There have been many high-profile instances of professional football players being, to put it lightly, not very good at gambling. For some footballers it seems that the combination of vast sums of money, lots of down-time and a competitive streak can lead to very real and very expensive gambling problems.
There are although a rare breed of mainly ex-pros who are both competent and successful when it comes to gambling – but rather than down the bookies, they excel on the green felt of the poker table.
Gianluigi Buffon
Although not as seasoned and successful as the other footballers on the list, Italy and Juventus goalkeeping legend Gianluigi Buffon has recently been signed up by online casino and poker site Pokerstars.com, appearing at events for the site and available in some cases to play against online. At this stage of his career it is hard to tell whether he will become a successful player, something we will surely find out when he eventually retires from football.
Jan Mølby
Liverpool midfield legend Jan Mølby is one ex-footballer who has recently begun to break onto the competitive poker scene. After finishing in a very respectable 45th place at European Poker Tour Copenhagen Main Event, he was tapped up by casino site Bet24 who he will now play for at events across the world.
Teddy Sheringham
Tottenham and Manchester United icon Teddy Sheringham, a player known for his lethal finishing abilities, is the first ex-pro on this list and is one who has real success at the poker table. In 2009 Sheringham made his first notable achievement in the competitive poker world, finishing 14th in the World Series of Poker Europe event. The year after this he made it through to the final table at the European Poker Tour Vilamoura, netting himself over $100,000 with this 5th place finish
Tony Cascarino
By far the most successful poker playing ex-footballer is former Chelsea, Marseilles and Millwall (where he and Teddy Sheringham scored 99 goals between them over three seasons) player Tony Cascarino, racking up an impressive career winnings of just over half a million dollars. After retiring from football in 2000 Tony became a semi-professional poker player after appearing on Celebrity Poker Club on Challenge TV.
