Rock ‘n Sports: When the Best of Two Worlds Comes Together on Rock Day

Music and sports have always gone hand in hand, which is why they are considered two of the most important passions in humanity. For this reason, on rock day, we will tell you a little about the sporting tastes of several of the most relevant artists of the genre, which marked a revolution in past centuries and which continues to this day.

Rock Day is celebrated on July 13, because in 1985 the Live Aid Festival was held, a show that brought together the most influential rock bands in the world simultaneously in the cities of London and Philadelphia. This unique meeting of artists had a single purpose, to raise funds to fight against hunger in Africa, mainly in the countries of Somalia and Ethiopia that were going through a time of famine never seen before.

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Artists such as Queen, The Who, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, INXS, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, David Bowie, U2 and Phil Collins, among many others, contributed their talent and gave it an unprecedented component of solidarity, which became the most important in history. Despite being superstars, rockers are also buzzing with passion for the sport.

Roger Daltrey and his passion for soccer

The vocalist of The Who, a band that participated in Live Aid, is a fan of soccer, but especially of Arsenal in London. It was always common to find him in the stands of the old Highbury, the stadium where he gave the closing concert of the mythical sports venue in the English capital and now at the Emirates Stadium, the current field of the 'Gunner' team.

The love for his team was captured in the song Highbury High, the lyrics are inspired by the great feats that were experienced on the playing field from 1913 to 2006. The protagonists of those soccer feats, the tears, ovations and especially the celebrations lived by various generations of fans who witnessed more than 2,000 home games throughout its history.

Red Hot Chili Peppers: The Sports Rockers

The Californian rock band is a clear example of the close link between music and sport. Anthony Kiedis, vocalist and leader, is a great fan of the Los Angeles Dodgers, for this reason he was invited on multiple occasions to perform the honor launch, the band was even invited to play the national anthem at the beginning of a series against their archrival, the New York Yankees.

But not only the 'Peppers' are baseball fans, they also have great fans of the Los Angeles Lakers and can be seen riding the waves on the different beaches of the Californian coast. They assure that their great physical condition is mainly due to their overwhelming love of sports.

Alice Cooper, “addicted” to golf

The eccentric rocker took refuge in the 18 holes to free himself from his addiction to alcohol. Since he started playing golf, he has become one of the amateur players with the best handicap in the world. Such is his hobby that he created his own tournament, the Alice Cooper Solid Rock Celebrity Golf Tournament, a competition in which he also participates.

His experiences and love for the sport materialized in 2007 when he published the book Golf Monster: A Rock 'n' Roller's 12 Steps to Becoming a Golf Addict. This is a book in which he doesn't talk about golf, but rather how he became an addict that forces him to play it at least six times a week, or five if he's on tour with his band.

Iron Maiden F.C.

For the tour of the Virtual XI album in 1998, Steve Harris, bassist, bandleader and WestHam United fan, proposed to his other teammates to create a football team that would compete in the English amateur leagues. Together with Blaze Baley (singer), Yanick Gers (guitarist), Dave Murray (guitarist) and Nico Mc Brian (drums) they made up this soccer team that included the participation of world-class players and idols from their national teams such as the Dutch Marc Overmars, the Colombian Faustino Asprilla and the English Paul Gascoigne, Stuart Pierce and Ian Wright.

There are countless cases in which the close ties that Rock 'n' Roll has with sport are evident. Surely that bond will remain unbreakable, and we will be able to continue enjoying stories, songs, and anecdotes that only happen when these two great passions come together.