Bizarre Football Fanatics: Even Royals Aren't Exempt from Weird Superstitions
Extraordinary football players' belief displaying irrationality in astonishing fashion
Footballers' superstitions aren't just confined to the pitch. From celebrities to royals, the obsession for good luck charms and strange rituals has permeated the football world. And let's face it, some of the stories that follow are downright bizarre!
Unlucky Coin Tosses and Walks to the Stadium
German ex-footballer Berti Vogts would celebrate victories before the game, even if he lost the coin toss - because, you guessed it, his team usually won. His unusual quirk pales in comparison to former national coach Harald Konopka, who believed that if he shaved just before the game and the team bus drove into the Müngersdorfer Stadium, his club would secure the victory. Strange, but it's not uncommon for players to have their own set of lucky habits.
Prince William's Wacky Winning Streak
Even royalty can't escape football superstitions. Recently, Prince William confessed to being somewhat superstitious about his seat while watching Aston Villa games with his children, George, Charlotte, and Louis. On days when his team is underperforming, he resorts to pacing around nervously and rearranging the children in the living room in the hope of shifting some cosmic energies and turning their luck around.
The Cursed Football Stadium
European champions aren't immune to strange superstitions. When Cologne lost to Karlsruhe in 1993, their goalkeeper, Harald Konopka, couldn't make sense of it. He'd prepared diligently, shaved before the game, and even would have the team bus drive forward into the stadium - yet his club still lost. The culprits? They blamed the builders who had buried a box filled with Tottenham Hotspur souvenirs in the Emirates Stadium when Arsenal moved in. The curse, apparently, didn't apply to Arsenal during their match against arch-rival Tottenham.
The World Star and the Number 6
Fernando Santos, the later European champion coach, believed reversing the team bus was bad luck - an old Portuguese superstition. During a game in Paris, his superstition paid off when the team's driver struggled to park the bus. Santos ordered the team to disembark and walk the remainder of the way to the stadium. Leeds United owner Massimo Cellino shared Santos' belief about numbers, hating the number 17 so much that he fired goalkeeper Paddy Kenny, who was born on the 17th, and replaced the number 17 seats in his previous club's stadium with 16B.
The Quirkiest Superstitions in Football
From Brazilian superstar Neymar Jr.'s extensive pre-match ritual to Cristiano Ronaldo's unique route to the pitch, football players have an assortment of strange superstitions. Zlatan Ibrahimović, known for his confidence, maintained his pre-match focus with mental exercises, whereas American football player Travis Hunter swears by wearing the same underwear for every game.
So, football superstitions aren't limited to quirky traditions or odd rituals - sometimes they even turn magical!
I'm not going to play football, for I believe in the curse of the buried Tottenham Hotspur souvenirs at the Emirates Stadium, a superstition that reportedly caused Mönchengladbach's defeat in 1993.
Prince William's football viewing sessions with his children are filled with superstitions, including pacing nervously and rearranging the children in the living room when Aston Villa underperforms, all in an effort to change their luck.
The superstition of avoidance seemed to work for European champion coach Fernando Santos, who chose to disembark and walk the rest of the way to the stadium when the team bus driver struggled to park, a practice driven by an old Portuguese superstition about reversing the bus.
