The Nike World Cup Curse

Did Nike put a hex on the biggest names in football? We can’t help but get that feeling as the stars of its flashy, new big-budget commercial for the World Cup continue to fall on hard times.

We really like this commercial. It’s exciting. It’s beautifully filmed. It’s got star power. You notice new things upon subsequent viewings. But it’s also destroying this year’s World Cup. Let’s consider the evidence:

Who: Didier Drogba, the Ivory Coast striker and the face of this year’s tournament, opens the advert charging down the field and unleashing a shot.

The Curse Strikes: Last week, Drogba fractured his elbow during an exhibition match and looks likely to miss the entire tournament.

Who: Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro does a bicycle kick. Although he’s been beset by injuries in recent years, the star of the last World Cup will be in South Africa.

The Curse Strikes: Since the advert first aired, the former Juventus player has signed to play for Al-Ahli Dubai next season – and nothing says “over-the-hill” like a stint in the United Arab Emirates.

Who: It’s Franck Ribery storming down the wings. Now you see him… now you don’t.

The Curse Strikes: Since filming the spot for Nike, the French midfielder has got caught up in a wee bit of a bother back home: a prostitution scandal involving an underage girl.

Who: Nike ’s darling, Ronaldinho, and a couple dozen crossovers. No surprise here, since the shoe company can never seem to resist showcasing a few tricky moves from the Brazilian.

The Curse Strikes: The only problem is that Ronaldinho didn’t make his national team squad.

Who: England’s Theo Walcott.

The Curse Strikes: Like Ronaldinho, Walcott missed the final cut. (Although you’ve got to wonder why Nike would feature a player who was always going to be a long shot for the tournament.)

As the evidence mounts, the verdict against Nike becomes stronger.  Even Roger Federer, who makes a brief cameo playing table tennis against Wayne Rooney, didn’t escape the curse. Last week he lost in the early rounds of the French Open – losing his number one ranking at the same time.

All we can say is, Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo might want to consider wearing a helmet until the tournament starts.