Depression for Four Years: Jérémy Mathieu Breaks Silence on Life After Football

Jérémy Mathieu suffered from depression for four years following the abrupt end of his career in 2020, the former French international defender revealed in an interview with So Foot. A torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee while playing for Sporting CP had immediately halted his plans to extend his career for two additional seasons.

“I went through depression, we shouldn’t hide it,” confides the native of Haute-Saône, who won the Ligue des Champions with FC Barcelona alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar. Having spoken modestly in autumn of a “slight low,” he now describes without hesitation the extent of his decline: “I was in a dark place for four years. I stayed at home 24 hours a day. Even football no longer interested me. I was going in circles: I’d get up from the couch, walk around my house and sigh.”

The former international points to the sudden stop as an aggravating factor: “I missed the pitch, the dressing rooms, everything we knew. I didn’t have time to prepare for life after football because of this injury. Mentally, I struggled to accept the situation.” His wife, he says, played a decisive role in helping him through the crisis.

The turning point came from an unexpected career change: Mathieu accepted a temporary sales position at Intersport in Plan-de-Campagne, near Marseille, to cope with an ongoing lawsuit. The move drew mockery on social media, but he takes away what matters. “This job allowed me to get back on my feet, to regain a social life and, ultimately, to live again,” he reflects.

Today, the former defender is turning to coaching. After failed stints on the benches of Sporting CP and Sochaux, he is preparing his Football Coach Certificate (BEF) and manages the U15 team at Aix-en-Provence. “I want to work in an academy,” he states.