Football players are among the athletes with the biggest salaries and earn millions per season. Being surrounded by sports, many are accustomed to betting. Some players started to gamble by visiting famous casinos or online iGaming websites in their free time, moving into a celebrity environment.
The competitive nature of the pitch often translates to a gambling match or game. Here are some of the most famous football players that like to gamble. Their game of choice is sometimes poker, while others prefer to play a huge range of online slots or other iGaming content. Luckily, casino websites like Casumo offer both, and users can choose between a big variety of slots and classic casino table games.
But now, let’s look at some of the most famous football players who like to gamble.
Gianluigi Buffon
One of the world’s best goalkeepers of all time, Juventus and Italian national team legend Gianluigi Buffon is famous for betting on sports. Unfortunately, he was involved in a match-fixing scandal, but the charges against him were dropped. Aside from sports betting, Buffon enjoyed a poker game and was an ambassador of the game for a while.
Wayne Rooney
The former Manchester United star, who played later for Everton and in the American MLS, is among the most famous footballers that like to gamble. The English national team forward played casino games like blackjack and roulette. His well-documented gambling trip was in 2008 when he played poker and lost £65,000. However, England was in an away fixture with Belarus, and Rooney had a different plan.
David Beckham
One of the most well-recognized English players of all time, David Beckham became the face of some iGaming companies promoting their venues in Singapore and Macau. He has also visited Las Vegas casinos. Aside from being a brand ambassador, Beckham also plays casino games.
Neymar
The Brazilian superstar who captivates fans with his virtuoso dribbling skills has numerous hobbies. One of his leisure activities includes a game of poker. Neymar usually plays poker with his friends, and he also spends some free time in online casinos. For Brazilian attackers, poker shares similarities with football because of its competitiveness.
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano is almost like iron-man on the football pitch, still scoring goals in his later football years and being in immaculate shape. One of the competitive games he likes outside of the stadium is poker. Ronaldo participated in several commercials for poker games, playing with world-known poker players like Patrick Antonius.
Ronaldo is extremely focused on the game of football and has great determination. Of course, these are traits you need while playing poker, so it’s no wonder one of the best players in the past decade loves the game.
Football gambling list
While some players like Buffon have recorded and documented gambling past, others from our list are a hobby or occasional players. Highly successful athletes have a competitive edge that comes out in games like poker.
Many other famous current and past football players developed a love for gambling as a pastime activity. Some other prolific gamblers among football players are Burnley’s Joey Barton, Dominic Matteo, David Bentley, and Phil Bardsley.
The two best Argentinian players of all time, Maradona and Messi, were mentioned in the gambling context, but their adventures in the iGaming world were not confirmed.
