Reece Wabara, who was once an exciting prospect at Manchester City and scored the winner against Liverpool in the FA Cup, quit football to pursue a career in business
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Updated 15:03, 23 Mar 2025
Reece Wabara
Reece Wabara in 2010 during his Manchester City days
When many veteran footballers head to the US, it is usually for a final pay day or the chance to extend their career in a warmer climate.
Reece Wabara, a former Manchester City academy graduate, is making waves Stateside after conquering the UK - but not in football. The ex-full-back came through the ranks at City before dropping into the EFL, scoring the winning goal in Oldham's FA Cup giant-killing of Liverpool in 2013 and helping Wigan win promotion to the Championship.
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However, Wabara always had ambitions beyond football, which ultimately affected his playing career when his fashion start-up, Maniere De Voir, began to flourish. Ater leaving Bolton in 2017, Wabara retired from football and dedicated himself full-time to his fashion career, a decision that has proven far more profitable than his football career.
Now 33, Wabara features on the Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated net worth of £83m, having grown Maniere De Voir from an online fashion brand to have a flagship store on Oxford Street, which opened last year.
Not one to rest on his laurels, Wabara is currently in New York preparing for a store opening on Broadway, with the Big Apple home to their largest customer base. This move could see his earnings continue to increase - with his current figure, according to last year's Rich List, putting him ahead of football stars like Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling.
Erling Haaland has agreed a lucrative nine-year deal at City worth £500,000-per-week - but his net worth currently stands between £32million and £46million (Forbes), highlighting the significance of Wabara's accomplishments.
Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland is worth less than little-known former Manchester City youngster Wabara
In a December 2022 interview with CEOCAST, Wabara opened up about his football career, admitting: "It's my fault, I was complacent, I didn't go hard enough. It was too easy up until 18, then everyone started to catch me up.
"I was the best player. Everybody told me how good I was going to be, that I'd play for England, that I'd be Manchester City's next right-back. And I wasn't good enough and everybody caught me up.
"I went on a few loans, didn't perform, you know your time is up. I'm very paranoid now that it only takes a year and you're done, one big mistake and you're out of the game."
On his switching focus to business over football, he explained: "I was playing for Wigan. We got promoted and I was in the team of the year.
"A member of the management said I'd been fantastic but they felt I was focussing on the business too much. I knew I was playing a game of politics in that moment.
"I thought to myself, 'I can't have my future in someone else's hands'. I had the business, that was me taking that stand. In the moment, I was like, 'you know what, I'm done'.
Reece Wabara
Wabara played for a host of EFL host, including Doncaster Rovers, Ipswich Town, Blackpool and Barnsley
"People saw me as flashy, not dedicated, focussing on the business. I started the clothing business, people said I just wanted to have a brand. They didn't see that all of those things were just me as a human being. I bumped into old managers and coaches, they say they saw it in me and I was misunderstood."
Meanwhile, he told High-Performance podcast: "I was 25 or 26, I had to make a choice, what's more long term? Where can I be the best of the best?
"To be a Champions League, World Cup-winning footballer was low percentage [chance]. I had to make the logical choice and that was to continue the business and take it as high as possible."
On his time at City, he added: "I was at Man City and around really high performing people at the top of their game, watching how they operated on a daily basis. I could take knowledge from them and see that's what I have to do. Whether it's Aguero, David Silva, they're always doing the same thing every day no matter their success.
"I'm glad I missed the opportunity of Man City, England, being very highly rated. I was too complacent, that's the bottom line. I always worked hard but I could have done more. It's not regret because I wouldn't be here if I didn't have that. But if I could live life again, I'd be playing in the Champions League or Premier League now."
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