Music and football have a lot in common than most people think. The greatest players who have graced the game have compared the beautiful game to the art form of music in various ways through the years. As Ronaldinho recently wrote in The Player’s Tribune in his article ‘Letter To My Younger Self’: “When you have a football at your feet, you are free. You are happy. It’s almost like you are hearing music. That feeling will make you want to spread joy to others.”
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While Zinedine Zidane heralded the intertwining of music and football in his life growing up in a poor suburb of Marseille in France. In his interview with The Guardian in 2004, he said: “I was lucky to come from a difficult area. It teaches you not just about football but also life. There were lots of kids from different races and poor families. People had to struggle to get through the day. Music was important. Football was the easy part.”
Football and music transcend the mind and reach the soul. Whether it’s your favourite team scoring a great goal or defending one, or a piece of melody and lyric that touches you, these little moments are the culmination of creative and hard-working minds reaching out through technology to make you feel joyous.
Not surprisingly a lot of the musicians both current and from the past have supported football teams. With the Grammy Awards coming up, we decided to put the record straight about musicians and the clubs they support. This list consists of the musicians who have supported and currently support their favourite football teams.
#21 Oasis - Manchester City
The notorious brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher who are known as Oasis are life-long Manchester City fans. We’ve all probably sung ‘Wonderwall’ at some point in our lives after precisely 4 or more drinks.
Oasis are well known for hit numbers like ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’, ‘Stop Crying Your Heart Out’ and ‘Champagne Supernova’. Both brothers Noel and Liam support Manchester City and grew up in Manchester itself. Liam was quoted saying, “I love Mancini (former Manchester City and Premier League winning manager), he is nearly as cool as me,” back when Roberto Mancini was City boss.
His brother Noel admitted to “crying like a baby” when Sergio Aguero scored THAT famous goal that won Manchester City the Premier League title back in 2011/12. The older Gallagher said in one interview, ”The first game my dad ever took me to was City v Newcastle United at Maine Road in 1971. That was it; City became my team.”
Noel Gallagher even interviewed Pep Guardiola at the start of the 2016/17 season.
You could say they’re pretty die-hard.
# 20 KISS - Chelsea
This is perhaps the strangest of all. KISS are an iconic rock band from the United States, and you would have probably seen their trademark logo on t-shirts, but they are most well known for their distinct white and black painted faces while performing.
Just last year they pledged their allegiance to Premier League leaders Chelsea via a video message that the Stamford Bridge club posted on their official twitter handle. They reminded the Stamford Bridge club that 2016/17 was their season. Brilliant!
KISS formed in the mid to late 1970’s and have been around for a while. They have also been influences to many current and legendary musicians such as – Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and Maynard James Keenan – the iconic ‘Tool’ and ‘A Perfect Circle’ front-man, who wrote in his autobiography about listening to KISS a lot when he was younger.
#19 Kasabian - Leicester City
2015/16 champions Leicester City were a surprise package that won the Premier League against all-odds last season. They were 5000/1 to win it and they did. Just to put that into context, there was a higher probability of alien life being discovered. As Claudio Ranieri joked at the start of this season, it was more probable that, ‘ET comes to Piccadilly Circus!’.
A band that was formed and raised in Leicester itself are the amazing Kasabian.
For a few familiar songs of theirs you have to look no further than the hit ‘Fire’ that was used as the official Premier League song from 2010/11 to 2012/13. Other recognisable hits of theirs include ‘Club Foot’, used in the first movie of the Goal series and ‘Underdog’ (used in the film ‘Takers’) – which typifies Leicester City. Needless to say, Kasabian are huge in the UK and completely rocked their home-town with an epic concert after Leicester City FC won the Premier League last season.
Absolute scenes there.
#18 Ed Sheeran - Chelsea
It’s safe to say Ed Sheeran is pretty popular these days. The English Pop/Folk singer is well known for his hit songs like ‘I See Fire’, ‘The A Team’ and ‘Thinking Out Loud’. While just this year he released two singles from an upcoming album called ‘Divide’ which instantly became hits. The 25-year-old English singer, who is of Irish descent, is a Chelsea fan, according to this tweet a few years ago.
However, he does state that his heart will forever be with Framlingham town FC!
#17 Snoop Dogg - Almost every club, but we’ll go with Ajax Amsterdam
Coming to the hip-hop section, who doesn’t know Snoop Dogg? Everybody seemingly wants to party with the hip-hop star. The legend that is Snoop Dogg has been pictured wearing a number of football clubs’ jerseys, so it’s very uncertain as to where his loyalties lie.
We can’t decide as to which club he supports, but it’s fair to say Ajax Amsterdam are one of his favourites, for let’s just say, reasons very close to Snoop’s heart. The Ajax fans liked him so much they gave him a jersey with the iconic No.14 at the back – the number the club retired after Johan Cryuff wore it.
We’ll let you figure it out.
#16 Drake - Manchester United/Chelsea
Hip-hop sensation Drake is one of the biggest stars of the genre currently. His hits since his first album with the song ‘Best I Ever Had’ to the song ‘Started From The Bottom’, right upto ‘Hotline Bling’ on his recent album ‘Views’ which released last year – have all cemented Drake as one of the biggest hip-hop artists on the planet.
When it comes to supporting football clubs though, it was thought that he was a Manchester United fan after this picture with former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand. But since then his loyalties have been questioned by a lot of fans, after he was pictured in a number of different club’s jerseys.
#15 Nas – Everton and Jay-Z – Arsenal
Nas being an Everton fan is not known for certain. But judging by this tweet from the Everton FC official account in 2014, the veteran rapper is a Toffees fan. It sort of seems fit that nasty Nas is an Everton fan, a club known for their hard-tackling and never-say-die attitude.
The rapper is undoubtedly one of the hardest and greatest rappers of his generation. We’ll leave this one for you to speculate about.
Since we couldn’t separate Nas and Jay-Z – they’re both greats from the same era – we decided to put them together on the list. Jigga, Jay-Z or H.O.V.A., whatever you call him, you can’t deny that he’s undoubtedly one of hip-hop’s greatest rappers of all time.
His loyalties lie with London club Arsenal. He even invited the Gunners to party with him according to this interview on Contact music, “I’d like to thank the club. I’m glad Arsenal now know it’s them I support. I want them to party in New York, my city. I will look after them and make sure that they have some amazing nights out.The next time I’m playing in England I would like the Arsenal players to come and watch my gig and then come backstage afterwards. I know how hard professional sportsmen work so I want to offer an incentive for the guys.”
Jay-Z also hinted at investing in the club back in 2010 thanks to Thierry Henry, while speaking to the Daily Mail he said, “I don't know a lot about the business of soccer, but in the future if the right opportunity presented itself, then who knows?”
#14 Lana Del Rey - Liverpool
Lana Del Rey, whose real name is Elizabeth Woolridge Grant, is a singer from New York City who has quickly risen to fame after becoming a YouTube sensation and signing a record deal in 2011. She has since produced hits like ‘Young and Beautiful’ – which was used in the movie ‘The Great Gatsby’ and also the heavily remixed song ‘Summertime Sadness’.
Lana Del Rey is reportedly a Liverpool fan she was quoted in NME Magazine saying, “I was introduced to Liverpool FC by my manager, Ben, whose mood is dependent on the Liverpool results [and] I love watching Luis Suárez play.”
Although Luis Suarez has moved on to Barcelona, it’s great for Liverpool fans to know that this talented signer with a heavenly voice is one of the voices among the Kop. Maybe a bit of her ‘Summertime Sadness’ was because Suarez left Liverpool that summer, you never know.
#13 Ellie Goulding - Chelsea
Another very talented musician is the British singer. Ellie Goulding. Much like Lana Del Rey, she has also achieved great success at around the same time i.e. around 2010-11. Her hits include the songs ‘Love Me Like You Do’, ‘Lights’ and ‘Burn’. She has been spotted at Stamford Bridge and is a Chelsea fan, as per reports.
This tweet of her saying she was ‘seriously buzzing’ after a game at the Bridge will surely delight Chelsea fans who have been slated in the past for the atmosphere in their stadium.
#12 Adele – Tottenham Hotspur
Adele is a British icon and an incredible singer. Everything she touches turns to gold. Her voice and her music have earned her one of the biggest fan bases in the world and she continues to re-invent herself with each album. Her album ‘21’ with hits like – ’Someone Like You’, ‘Rolling In The Deep’ and ‘Set Fire To The Rain’ all became number 1’s worldwide and that album holds the record for ‘The most sold album of the 21st century’ and ‘The fourth highest sold album of all time’ in the UK.
Adele was born and raised in Tottenham itself so it’s no surprise that she is a Spurs fan. She has been pictured at White Hart Lane a few times including this game where Spurs lost to Chelsea 5-1 in the FA Cup.
#11 Damon Albarn (Gorillaz) – Chelsea
We now come to our top 10, and kick it off with Damon Alborn, the brains behind the band ‘Gorillaz’. Most people don’t know what he looks like, but if you’re a die-hard fan of Albarn’s work, or from the UK, you would know that he was the lead singer of the British band Blur.
Those who played FIFA RTWC 1998 on the PC back in the day would’ve heard the Blur smash hit ‘Song 2’ in the opening credits. Since then he's gone on to major success as the creator of Gorillaz making hits like ‘Feel Good Inc’, ‘Clint Eastwood’, ‘Stylo’ and ‘19-2000’ – the last which was again used in FIFA 2002.
He is a life-long Chelsea fan and was delighted when Jose Mourinho re-joined the London club back in 2013 saying, "Mourinho - I'm delighted he's back! To us he is the special one. I've met him, I've been very lucky to meet him.”
He also knows his football pretty well as he said back then, "As for the team, On his day, Eden Hazard is spellbinding, I think Willian's been a bit of revelation this season and I like (Nemanja) Matic, but I still like the old crew.”
#10 Arctic Monkeys – Sheffield Wednesday
Alex Turner, Jamie Cook, Matt Helders and Nick O’Malley are the Arctic Monkeys. They’re one of the biggest bands in Britain and they were all born and raised in High Green, a suburb of Sheffield. The four band members all support their childhood team Sheffield Wednesday. Bassist Nick O’Malley even vaguely recalls seeing the infamous Hillsborough disaster which killed 96 Liverpool fans in 1989 at the Owls’ ground.
The lads from Sheffield have visited Hillsborough stadium on numerous occasions to support their team. The Arctic Monkeys have even put the club’s crest on their tour gear. While Alex Turner even has customised Chris Waddle (a Sheffield Wednesday legend) guitar picks. It’s safe to say that they’re die-hard fans of the Owls and support them dearly.
#9 Bob Marley – Hamburg SV /Tottenham Hotspur / FC Nantes
Coming to the legends section, we had to start off with a man who is an icon of music, none other than Bob Marley. It is unclear as to which team the reggae legend supported, but he was given a Hamburg SV jersey by Kevin Keegan, who at the time played for Hamburg and Marley seemed to like it.
The Jamaican singer was a huge football fan and was quoted saying, “Football is a whole skill to itself. A whole world. A whole universe to itself. Me love it because you have to be skilful to play it! Freedom! Football is freedom.”
He was also photographed playing football in an FC Nantes jersey but the internet seems to suggest that he was a Tottenham Hotspur fan. He has not been pictured in a Spurs jersey, however, it’s pretty uncertain as to which club he supported through and through, but he was a big fan of the sport nonetheless.
His legacy and his music lives on in the hearts of millions around the world. This video of Ajax fans singing Bob Marley’s hit song ‘Three Little Birds’ further highlights that, it’s magical!
#8 Michael Jackson – Fulham
The late ‘King Of Pop’, Michael Jackson was one of the foremost icons of pop-music in his time. The legendary singer and dancer had a controversial life, but his music is loved by millions, if not billions around the world. MJ’s songs – ‘Smooth Criminal’, ‘Billie Jean’, ‘Thriller’ and ‘Beat it’ remain his all-time classics but he was also a close friend of Fulham FC owner Mohamed Al Fayed.
He visited Fulham’s home ground Craven Cottage a few times and was confirmed as a Fulham fan. After his untimely demise, the club’s owner even built a statue in his honour at the stadium.
However, the statue was removed from Craven Cottage by new owner Shahid Khan after he bought the club from Al-Fayed in 2013 and moved to the National Football Musuem in Manchester in 2014. Strangely enough, Fulham got relegated from the Premier League in May 2014, shortly after the removal of the statue. The club’s ex-owner Al-Fayed suggested that the removal of Michael Jackson's statue caused the club’s relegation after 13 seasons in the top-flight, citing that it was a lucky charm for the club.
#7 Eric Clapton – West Bromwich Albion
So far, we’ve dabbled in many genres but let’s get back to good old Rock n Roll. Eric Clapton, is perhaps one of the most recognised guitarists ever. He was the lead guitarist of Cream, The Yardbirds, Derek and the Dominos, John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and Blind Faith.
A successful solo career further cemented Eric ‘Slowhand’ Clapton as one of the best guitarists in rock and roll history. Clapton is a West Bromwich Albion fan and even suggested so in the back-cover of his 1978 album ‘Backless’ which had the Baggies scarf draped on the couch.
However, nobody had seen Clapton at the Hawthorns – West Brom’s stadium – until recently. Just a few months ago in December itself, an Albion supporter met the iconic guitarist at the Hawthorns and posted the picture on twitter. Judging by the tweet, we’re guessing Clapton is pretty happy these days with Tony Pulis as Albion’s boss.
#6 Richard Ashcroft (The Verve) – Manchester United
Richard Ashcroft is one of the great lyricists and singer/songwriters of our generation. Although he was born in Wigan, the lead singer of the 90's band ‘The Verve’ is a huge Manchester United fan. The Verve were together responsible for a number of hit albums and songs, the most famous of which were – ‘Bittersweet Symphony’, ‘The Drugs Don’t Work’ and ‘Lucky Man’.
He has since focused on a solo career releasing a number of solo albums. Songs like ‘On A Beach’ and ‘You On My Mind In My Sleep’, from his solo work are stand-outs. He was reportedly at the Nou Camp for THAT 1999 Champion’s League Final against Bayern Munich.
He was also pictured in a video with a No.11 Manchester United jersey with his last name at the back.
Ashcroft hasn’t got as much recognition outside the UK, despite his obvious talent and genius. However, just to show you how well respected he is in the music community, Oasis brothers Noel and Liam dubbed him ‘Captain Rock’ and even dedicated a song called ‘Cast No Shadow’ to him.
He did, however, don the club’s jersey in a celebrity charity game between Manchester United and Celtic. The musical genius is a proper Red Devil.
#5 The Beatles – Liverpool or Everton or Arsenal?
Ok so let’s set the record straight. The Beatles were arguably the greatest band ever (according to most people), they pretty much own every record in the music industry from most number one singles to number one albums to highest all-time album sales – you name it.
However, the plain fact is that none of the Beatles took football very seriously. They represented the city of Liverpool more than Liverpool football club. We’ll still give you a bit of the theories nonetheless.
Paul McCartney supposedly leans towards Everton because his family are all Evertonians. In an interview with Radio Merseyside he said, “Here’s the deal: my father was born in Everton, my family are officially Evertonians, so if it comes down to a derby match or an FA Cup final between the two, I would have to support Everton.”
“I support them both[Liverpool and Everton]. They are both great teams. But if it comes to the crunch, I’m Evertonian.”
George Harrison wasn’t really much of a football fan. He was quoted, when asked about which club he supported saying, “There are three teams in Liverpool and I prefer the other one.” – Not much of a football fan, quite clearly.
John Lennon wasn’t a big football fan either, but it is believed he supported Liverpool as a child. However, a drawing he made when he was 11 years old showing an FA Cup Final between Arsenal and Newcastle in 1952 has baffled Beatles and Liverpool fans for years. The drawing was used in his 1974 album ‘Walls and Bridges’. Newcastle beat Arsenal 1-0 to win the FA Cup in that final.
However, he was not a fan of either club or football in general and it was just a memory he drew as a child.
Finally, Ringo Starr is apparently an Arsenal fan because his Londoner father took him to only Arsenal games in his youth. But the drummer’s children are season ticket holders at Anfield. So in the end, it just leaves everything ambiguous with the Beatles.
#4 Thom Yorke and Ed O'Brien (Radiohead) – Manchester United
Radiohead are one of the greatest bands in the world who are still together after their formation in Oxfordshire in 1985. After numerous successful albums through the years and releasing their ninth album, called ‘A Moon Shaped Pool’, last year in May 2016, Radiohead have established themselves as one of the most revered bands today.
They are – Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Ed O’Brien, Colin Greenwood and Philip Selway. Everything they make is different, brilliant, mesmerising and they are undoubtedly the ultimate alternative rock band.
When it comes to football, it is believed that their front-man Thom Yorke supports Manchester United. It’s strange though because United pretty much represent a lot of what Thom rebels against in his music. A number of sources online say he is a United fan, but there is no photographic evidence to suggest so.
Ed O’Brien, however is a big Manchester United fan and has confirmed the same in numerous interviews. In one of them, he says, “I’m also a big soccer fan — Manchester United — so I check out the MU sites, and there are a lot.”
O’Brien studied Economics at the Manchester University, so it probably could be the reason why he supports the Red Devils.
#3 Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) – Wolverhampton Wanderers
Led Zeppelin is one of the most illustrious Classic Rock bands to have ever existed. All the Led Zeppelin albums have been certified as ‘Platinum’ with seven of their nine studio albums reaching number 1 on the UK charts. Led Zeppelin consisted of – Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, John Paul Jones and John Bonham. Their lead singer Robert Plant is widely regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of Rock music.
He is a massive Wolves fan and has supported Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. for the last 55 years. He was announced as the club’s vice president in 2009, after which he was quoted saying, "First of all, I'm flattered, but I'm embarrassed to be honest. There are so many other people who are so important and relevant to the club, especially the people I sit next to at Molineux in the Steve Bull Stand.”
"They've seen so many more games than me and they're able to keep a closer eye on what's going on."
It is also believed that the wolf on the cover of his solo album, 'Now and Zen,' is a tribute to his boyhood club, Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Robert Plant surely has ‘A Whole Lotta Love' for his childhood favourites Wolves and was even pictured with that particular song name on the back of his jersey at a charity game for the club. It’s no wonder Wolves are always rocking from the stands.
#2 Iron Maiden - West Ham United
The in-your-face British heavy-metal band Iron Maiden are from Leyton(East London) and they’re all West Ham fans. Steve Harris, the band’s founder was actually scouted by a scout named Wally St Pier and was asked to play for West Ham United’s youth team.
However, Harris’ interest in Rock and Roll made him switch careers and concentrate on music rather than pursue football. But even after the band Iron Maiden achieved worldwide success, Harris and his band mates remained loyal West Ham supporters.
The catch-phrase ‘Up The Irons’ used by Iron Maiden at concerts and on a lot of t-shirts and merchandise is actually a paraphrase of the slogan ‘Up The Hammers’ which is used by West Ham Supporters. Harris even has the club crest engraved on his guitar.
They’re proper Hammers fans and they even have close ties with the club. Harris personally knows Slaven Bilic, the current West Ham boss, and even invited him to play with the band on stage. Believe it or not, Bilic is a metal-head, an Iron Maiden fan and has a side-project band.
"I have known Bilic for a number of years now," said Harris to a newspaper reporter. "The first time I met him was when he played for West Ham - my son, George, was the mascot when we met at the game and we have stayed in contact.”
"We saw each other over Christmas and chatted - I know he is one of our big fans."
"Bilic is really a great guy and is doing a fantastic job at West Ham. With regards to being a guest at a concert, I'm not sure if he will - but if he can make it, we will see... he is a sought-after man and he has to do his job first," Harris added.
Football and music fans everywhere are waiting for this to happen! Now we know why West Ham play such tough football.
#1 Roger Waters and David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) – Arsenal
‘Four-star caviar daydream/ Think I’ll buy me a football team’, wrote Roger Waters on the song ‘Money’ by Pink Floyd. We don’t really know whether he was being serious or sarcastic, but one thing is for certain that Roger Waters and David Gilmour are both Arsenal fans.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you would have and should have heard of Pink Floyd – one of the pioneers of psychedelic rock music. Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason are the four geniuses that made up the band before they separated. Their album ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’, alone sold more than 250 million copies worldwide and remains the band’s hallmark album.
David Gilmour was quoted in an interview saying that he was a season-ticket holder at Highbury, “I did have season tickets at the Arsenal for quite a few years. That was around the time they won the double. I'm sort of a really fickle football fan. I watch any team that's doing well and become unfaithful when they're not. But I do have a soft spot for Arsenal.”
Although the song, ‘The Gunners’ Dream’ on ‘The Final Cut’ was about WWII and the IRA attacks in the UK in 1982, the title was apparently aptly decided by the two Arsenal fans Waters and Gilmour, to serve as a hint at their favourite football club.
Pink Floyd used Liverpool's infamous chant ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ in their song ‘Fearless’, leading many people to believe that perhaps the Floyd were Liverpool fans, but that is not the case.
Roger Waters recently confirmed the fact that he is a Gunner, in a video on social media, highlighting an incident that took place in Gaza and what Celtic fans did in response to it. Towards the end of the video, he says, “I’m an Arsenal supporter myself”.
