For many footballers, one of the reasons why they chose football as a career aside from their love for the sport is to escape poverty or help their families. Many footballers were born into very poor backgrounds and struggled their way to the peak.
However, there are still others who didn’t have to go through a difficult upbringing due to the wealth of their families. They had all they needed while growing up, but decided to make their own money through football.
In this article, we will take a look at seven footballers who came from rich families but decided to make a name for themselves in football.
1 Gerard Pique
The Barcelona defender is regarded as one of the best in his position and has won numerous titles with the Catalan side. His upbringing wasn’t tough in any way, as he was born into a very successful business family. His father was a representative and business man, while his mother is the director of an important hospital in Barcelona.
2 Frank Lampard
The Chelsea legend can easily earn his place as one of the greatest players to have ever played in the Premier League. His father Frank Lampard Senior was also a professional footballer who played his entire career at West Ham United, the same club Lampard started his career.
3 Kaka
Unlike most Brazilian footballers that usually tell the story of how tough their upbringing was, Kaka’s case was very different. The former AC Milan and Real Madrid star was born into a very respectable family in Brazil, as his father was an engineer while his mother was a teacher.
4. Robin Van Persie
The former Arsenal and Manchester United forward didn’t have it all tough when growing up either. His parents were respected artists in the Netherlands and they contributed greatly to the beginning of his career.
5 Hugo Lloris
The Tottenham Hotspur and France no.1 has built a reputation as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. The World Cup winner was born into an upper-class family from the city Nice. His father was a banker and mother a lawyer.
6.Mario Balotelli
Mario Balotelli is probably known for his antics on and off the pitch, as he is not the most cool headed footballer you have ever heard of. The former Manchester City forward was actually born to a Ghanaian couple in Italy but was put in a foster home due to their financial difficulty. Balotelli was later adopted by a wealthy family from Brescia, who provided him with the best he could have asked for while growing up.
7 Andrea Pirlo
Pirlo had stated several times that he did not play football for the money but for the love he has for the sport. That is quite understandable, regarding the fact that the former Juventus Midfielder was born into a wealthy family. His father owns a metal company in Italy.