The most kickass soccer memes and GIFS
What’s the funniest soccer reaction GIF? How do I make soccer memes? What can the universality of viral soccer memes tell us about the extent of planet earth’s unwavering devotion to the beautiful game?
To an extent that baffles many Americans, the most popular sport in the world isn’t ‘football’ or ‘basketball’. It most certainly is not baseball, either. Nope, the world’s most popular game is soccer, aka ‘proper football’.
Don’t believe it? According to the latest figures, soccer has roughly 3.5 billion fans worldwide, with 250 million players across 200 countries around the globe. The next most popular sports in the world are cricket, with 2.5 billion fans, basketball with 2.2 billion fans, and field hockey (wut) with 2 billion.
Of course, because it’s so beloved, soccer – football, whatever – has spawned its own unique and glorious meme culture.
SOCCER MEMES FOR ALL
Because it’s so well known and adored the world over, soccer is pretty much perfect for memes. Why? Because in the same way that, say, The Simpsons or Sponge Bob spawn so many versatile meme formats, the characters are incredibly well known.
Even if you don’t watch the sport, you basically know who Lionel Messi is. Right? How can you not. And Messi’s world-beating level of success lends confidence, even a certain swagger, to every other unremarkable-looking short king out there.
Maybe you’re more of a Cristiano Ronaldo guy?
CRISTIANO RONALDO MEMES
The Portuguese wonder kid is an inspiring figure who literally hundreds of millions of people around the world look up to. His broad smile, his chiseled physique, his dexterity on the ball, make him a worthy hero.
Not to mention his trademark ‘SUUUUUI!’ celebration cry, an exaggerated ‘YESSSSS!’ which the lad from Madeira deploys whenever he does something magic on the pitch. Which is a quite lot.
And the iconic time he trolled Coca Cola by removing their product from a press conference, telling his legion of admirers ‘drink water’ instead.
That alone caused the share price of Coca Cola to drop by $4bn.
WORLD CUP MEMES
Even if you don’t follow club soccer – fair enough, most teams seem to be from random fruity English towns with names like ‘Fluffberry Pennyfort’ – then international soccer has loads going on to keep the floating casual fan amused.
No other sport allows humans to channel our inherent, inborn sense of our own nation’s superiority than the FIFA World Cup. It’s ‘our guys’, versus ‘your guys’. Our system, our values, our lads, out to prove they’re better than yours.
Like a war, but nobody gets hurt! And even when your country gets knocked out, well can all enjoy watching other countries tearing strips off each other on the pitch.
EMOTIONAL FOOTBALL MEMES
The sheer simplicity of soccer – get the ball in the net! – also makes it crazy suitable for memes. The emotions are clear, honest, pure – larger than life.
There’s triumph, of course. The vanquishing of your foes! Snatching a last minute equaliser in a vital cup tie! Coming back from 3-0 behind! There’s nothing like it for stirring the emotions.
And tragedy. Man alive, that gut-punch when an assured victory dissolves before the eyes of a stadium, a city, an entire nation. English people know this feeling well. Failure suits them, at this point. Disappointment is their national dish.
The crazy incomes and lifestyles of the top stars also give soccer an otherworldly quality. The soap opera of their lives – and that of their wives and girlfriends – itself creates a rich fountain of spicy memery.
And while we’re here, do footballers – soccer players, whatever – deserve all the money they earn? Yeah, kind of. If you can sell that many shirts, fill that many stadiums, light fire in that many kids’ dreams, you deserve all the money in the world.
Right?
FOOTBALL ARGUMENTS
Debating the finer points of soccer is half the fun, and the reason so many forums and fan sites and trolling goes on around the game, literally constantly.
Somewhere around the world, somebody is mad about a referee’s decision. And they’re only too happy to let you know about it.
Why not express your feelings about soccer through the magic of GIF memes, with a little help from your buddies at Memix. Nothing like a dank ass GIF for getting your point across in a hotly-contested shootout.
Hey, IS STEALING MEMES ILLEGAL?
While we’re here, does anybody know IS IT PRONOUNCED GIF OR JIF?