lifelong dream.

Specialized Tax Planning and Preparation

Professional athletes encounter many complexities when it comes to completing their tax returns. For example, determining your state of residence and how your taxes are allocated can become very complicated. We’ll work with a team of professionals who specialize in preparing tax returns for professional athletes to ensure you’re optimizing your income and tax impacts.

Insurance Review and Planning

With the rewards of being a professional athlete come specific risks and complexities. Planning for the unexpected is essential for your long term financial success following your playing days. We’ll provide knowledgeable advice to manage and limit your exposure by identifying specific risks and developing strategies to mitigate those risks.

Trust Services

We understand that preserving your legacy and ensuring your loved ones’ well-being is important. We provide the necessary expertise to help you determine the trust services that will best suit the needs of you and your heirs. We have a deep understanding of the complexities related to establishing and managing a trust and we’ll work collaboratively with your team to work though the fine points of you plan and be accountable for helping you achieve your goals.

Raymond James and its advisors do not offer tax or legal advice. You should discuss any tax or legal matters with the  appropriate professional.

Custom Services

As a professional athlete or coach, you have unique needs and demands that often require guidance outside of the typical norm. In addition to the services described above, we’re also committed to remaining by your side to help with a full range of business consulting services designed to meet your unique lifestyle. Whether you’re in need of assistance with your foundation or more personal matters such as mortgage and house issues, extenuating family circumstances and crisis management (death of a spouse or injury), our team will provide discreet and personal solutions so you can tend to what’s most important to you and your family.


How We Design Winning Game Plans

The Client: A college baseball player may be drafted into the major leagues.
The Vision: Maintain a comfortable lifestyle while playing professionally and preserve assets to ensure long-term income after he transitions out of playing.
Our Plan: We would create a comprehensive and stable long-term plan for every phase of his career – before, during and after the cleats are hung up – focusing on risk management and longevity for a lifetime.


This case study is for illustrative purposes only. Individual cases will vary. Any information is not a complete summary or statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision and does not constitute a recommendation. Prior to making any investment decision, you should consult with your financial advisor about your individual situation.

Find us on Facebook