Mario Balotelli and the 20 Biggest Jerks In Soccer

By Brian Brennan

Mario Balotelli and the 20 Biggest Jerks In Soccer

Sunderland v Liverpool - Premier League — We all know about Mario Balotelli's shenanigans. What you may not know is that there are thousands of other jerks in the world of soccer. Here are the top 20 biggest jerks in soccer other than Super Mario.

20. Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Kitchee v Paris Saint-Germain

20. Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Kitchee v Paris Saint-Germain — Ibrahimovic is a love/hate player. If you like him you love him, and if you don't you hate him. He's outspoken, arrogant, disliked by most of his teammates and has a generally negative attitude towards everyone. It's too easy to put him on this list.

19. Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi playing for Barcelona

19. Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi playing for Barcelona — It's tough putting one of soccer's golden boys on this list, but Messi has got to be here. He's often seen complaining and diving on the pitch. Add that to his tax evasion and he's got to be here.

18. Cristiano Ronaldo

4. Cristiano

18. Cristiano Ronaldo

4. Cristiano — I know what you're thinking: How can I put the two best players in the world back-to-back on this list? It's simple, Messi and Ronaldo are divas. Ronaldo complains more than anyone and also thinks he's untouchable. Now I do think Ronaldo is the best in the world; maybe it's jealousy, but I still think he's a bit of a jerk.

17. Adel Taarabt

6 Queens Park Rangers attacker Adel Taarabt - Copy

17. Adel Taarabt

6 Queens Park Rangers attacker Adel Taarabt — Taarabt has always been a selfish player who lacks hard work and discipline. I wouldn't put him on this list, but he recently called out Mario Balotelli saying he's selfish, lazy and not a world class player. Now I don't disagree with Taarabt, but I don't think he's in the position to be saying anything bad about fellow players.

16. Jose Mourinho

Swansea City v Chelsea - Premier League

16. Jose Mourinho

Swansea City v Chelsea - Premier League — Mourinho is known to belittle opponents and make everything about himself, which tends to take away from his team's outstanding achievements. He's a great manager, but his attitude is poor and he even goes as far as pushing opposing managers -- just ask Arsene Wenger. Simply put, Mourinho is the biggest jerk manager in all of soccer.

15. Giorgio Chiellini

Italy v Uruguay: Group D - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil

15. Giorgio Chiellini

Italy v Uruguay: Group D - 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil — Now I'm not defending Luis Suarez by any means, but Chiellini is no wonder boy. He has thrown elbows and been a dirty center back his entire career. I can't really say if he deserved to get bitten by Suarez or not, but there are certainly only a handful of players who had it coming -- Chiellini is one of them.

14. Mauro Icardi

3 Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi

14. Mauro Icardi

3 Inter Milan striker Mauro Icardi - Copy — Icardi took violating the bro-code to the max. He started a relationship with his ex-teammate and best friend Maxi Lopez, then proceeded to get Maxi and his new wife's kid names tattooed on his arm. I don't know which is worse, the act or the fact that he posted the tattoo on Twitter.

13. Franck Ribery

FC Bayern Muenchen v SV Werder Bremen - Bundesliga

13. Franck Ribery

FC Bayern Muenchen v SV Werder Bremen - Bundesliga — Ribery has kind of followed Zinedine Zidane's footsteps in terms of attitude. Now I don't think he's ever headbutted someone, but he's never really been remotely friendly on the pitch. Plus, he was part of an underage prostitution case with his buddy who comes up next.

12. Karim Benzema

bbbenzema1

12. Karim Benzema

bbbenzema1 - Copy — Benzema is just like Ribery in all senses. Nobody is really sure what actually went on with Benzema, Ribery and the underage prostitute at the time. Either way, they're both not getting off this list.

11. Antonio Cassano

antonio cassano

11. Antonio Cassano

antonio cassano — Cassano has always been considered a relatively dirty player, but the reason he's on this list is for a few of his remarks in the past. He stated he was against having homosexuals on the Italian national team. Cassano isn't the type of role model people should look up to.

10. Ryan Shawcross

Harry Kane and Ryan Shawcross

10. Ryan Shawcross

2 Harry Kane and Ryan Shawcross - Copy — Shawcross is a big and mean man who's not afraid to hurt you. Just ask Aaron Ramsey. Shawcross broke his leg with a vicious tackle, and since then Shawcross hasn't changed his ways. There's a reason why Stoke City have always been considered dirty, and Shawcross has a big contribution to that.

9. Diego Costa

Diego Costa playing for Chelsea

9. Diego Costa

Diego Costa playing for Chelsea — Diego Costa, where to begin? He's a baby, a diver and a fighter. If you watch a Chelsea match you will see why he is top five on my list. If you don't have the time, check out his stomp on Emre Can that earned him his most recent three-game suspension.

8. Pepe

1 Real Madrid centre-back Pepe

8. Pepe

1 Real Madrid centre-back Pepe - Copy — Seriously, does anyone who isn't a Portugal fan like Pepe? He's a dirty player and a walking red card. I will give him the fact that he has passion, but that doesn't take away from him being a world class jerk.

7. Luis Suarez

fffffffsuarez - Copy

7. Luis Suarez

fffffffsuarez — Not only did Saurez clearly bite Chiellini, he did what you would expect him to do -- act like he didn't do anything and was the victim. Suarez has had three biting incidents in his career. It's a miracle he's not first on this list.

6. John Terry

John Terry

6. John Terry

John Terry — John Terry earned his spot on this list by being a known racist with his remarks against Anton Ferdinand in the past. Terry is a seasoned veteran in the English Premier League, but he has always been a huge jerk. He also got his teammate's wife pregnant. It's pretty obvious why he heads this list, but in reality he should be on a list of his own.

5. Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney England

5. Wayne Rooney

Wayne Rooney England — The English forward has proven to not be the most trustworthy of people. In 2010, he said he wanted to leave Manchester United because they did not “match his ambitions.” A few days later, he signed a five-year extension with the team. Sadly, he’s done a whole lot worse. Rooney reportedly had sex with a prostitute while his wife was pregnant with their son.

4. Frank Lampard

Frank Lampard

4. Frank Lampard

Frank Lampard — Other than the one incident I’m about to get to, Lampard has been one of the good guys in the sport, but what he did back on Sep. 12, 2001 is hard to forgive. Just one day after the 9/11 attacks, Lampard got drunk and ran through a hotel partially nude and laughing at crying Americans as they watched firemen dig through rubble on TV.

3. Miiko Albornoz

Miiko Albornoz

3. Miiko Albornoz

Miiko Albornoz — Swedish-born but playing for Chile, Albornoz was charged with statutory rape after having sex with a 14 year old. Albornoz once needed a police escort out of the stadium after fans began taunting him with songs about being a “pedophile” and threatening to kill him after the match.

2. Jurgen Klinsmann

Jurgen Klinsmann

2. Jurgen Klinsmann

Jurgen Klinsmann — You coach the USMNT, which plays in — last time I checked — the United States. Regardless of that fact, you bash MLS. Don Garber is certainly not a fan of Jurgen Klinsmann, and he definitely has his reasons.

1. Mario Balotelli

Mario Balotelli

1. Mario Balotelli

Mario Balotelli — Mario Balotelli was the main reason behind the creation of this list. Translation: He is the king of jerks. All you need to do is simply Google Mario Balotelli’s name and you will find a list of reasons why he isn’t the most loved athlete in his sport.

Share On Facebook

Share