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8 footballers that have dabbled in acting: Beckham, Messi, Neymar…

Ben Stewart •

Plenty of footballers go into coaching or punditry once they hang up their boots, but others fancy themselves as actors on the big screen.

From budget TV shows to mainstream movies, you’d be surprised at just how many footballers have actually gone into the acting industry over the years.

We’ve compiled a list of eight current and former footballers that have dabbled in acting. It’s fair to say that some of them are more convincing than others.

Lionel Messi

Is there anything he can’t do? Now that he’s pretty much completed football, Messi is busy ticking off every other side quest he can think of. Argentine comedy-drama Los Protectores is worth a watch for Messi’s cameo alone.

Vinnie Jones

While most footballers only dip their toes in acting, few fully immerse themselves in the craft like Jones. His role as Bullet-Tooth Tony in Guy Ritchie’s ‘Snatch’ will forever be iconic.

Since making his acting debut in 1998, the former football hardman has featured in over 100 acting roles. You can’t help but love him.

David Beckham

Becks has thrived in pretty much every venture he has taken outside of football, but acting? Not so much. Along with a handful of celebrity appearances on TV shows and the odd movie cameo, he made his fully-fledged acting debut in 2017’s King Arthur: Legend of the Sword.

He certainly looks the part, but audiences weren’t convinced. We’ll let you be the judge of this one.

Neymar

The Brazilian superstar appeared in the Spanish crime drama Money Heist back in 2019. Having Neymar deliver the line ‘I don’t like football or parties’ is pretty funny to be fair.

Pele

The Brazilian icon certainly wasn’t camera-shy and enjoyed plenty of acting cameos towards the tail end of his footballing career. His roles in Escape to Victory and A Minor Miracle will forever be iconic.

Thierry Henry

Henry regularly cracks us up while doing punditry with CBS and as it turns out, he’s also got a knack for comedy acting. His cameo in a French sitcom from 1999 still has us chuckling to this day.

READ: Where has this Thierry Henry sitcom cameo been all our lives?

Ian Wright

The Arsenal icon has had a handful of acting roles over the years. He’s one of many former players to have appeared on Ted Lasso and is set to make an appearance in Daniel Kaluuya’s upcoming film ‘The Kitchen’. We’ll be keeping an eye out for that one.

Olivier Giroud

Still bagging goals at 36 years old, Giroud also has a range of talents away from the game. In 2018, he landed the role to voice the Green Goblin in the French version of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

Chelsea even gave him his own announcement video for landing the role.

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David Beckham Lionel Messi Neymar Olivier Giroud Quick Reads Lists And Rankings