The Bad Guys
Alright, it’s about time that we address the villains of our cultural sphere. For far too long, I have listened to the idea that there are actually people out there who root for the villains in their favorite movies and TV shows. The concept is just ridiculous and cliché. I refuse to believe that there are actually people out there who were sincerely hoping to see Darth Vader kill his only son Luke, or were strongly motivated to see Sauron regain his dominion over Middle Earth, or perhaps are tickled by the prospect of Michael Scofield actually dying in prison, or God forbid the sadistic person who was actually pulling for Harry to be defeated by Voldemort. Nope. There’s no way that there are really people out there genuinely supporting the enemy. And if there are, they should be put to death immediately for they are a danger to our society (Kidding… kind of). Operating under the understanding that people just don’t root for the antagonists in movies and shows, the question now arises: why is that different in sports? Sports, another form of popular entertainment and source of cultural relevance, is an area in which quite often we see people rooting for the bad guys. I’m fascinated by this, and have compiled a list of some of the most relevant, infamous athletes of recent memory, on which I will offer my own thoughts.
Mario Balotelli – Soccer
*Disclaimer: I will refer to the sport known as soccer and/or football as soccer for the purposes of this post. Please don’t be angry at me.
Mario Balotelli, aka “Super Mario”, aka “Mr. My Hairstyles Are Awesome”, aka “Master of Controversy.” This is a name that you probably haven’t heard since the 2014 FIFA World Cup in which Balotelli had a brief moment of glory by scoring the winning goal for his home country, Italy, against rival England. But since that strike, there have been nothing but whisperings about the Italian striker. So why is it that such an impressive talent goes under the radar and has received little to no respect from his club team and national team? The answer lies within Balotelli’s personality, decision-making, and public image. Let’s talk about what makes Balotelli a villain.
Balotelli started off in the spotlight as an up-and-comer at the age of 15, initiating continual beefs with one of the most well-known managers in international soccer, José Mourinho, during his stint with Inter Milan. This negative interaction, paired with distasteful activity toward his club, stripped Balotelli of perhaps his earliest opportunity to turn heads in the world of international soccer. As his career progressed for other clubs, Balotelli continued to score goals on a consistent basis and attract interest for his athleticism and his potential as a prolific scorer, but over and over again, poor decisions on and off the field overshadowed his play. His poor actions included over-aggression and violent activity on the pitch. His on the pitch behavior often led to bookings and eventually suspensions, limiting him from rising in his popularity. Balotelli had a stint as the first choice striker for Italy’s national team too, but his negative headlines continued to rain down and hurt his international career. Over time, Balotelli has been called “crazy” and “unmanageable” by those around him.
Roberto Mancini, a well-known name in international soccer, and probably Balotelli’s most successful coaching match, is quoted as saying that Balotelli could become one of the best players in the world given a few tweaks and changes in behavior. I love soccer, especially for exciting power players like Balotelli. It’s a shame that he hasn’t regained tread in his career. This is a villain that I root for, and I hope that he can make the necessary changes to realize his potential in the world of soccer. Super Mario suffers from living in a soccer culture that he doesn’t necessarily fit well in to. He has a quirky personality and a hot temper, but he has never done serious harm to anyone intentionally. He began playing at such a young age, that he was never given a great opportunity to mature, particularly due to his shaky upbringing. At 26, I really hope that Balotelli can make a jump back into stardom. It will take a team recognizing his value, and being willing to look past personality trends in order to acquire it.
LeBron James – Basketball
Not sure what else he has to do to convince you that he’s not a bad guy; in fact, he might be one of the premiere good guys left in the game. Let’s go down the list beginning with him as a person: tough upbringing, hometown hero, generous and passionate philanthropist, great business savvy, good father, faithful husband, fun personality, and good leader. I’m sure I could keep going, but do I really need to? There are not many others in the celebrity domain that can boast all of those traits. Next, let’s consider the on court accolades— keep in mind, he is most likely still playing for at least a few years more— 3-time NBA Champion, 3-time NBA Finals MVP, 4-time NBA MVP, top 15 in scoring, top 20 in free throws, top 20 in field goals, top 20 in assists, and he is just outside of the top 25 in steals. Made for triple-doubles and double-doubles. One of the best athletes, defenders, and court generals we have ever see. Not to mention the epic comeback that he spearheaded in the 2016 NBA Finals. Okay, I’ll stop now. I get a little excited sometimes.
You’re telling me we have an admirable human being AND an extremely exceptional ball player and he’s still a villain? The most glaring criticisms of LeBron include his exit from Cleveland, his flops, his inability at times to deliver the final scoring blow to opponents, and perhaps his ego. If we were to weigh his pros and cons, it’s a bit comical how strongly it favors his pros. Not to mention the fact that he made amends for his exit and has made the right basketball play time and time again down the stretch; but I digress. Yeah, I get it. People love to hate the greats and they love to root for the underdogs. That’s all good. But at least respect him for his accomplishments to this point. LeBron is a “villain” that I will root for until my dying day, and you should too!
Johnny Manziel – Football
This one pains me a little to talk about. Generally, I am an advocate for young celebrities who make young people decisions at times. For a while, I thought that this was the case with Johnny Football. His negative publicity went from a few party photos in college and some bigheaded comments during football season, swiftly into a spiral effect of damaging behavior. We’ve all got photos from college that we would prefer not to go public. And sometimes, a little cockiness can take you a long way in the world of sports. This is why initially I was on the Manziel train, and on the verge of investing in a “Free Johnny Football” t-shirt. Then there was the whole selling his own merchandise and paraphernalia and whatever else. Generally, I side with NCAA athletes as they fight for at least some level of compensation to justify the inordinate amount of money that they generate; the Manziel case was no different.
I was excited for Manziel to get a new start in the NFL after leaving Texas A&M with a legacy of controversy. My hopefulness quickly diminished as he fell into the invincible mindset that so many athletes and celebrities have. For a guy whose trademark was the “Money Celebration", it was very disheartening to realize that he was abusing that money and in fact putting it in jeopardy through his decision-making. After reports of failed rehab and domestic violence, I decided that Johnny was no longer a villain that I could get behind.
Tiger Woods – Golf
Oh boy. How do I defend this one? Well, I don’t. The villains that I have trouble rooting for, are the ones who knowingly do things that hurt others, or could have detrimental implications for their career. Tiger Woods did both. His ex-wife is gorgeous and the guy has two kids whom he knew would be affected by his infidelity. These are two major reasons to remain faithful. When you’re coming home to a wife like that, I’m not sure what standard you’re looking for that causes you to be unhappy. But hey, to each his own. Maybe he wasn’t happy with his marriage. We have something in place to handle situations like that right? Oh yeah, it’s called divorce. And as unfortunate as it is, it would have been millions of times better for him than sleeping with the estimated 120 women outside of his marriage (For more, check this out). He is rumored to have had 15 consistent mistresses along the way. I don’t know if I should be disturbed or impressed, or both. I understand the whole celebrity lifestyle and the fact that infidelity frankly isn’t that uncommon nowadays, but this seems heartless, maybe even a bit pathological. If the guy was suffering from some sort of issue, then he should have reached out for help. Instead he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar—well jars— and lost a lot of money, his marriage, and arguably his career along the way.
I grew up having the Tiger Woods fist pump celebration being the signature for anything good that happened for me, but now it brings nothing but bitterness. It hurt me when I saw the damage that Tiger’s ex-wife did upon discovery of Tiger’s delinquent activity because it showed me just how genuinely distraught that she was. There was just a part of me that wished she would have used that golf club and given him a taste of his own medicine, and put one right up the fairway. That would have been poetic justice. But he did actually get pretty hurt, so I guess that’s not nice to joke about. Additionally, Tiger’s sport is boring, and it’s been worse since he’s been out, and as one of the only “brothers” in golf he made a bad name for us, so I’m doubly as bitter. He may still be considered the best golfer of all time, but this is a villain that I will not root for.
Kevin Durant – Basketball
I’ll begin by saying, I want to dislike KD so badly, but I just can’t. It’s been that way since his entrance into the NBA. As a LeBron fan, I have always felt it my duty to hate on Durant and refuse to acknowledge his talent. But as an even greater fan of basketball in general, I admire his talent and the way that he holds himself. Contrary to some of the others on this list, KD only became an official villain rather recently. He followed suit with LeBron and jumped ship from the team who drafted him after years of being unable to win a championship. He left for a team that gave him a better shot to win. There are differences between the two, but we will get to that soon. Some probably considered him a villain to a certain extent before this point due to his apparent inability to mesh with Russell Westbrook, his broken engagement, and his compliance with Nike’s agenda to make “KD not nice”, but all things being equal, until the 2016 offseason he was a good guy. Unfortunately, as Harvey Dent astutely put it, “Either you die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” KD can attest to this.
Summer 2016 began with a flurry of meetings for Durant just after Free Agency opened. He had meetings set up with various teams, but front runners were narrowed to Boston, Oklahoma City, and Golden State. In all fairness, choosing anywhere but OKC would immediately make KD a villain. During his meeting with Boston, the Celtics even brought Tom Brady in to meet KD. I mean, what better way to transition someone into becoming a villain, than offering a mentor who has been a villain for years! But at the end of the day, the star chose to go the route that would be even more controversial than leaving OKC for Boston; he chose Golden State. Now it is true, that unlike LeBron’s case, Durant did not abandon his home city, nor did he do a big event to make his announcement. But what his critics (including myself to an extent) object to is the fact that he left a really good team (arguably the best in the league) that included Russell Westbrook( one of the best players in the league) for a team that had just gone 73-9 and has the 2-time reigning MVP. Additionally, the Golden State Warriors defeated the Thunder in the 2016 Western Conference finals after being down to Durant and company 3-1. It is times like these that the phrase “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” was made for. But these guys have so many other factors involved in these decisions than what the media covers, and I can’t fault a man for doing what he believes will make him happiest. Plus, it would be hard to defend LeBron and not KD. For this reason, I will root for this villain, EXCEPT when he comes in conflict with LeBron.
Tom Brady – Football
Do I dislike him for winning? Maybe. Do I dislike him for being from the University of Michigan? Maybe. Do I dislike him for being the epitome of an entitled, white, quarterback in the NFL? Maybe. I can’t quite put my finger on why I don’t necessarily care for Tom Brady. None of the above reasons are good enough to dislike him, but the combination of them, maybe. Either way, I know that I am not alone in my dislike of the New England quarterback, which is why I have silently enjoyed keeping track of the debacle that is now known as “Deflategate”. Ironically, as his suspensions have finally come to fruition, I do find his penalty a bit trivial and petty.
When it really comes down to it, the Patriots will forever be viewed as the villains under the Belichick-Brady regime, and I think they like it that way. I will continue to “dislike” Brady, but in reality, I don’t care too much about him one way or the other.
Cristiano Ronaldo – Soccer
Among all of the other debates between Ronaldo and Messi, is the debate of which of the two is the biggest villain in international soccer? Unfortunately, Ronaldo usually wins this debate. But I suppose this comes with the territory of being the best footballer of a generation— fact! (Editor’s note: not fact.) Cristiano has taken a lot of heat over the years, mostly for his antics. In general, most people either hate him or love him; part of this comes via his rivalry with the Argentinian, Lionel Messi. It’s true, though, that Ronaldo seizes every opportunity to show off, engage in cocky subtleties, and fully embrace his pretty boy image with a surplus of exaggeration and flopping. But in a world full of cocky assholes, why not be the best at it? I hesitate making that statement, because there are plenty of others who hold themselves to a cockiness standard similar to Ronaldo. Exhibit A: Zlatan Ibrahimovic. We can be thankful that Ronaldo generally spares us of Ibrahimovic-like quotes. Just for fun, here are a few Ibra quotes (more here):
“I need new haters; the old ones became my fans.”
“Zlatan doesn’t do auditions.”
“A World Cup without me is nothing to watch.”
Anyway, you get the picture. This is the culture that Cristiano Ronaldo lives in. One full of prima donnas with pretty hair and high demands. It’s an awesome culture, which a lot of viewers enjoy. So how can we fault a star for thriving in his environment? Among some big-time business endeavors, Ronaldo has also done some major philanthropic work through his resources, as well as made an effort to connect with fans, particularly less fortunate fans. All of this paired with the fact that he is one of the most impressive strikers we have ever seen and an icon within his sphere, I’ve found enough for me to root for this villain. Don’t hate a guy for being great.
Alex Rodriguez – Baseball
It’s hard for me to admit this, as someone who considers himself somewhat of a Yankees fan, but I never really cared for A Rod too much. Even before the confirmation of his use of performance enhancing drugs, I felt that he was a bit overrated. He had moments of glory, but also phases in which he barely showed up. To be fair, his competition for stardom in NYC was none other than the Captain himself, Derek Jeter. So maybe that’s why I felt like he never really lived up to the hype, because he certainly couldn’t compare to DJ. But after the allegations over steroids, and the way his continual denials contributed to the already negative perspective of the Yankees, he lost all respect from me. I would have been okay with him retiring at that point.
Call me unfair if you want, but I never really rooted for the guy, and I don’t feel bad about it.
This is a hard discussion for me. Floyd “Money” Mayweather has riddled the headlines with controversy throughout his career. Floyd hails from Grand Rapids, MI. The place I consider my hometown. In fact, I once sold shoes to him and his entourage as they came in to the Foot Locker that I was working at (if you were curious, he bought the Nike Barkley Posite Max for $250 and spent over $1,500 total). With this understanding, I must admit, that I really want to like the guy. I mean, why wouldn’t I? He’s supposed to be the hometown hero. The guy to put Grand Rapids on the map. But to be completely frank, he hasn’t been all that good to GR. He’s visited and contributed a bit to his high school, he takes good care of his family, but other than that, Floyd has not been very active in the progression of his home city. This would serve as one reason for him to be considered a villain, but there are plenty more.
Money Mayweather is known for his obsession with money and his tendency to flaunt it. As one of the highest paid athletes ever, he has not been shy about defining his success through money. It is more often than not, that this misconception of money and power has gotten Floyd in trouble. He has operated under the belief that he is invincible, allowing him to say and do whatever he pleases. This simply is not the case. It should be stated that he has chilled out as his career has progressed, but now, at the point of his alleged retirement, the damage has already been done. He has done things that would perhaps be considered distasteful, but not harmful such as buying an inordinate amount of cars, spending thousands of dollars a week on haircuts, publicizing his frequent company of strippers and other female escorts. Yet there are even more serious things to object to with regard to Mayweather’s behavior. His antics outside of the boxing ring, are often to the detriment of women. Mayweather has been convicted of multiple counts of assault and battery and domestic violence against women, as well as inappropriate interactions and altercations with other individuals, including club bouncers, other boxers, and promoters (here's a good one). This is behavior that I can’t support, and I wholeheartedly wish that Floyd could go back, get some help, and correct his behavior before things got so bad. Because of our similar roots, and his unique and impressive boxing style, I continue to follow news around Floyd. I will look for a compromise here by saying that I will root for him in competition for the sake of the city, but I do not support most of what he represents nor his inappropriate behavior.
Kobe Bryant – Basketball
So, 8/24 is now officially Kobe Day in Los Angeles. Clearly, Kobe Bryant is not a villain in everyone’s eyes. As a matter of fact, I would argue that his villainy has consistently diminished over the years. But personally, I have had a love-hate relationship with the guy. Kobe’s biggest, and most negative publicity came in 2003. This was right around the time that I was blossoming into an avid basketball fan and developing fervent fandom for my favorite players. A nasty divorce and a rape allegation does not bode well for a player’s odds when trying to avoid villainy. Bryant’s personality and interaction with media and fellow players didn’t help him in this case. While the rape charges were dropped, the situation ended distastefully as Bryant essentially paid off the prosecution. Kobe is known for his obsession with success and self-service, which is what makes him great, but it also hurts his reputation as a person. He has put off countless fans, players, and coaches by the way that he has interacted with them. Swaggy P and Smush Parker are two great examples of this (Check out Kobe’s greatest quotes), but he is even known for beefing with the beloved Shaquille O’Neal.
Combine all of this with the fact that he is a natural rival of my boy LeBron, and there is plenty of reason to dislike the guy. But, it’s also hard not to have a sense of respect and affinity for him as well. He patched up his marriage before the divorce was finalized allowing for a healthier life for his little girls, he suffered some serious injuries down the stretch of his career and handled them with poise and grace, and he stayed committed and loyal to one franchise for the entirety of his career. Consider this, along with all of the memories that he has given basketball fans over the years and his outstanding accolades over the years, such as 81 in a game, 5 rings, and 60 in his final game of his career (!!!), and it’s not hard to look back fondly upon Kobe’s illustrious career. Kobe’s fans (aka the Kobe-hive) are one of a kind, and they would follow him through any controversy. I am not to this point at all. But as someone who recognizes human shortcomings and has an appreciation for athletes that change their respective games forever, I will say that I didn’t root for Kobe, but I love and respect him for the impact he had over his career and will follow and wish him well as he embarks into his first season of retirement.
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Although we have other legendary villains to discuss, such as Christian Laettner, Pete Rose, Barry Bonds, Chad Ocho Cinco, Metta World Peace, Bill Laimbeer, (takes deep breath) Mike Tyson, OJ Simpson, Jameis Winston, Derrick Rose, Dwight Howard, and plenty more, I picked out what I thought were the most relevant and fun to talk discuss. I am willing to say that in sports, it is acceptable to root for the villains, but you’ve got to have some standards people! Hopefully this helped to inform your decision-making a bit more, and in the future you will find the perfect balance between your heart and your head when deciding who to root for.