One of the great things about football is that the sport doesn’t care one bit for your background. Whether you come from the humblest or the grandest of backgrounds all that really matters is your talent, skill, and passion for the sport. Unsurprisingly, then, many of the best footballers we’ve ever seen have truly gone from rags to riches. Today, we’re going to look at some of the most famous examples. Let’s get started.
1. Ian Wright
By the age of 33, Ian Wright had become the top goal scorer of all time for Arsenal. He played a total of 581 league games, and scored a whopping 287 goals for seven different clubs in England and Scotland. He scored nine international goals for the England team while earning them 33 caps. He was a force to be reckoned with on the pitch.
But ten years before he was top scorer at Arsenal, he was working in a factory and struggling to make ends meet. His wife was about to bring their first child into the world, adding extra strain onto their finances. But he was, through a stroke of luck, spotted playing casually by Crystal Palace, and his life was changed forever.
2. Lauren
Early life was never easy for Arsenal’s Lauren. His family fled Equatorial Guinea to escape the brutal regime, and he was born in Cameroon under tough circumstances. He would move around a lot during his youth, sometimes in Cameroon, sometimes in Spain. But his family lived in difficult circumstances his whole childhood.
Today, he’s estimated to be worth around $9 million. He managed to take his place in the Premier League where he regularly comes in as top goal scorer favourite according to the football bookmakers, after stunning performances with teams like Levante and Mallorca.
3. Roberto Carlos
Football is a huge, huge deal in Brazil, so it’s unsurprising that some of the best football talent in the world is nurtured there. But there is also great poverty and strife. Roberto Carlos grew up in the slums and favelas of Garca, a part of Sao Paolo. His parents worked on the coffee plantations.
Carlos himself worked in a textiles factory from age 12. His incredible skill took him to Real Madrid, Inter Milan, and ultimately to the Brazilian national team in 1992. He’s now estimate to be worth $160 million, and he has truly come so far from humble beginnings.
4. Pele
In his earliest days, Pele would use anything he could to practice football—stuffing a sock with newspaper or just using a grapefruit. Today, he is considered to be one of if not the greatest footballer of all time. He began his working life serving in a tea shop, earning only enough money for the barest essentials.
Going on to bring home three World Cup titles with Brazil, there’s no denying the incredible turnaround of this player’s life. He’s estimated to have a net worth of around $100 million, and it’s more than deserved for this legendary player.
5. Maradona
Finally, no list of rags to riches stars in football would be complete without Maradona. A skipper for Argentina and winner of a World Cup title in 1986, Maradona is also considered one of the best footballers ever to grace the pitch. In 490 official club games, he scored 259 goals. For Argentina, he earned 91 caps and scored 34 goals. Though his life was not without its controversies, he’s always remembered as a true GOAT of football.
But his life wasn’t always the glamour of international football. He grew up poor in Argentina, and shared a bedroom with seven siblings as a child. At the time of his death, he was worth an estimated $500,000, a far cry from the poverty of his youth. He raised himself and his family out of strife.
It’s a beautiful thing to see someone lifted out of poverty by their passion, and football allows the best players to raise all their loved ones out of it, too. Clearly, football talent doesn’t come with who or where you’re born to—it’s all about your own passion and commitment. If you can bring that passion to bear, as well as getting a bit of good fortune, football can really change your life.
