Top 10 superstitions – from the worlds best footballers

These are the top 10 superstitions that have driven even the best football players in the world crazy.

These weird and wonderful superstitions finally do prove them to be human after all and have quirky behaviours just like the rest of us, even if they do have skills on the football field that are way beyond the rest of us.

If you are like me then you will be wondering what on earth possessed these players to start with these frankly weird and slightly odd  behaviour patterns?

I know the human brain can create some strange patterns in your head but who actually believes that these rituals can improve your skills, make you play better or help you win a match?

top 10 superstitions from the world best football players


The definition of superstition

A widely held but irrational belief in supernatural influences, especially leading to good or bad luck, or a practice based on such a belief.

What that actually means in plain words is someone keeping their fingers crossed and hoping that lady luck is shining on them.

So what is a football superstition?

It is the practice of this irrational behaviour from football players who play the game of football.

An example of this is if you play the game of football and you believe that no harm will come to you if you wear your underpants inside out whenever you play a match, just like the Romanian footballer Adrian Muta ( this is true) then you will start to understand what I mean by superstitions that drive football players crazy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Why do they have them

Who really knows, this is the thing I can  not seem to find an answer too.

How about this for a theory, they have a set routine in their pre match preparations and one time they did something different to the normal routine and everything went well for them that time, so next time they thought i’ll do that again and then it just becomes habit.

What do these players think will happen if they just cut them from their routines?

In my opinion,, absolutely nothing, they will play the same as they were going to play, but this is from me who has no superstitions so maybe I am wrong and it will affect their performance.

 

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Top 10 list of world best football players and their crazy behaviour!

  1. Bobby Moore OBE- The captain of the England national world cup winning team of 1966 insisted on being the last player in the dressing room to put his shorts on before a game. One of his team mates  Martin Peters was fascinated by this superstition and once played a prank on him by waiting for Bobby to put his shorts on thinking the team was ready to go out and play, then Martin would take his shorts off on purpose and poor old Bobby would have to the remove his shorts again and wait until Martin put his on again. He refused to put them on again until Martin put his shorts back on first.
  2. Pele.  One of the greatest players ever to grace a football field.  He was having a dip in form and once sent his friend to find his match shirt that he had given away to a fan from the match before his form dipped.  A week later his friend handed him the shirt back and his form improved.  His friend did not have the heart to tell him he had not tracked down the shirt but had simply given him a shirt he had worn in the previous match he had played in.
  3. Gary Neville – This Manchester United and England footballer found that he had so many weird superstitions, that he once stated they were starting to inhibit him and his performance. He would continue to wear the same aftershave if he was on a winning run, he once went a whole season without changing it!  He would never change his boots if he was winning.
  4. David Beckham-  A world superstar and not just on the football field but he too has been affected by the craziest of superstitions.  It has been said he has a compulsive obsessive disorder as everything has to be in pairs,  if he had 3 cans in his fridge, he would have to throw one out to make it an even number.
  5. Johan Cruyff – The great Holland and Ajax player used to slap his goalkeeper Gert Bals in the stomach before every Ajax game.  He would also spit his gum into opposition half before kick off, but once he forgot his chewing gum and surprise surprise they lost game 4-1 to Milan.
  6. Laurent Blanc The French football defender would go up to Fabien Barthez the French goalkeeper during World Cup in France 1998 and before every match would kiss the top of his bald head. He said it had become a ritual and they performed better.
  7. Kolo Toure the Ivory Coast and Arsenal player  got into the habit of waiting for all players to leave the dressing room and enter the pitch so he can be last one out onto the field of play.  Unfortunately this superstition earned him a yellow card for missing the start of the second half in Champions League as he was waiting for William Gallas to enter pitch and the second half had already begun
  8. Paolo Di Canio the Italian player had to make sure he put his left boot on before he put his right boot on before every match.  The one time he forgot this superstition, he was playing for West Ham United who then went on to beat Arsenal for the first time in 13 years and he just happened to score twice!  Guess that superstition went well!
  9. Cristiano Ronaldo. This world football superstar has many quirky behaviours. Take note of this, he always places his right foot first onto the turf as he crosses the white line when entering the field of play, then leaps towards the heavens. This one totally baffles me but he also has a habit of changing his hairstyle during half time!
  10. John Terry the legendary England and Chelsea defender has about 50 superstitions including sitting on the same seat on the team bus, parking in the same spot at the ground. He once wore a pair of  Lucky chin pads for over 10 years.

Will players ever quit these weird superstitions?

As they are human just like the rest of us then I would say no, as long as people can do weird things they probably will do weird things.

No one can truly understand why these football superstitions happen and why some players do the crazy things they do before after and during a game, but thankfully for us they do!

It’s part of the game that make us realise that even the best of the best think they need lady luck to shine on them to help them play better.

It makes me smile and feel slightly better about myself that even knowing they may possess football skills I will never have,  I don’t have to sit in a football dressing room worrying if I will be the last player to put my shorts on ( like Bobby moore), or put his left boot on first every time (like Paolo Di Canio) or kiss the top of a bald man’s head (Like Laurent Blanc)

Why they worry about superstitions in the first place I will never know? I will leave it to them to continue to believe it will bring them luck and a way to win football matches.

I am sure there are many more players that you know about that do weird things.  Feel free to let me know about them by leaving me a comment below.

I would love for you to get involved in the discussion on this topic.

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Best wishes

Matthew

 

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8 thoughts on “Top 10 superstitions – from the worlds best footballers

  1. I’ve heard that athletes in general are a superstitious bunch but had no idea it went to such extremes in the world of football. And I love that some players use the superstitions of others to mess with their heads sometimes. lol

    I think the baseball world is another area where athletes take superstitions to the next level. For example, Jason Giambi wearing a gold thong under his uniform to break out of a slump. And Matt Garza who would eat at Popeye’s Chicken before each start. 

    I think that a lot of these players determine their own outcomes by believing so strongly in their particular superstition. They will whatever outcome they want into existence. 

    Great article. Thanks. 

    1. Hi David

      I like you think some players believe to much in the superstitions that they forget they are actually quite good at their sport and don’t need any luck to win.  Who knows they may even play better if they just concentrated on their game instead of messing up their own my with weird thoughts.

      I loved the Baseball players superstitions, very funny. Thank you for messaging me.

  2. haha I loved reading these superstitions football players have. I think one of the funniest was Laurent Blanc kissing the bald head.

    Growing up playing ball I also had a few superstitions like having to tap my bat to my cleets when I hit or sprint out to the field every inning so I would be able to play good defense.

    Either way though I didn’t let them mess up my performance like some of these guys did.

    Did you play football or any sport growing up, and if so did you have any superstitions?

    1. Hi Michael

      I played all sports – football, cricket and rugby, but thankfully I had no quirky behaviour!

       In hindsight maybe I should have, who knows I may have made it  professionally in one of those sports.  Just kidding, I never possessed the skills needed to make it professionally so now I just talk a good game, and read books about football.

      I am glad you enjoyed the article. It’s nice to know that even the best need lady luck on their side.

  3. I didn’t realize that players are superstitious just like us! Sometimes you forget that players are human beings too. It’s funny to learn that David Beckham likes things to be in pairs, I would have never guessed this! I wonder if he does things related to this superstition while he’s on the field. Such interesting info, thank you!

    1. Hi Katy

      It is good news for all of us that the best players in the world think they need superstitions to make them play better with their football boots on. Having these superstitions makes us feel the same as them, human beings with flaws.

       The David Beckham pair things is a bit weird, you can be certain he will have had a load more when he was playing football.

      Thank you for taking the time to leave me a comment and I am glad you enjoyed the article.

      Best wishes

  4. I am really glad that I found this article as football is one of the best sports and I enjoy playing it. I heard that some players have their superstitions but I really think that it is a little stupid. Honestly I don’t believe in this things and I think that upside down underwear or red socks can’t help with outcome but my favorite one is definitely Paolo Di Canio, very funny.

    1. Hi Daniel

      Thank you for the message and I am happy it made you laugh.

       I like you don’t really believe weird superstitions make the best players perform any better.

      If they want to carry on doing it then who am I to argue with them.

      As long as they continue to use the skill in their football boots and keep providing me with exciting moments on the football field, then lets all hope they find a few more crazy and weird superstitions to occupy their minds.

      Take care and good luck to you.

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