Both fans and musicians of rock and metal music love football. Also, some footballers can’t hide their love for rock and metal. So, with Euro 2020 getting more serious as we are reaching its final phase let’s remember some of those. Yiannis Dolas
1. Iron Maiden
Well, everyone knows that Steve Harris loves West Ham United and that recently was translated into a partnership with football uniform kits being available for sale with the band’s logo. Despite of you have seen, or read, it’s not that West Ham takes the field wearing a uniform with Maiden’s logo emblazoned on it. Actually, it’s the band that added the West Ham uniform customized by the Beast and it’s available through its online store.
Also, until recently Harris was playing football matches between gigs with other musicians, members of the crew, even famous footballers. How can you forget the booklet of “Virtual XI” with the band photographed as a football team with Stuart Pearce, Faustino Asprilla, Paul Gasgoine, Ian Wright, Patrick Viera and Marc Overmars?
2. German national team joins the… Scorpions
On the road to 1994 World Cup, Germany united for the first time saw it’s most famous footballers getting in the studio and recording “No Pain, No Gain”, from “Face The Heat” released by the Scorpions in 1993, with the band! Unfortunately, despite the fact that the Germans were undefeated in the pools stage bumped into the amazing Bulgaria led by Christo Stoichkov, which managed to finish 4th in the tournament.
3. The Man In Black
Blackmore loves football – that’s no secret- and you can see that in your own eyes in the classic video of “Perfect Strangers” where the band plays ball and Gillan manages to save a certain goal with an amazing header. Actually, on “Hungry Daze”, from the same album, the band is mocking its road crew that obviously was loosing in football with the lyrics: “the crew has lost again, they are beaten men. The winning team united, heading for the crowds”…
4. The… first of the Mohicans
Savvas Kofidis was Greek footballer who played in Iraklis, Olympiakos, Aris and played with the National team as well. Now, he is the training co-ordinator for the young footballers of OFI. Also, he is a famous metalhead, probably the first in the history of Greek football.
A classic tale says that when he was in the Netherlands with the National team of Greece for a game against the “oranje” in 1987 Kofidis didn’t return home with the others, but stayed a couple of days more to watch a concert Helloween. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be, as Kiske got sick and the show was canceled. At least, he managed to return from football games in Europe with his suitcase full of rock and heavy metal vinyl albums he was buying in record stores.
Finally, he used to run the famous “Metal Empire” club in Thessaloniki with a couple of friends.
5. The crazy Spanish
Spanish Manchester United goalkeeper, David De Gea, who also plays for Spain in Euro 2020, but at the moment remains on the bench, is a well-known metal fan with more modern tastes.
His favourite band is Avenged Sevenfold, to whom managed to present uniforms of his football club when they played a show in Manchester. He also likes Slipknot and Metallica.
6. Jurgen Klopp introduces “heavy metal” football
Don’t think that the coach is playing heavy metal music to his squad in training, or perhaps he might. Who knows? As a fan of the music though he described the way he like his team to play in an interview on Daily Mail in contrast with Arsene Wenger. “He likes having the ball, playing football, passes. It’s like an orchestra. But it’s a silent song. But I like heavy metal more. I always want it loud,” Klopp said giving the journos one more term to use in their scribblings.
7. Sogndal uniform is… heavy!
You can’t find a team that’s more metal than Sogndal, I dare you. The club decided to put Vreid’s logo on the uniform in order to support the local heavy metal scene.
“Having our logo on the chest on Sogndal football’s kit is an honor that is very rare,” Vreid bassist Jarle ‘Hvall’ Kvåle pridefully exclaims. “This football club has been hammered into our hearts since growing up. This is the club that was our whole childhood and youth, and it is with favorite teams as with favorite bands, it is love for life.”
8. Come On You Reds!
On the same year with the Scorpions (1994) Status Quo altered the lyrics of their song “Burning Bridges” to create the ultimate Manchester anthem with references to important players and managers in the team’s history. The players got in the studio and sung with the band just four weeks before the FA Cup Final in Wembley, where they destroyed Chelsea 4 – 0 winning their first double ever.
Even today if you walk into the Player’s lounge in Old Trafford you will see the 7-inch silver single in a visible place on the wall.
9. A manager who shreds
We couldn’t leave out Slaven Bilic, former player of West Ham United and Everton, who at the moment is the manager of West Brom, who doesn’t only love metal, but he also plays electric guitar.
Actually, according to the legend, as the manager of West Ham in August 29th 2015, in order to boost his players’ moral in an away game against Liverpool he played them Megadeth in the locker room, before taking the pitch. The result was “hammering”, as his team defeat the opponent 3-0. It was their first win in Anfield since 1963.
10. Alexi “The Greek”
Greek descent American defender Alex Lalas was an integral part of team USA in 1994 World Cup and certainly didn’t go unnoticed with his long hair and beard. At the same time with his football career Lalas was also playing guitar with the Gypsies, a band he formed in college with whom he managed to tour Europe supporting Hootie & The Blowfish in 1998.
Except from The Gypsies Lalas released seven solo albums, with “Look At You”, which was released in 2019 being the most recent.
