10 Popular Soccer Players Who Got Divorced

Soccer players are seen as the wealthiest and happiest athletes in the realm of sports. While soccer players are meant to be sociable, there are a lot of soccer players that chose to keep their marital status out of soccer and the public as a whole to avoid divorce.

Well, this idea has been working for certain players, but to some, no matter how difficult they try to conceal their marital status, they still end up going on different paths with their partners.

Moreover, players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Harry Maguire, and others have managed to maintain the relationships they have with their partners while other players such as Thierry Henry, Achraf  Hakimi, and others ended it with their partners at some point in life.

However, I will be sharing about popular soccer players who got divorced in this article. So, without further ado, let us proceed

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Popular Soccer Players Who Got Divorced

1. Gerard Pique

The divorce of Gerard Pique and Shakira somehow hurt soccer fans and music lovers. Gerard Pique, a Spanish and Barcelona legend dated famous singer, Shakira after meeting her at the 2010 World Cup that was hosted in South Africa.  The love birds relationship was what everyone would wish for, it seemed to have been a fairytale union but it was not.

In 2022, Shakira divorced Gerard Pique and they initially released a joint statement about their separation. The reason for their separation was that the former Barcelona player cheated with a 23-year-old and stopped giving Shakira the attention she deserved.

The couple had two kids together and have moved on with their lives.

2. Djibril Cissé

Djibril Cissé divorce case might be one of the divorce cases no soccer player or anyone would want to experience.

On 18 June 2005, Cissé walked former Welsh hairdresser, Jude Littler down the aisle. Their union produced three offspring, Cassius, Prince Kobe, and Marley Jackson.

While, till date, it is not clear what led to the divorce as both parties do not indulge in public lives, rather they are known for having private lives.

To sum it up, after Jude Littler’s divorce from Cissé, she marked the celebration with a party and a three-tiered cake, complete with icing of a lifelike image of a traditional bride and a beheaded groom.

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3. Emmanuel Eboué

Before opening a page with Arsenal, Emmanuel Eboué got married to a Belgian woman, Aurélie who helped in raising three children in the union.

In 2017, the former Arsenal player divorced his Belgian wife, Aurélie and later revealed that he went bankrupt after the divorce papers were signed by both parties. Eboué struggled with life after he retired from professional football.

He also struggled to afford an apartment before his former teammates and friends helped him gain back his feet. For Eboué marital status, it did not end there. He later got married to his long-term girlfriend, Stephen Boedé, a French Publicist in 2019.

4. Achraf Hakimi

Paris Saint-Germain and Moroccan defender Achraf Hakimi have one of the most popular soccer player’s divorce cases.Hiba Akoub has been Achraf Hakimi’s wife since 2020 despite being 12 years older than the PSG player who is 24 years old.

The man who earns €1m monthly from his professional football almost had at least 80% of his assets in the hands of his ex-wife. Hiba Akoub filed a divorce case after Hakimi was embroiled in a rape case.

Well, to her surprise, she was told by the court that her millionaire husband does not have any assets in his name as he had already secured everything under his mother’s name. The actress was left shattered after being informed by the court.

5. Paul Merson

Having played for Arsenal as a player and as a manager, Paul Merson made enough money which would make any woman agree to tie the knot with him.

For the 55 years old that made enough from a professional career at Arsenal, he was broke and homeless after he faced a divorce in his marriage.

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Merson married three different times and faced alcohol abuse and gambling addiction which was the basis for his first divorce in 2001. He even sold his house in West Midlands which helped him get back on his feet as a TV pundit.

6. Ashley Cole

Despite being one of the notable left-backs in soccer history, Ashley Cole could not escape a marriage divorce. Ashley Cole and Cheryl Tweedy started dating in 2004 before getting married two years after dating.

The couple almost divorced a long-time ago due to accusations of Ashley Cole being infertile by three different women in January 2008. Cole denied these accusations as he reconciled with Cheryl Tweedy.

Well, to everyone’s surprise, the couple went on different paths in 2010, four years after tying the knot due to several cheating allegations against the former Chelsea player.

Cheryl did not take any compensation from the player as she never wished for a divorce but only needed peace of mind.

7. Thierry Henry

Despite being a valuable soccer player that graced the pitch, Thierry Henry also faced a divorce from his partner. Thierry Henry married Nicole Merry in 2003 but went on different paths in 2007.

Nicole Merry pushed for the divorce after hearing several cheating allegations against the former Arsenal star. To sum it up, Nicole proved that all that she heard was true after she discovered several text messages that the Frenchman was sharing with a make-up artist, Sadie Hewlett.

Nicole Merry secured a compensation of €8m which was paid by his ex-husband, Thierry Henry. A year after, Henry burst all into the media about how it was not easy for him to handle the divorce.

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8. Odartey Lamptey

Odartey Lamptey might have not been a popular soccer player but his divorce case is one of the prominent cases in the soccer realm. Odartey Lamptey, a Ghanaian star married Gloria Appiah in 1993 and the union gave them 5 kids, despite two dying of lung diseases.

According to several DNA tests, Odartey discovered that the remaining kids were not his own. Due to downs in the union, Gloria Appiah demanded financial compensation from the soccer star and also appealed to the Ghanaian court to order Lamptey to leave their home. Well, the court did not honour her request but she did not stop there.

She filed an appeal requesting 50% of Lamptey’s assets, which included the couple’s East Legon apartment, but the court was yet to honour her request. The court only let Gloria leave the marriage with ¢200,000, a house at Dome, and two vehicles as a financial settlement.

9. Ryan Giggs

Manchester United legend, Ryan Giggs also makes the list of popular soccer players that got divorced. On 7 September 2007, The former Red Devils midfielder, Ryan Giggs had a private wedding with Stacey Cooke whom he has been dating for years.

Despite being one of the loyal United players, Giggs was not loyal to his wife and brother as he had an affair with his brother’s wife. Well, that did not cause Stacey to file a divorce against the player.

Dated back to 2016, Stacey filed a divorce against the player which she was compensated with €40m in 2017 after she found out that Giggs was constantly flirting with a waitress at his restaurant.

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10. David James

Tied on number 10 is David James who lost his wealth to a divorce he did not expect. The soccer player married Tanya, but in 2005 he divorce his partner.

He paid Tanya €3m as part of the financial settlements. In 2014, he was declared bankrupt as he continued to pay off several debts. Well, David James did not let the divorce finish him off as he went into modelling. He is now into managing soccer teams and punditry roles.

Conclusion

Divorce has been a prominent case in the soccer realm and due to this, a lot of fans believe that the 5th-time Ballon d’Or winner, Cristiano Ronaldo does not want to officially get married to his current partner, Georgina Rodriguez because he does not want to lose at least 50% of his wealth to the Argentine despite having children together.

Well, there are still players such as Lionel Messi and Zlatan Ibrahimovic that are happily married even with divorce cases popping up every day.

However, I have already mentioned the popular soccer players who got divorced, hence, the comment section is open for you to ask questions about popular soccer players who got divorced if you do not understand certain details I shared in this article.