Carlos Alcaraz attracted a lot of attention after leaving tennis in favor of soccer, the jersey of the iconic Argentine team Boca Juniors.
Alcaraz wore the blue and yellow of Boca for the annual soccer match between players and coaches at the Juan Carlos Ferrero Academy and seemed excited by the steps of the greatest tennis legends.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic graced La Bombonera stadium after a Boca Juniors exhibition match against All Boys and took part in a penalty shootout in front of a packed crowd in 2013.
There were fewer people there to see Alcaraz switch from tennis to football, but a big decision inspired the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion.
Neymar, who has a reported net worth of £278 million, the most expensive footballer of all time in 2017 when Paris Saint-Germain spent £200 million to sign him from Barcelona, was among those commenting on Alcaraz’s Instagram post.
The Brazilian superstar, now a member of Saudi giant Al-Hilal, wrote “Quality”, a transparent sign of approval from one of the biggest names in football.
Neymar may have crossed the fierce Spanish divide by commending a big Real Madrid fan as a former Barcelona favourite, but Alcaraz has showcased on several occasions just how invested he is in football.
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The 21-year-old was incredibly divisive this year after winning Wimbledon, as he came on the same day Spain played England in the Euro 2024 final.
Alcaraz beat Djokovic in straight sets in the afternoon, hours before the English heartbreak in Germany. But his commitments didn’t end before the start of the match and the tennis star remained glued to his devices all night.
The men’s and women’s Wimbledon winners attend the champions’ dinner and take part in a dance, which directly conflicts with the European Championship final, and Alautomobileaz couldn’t even leave his car before he proved the Spanish winner wasn’t offside.
Mikel Oyarzabal scored the winning goal from the bench to undermine England’s dreams of ending a 58-year trophy drought; offside was suspected before the VAR demonstrated that there had been no infringement.
“It all started on the phone,” Alcaraz said of how he approached his tennis duties and how he watched Spain. “Then we move on to TV at home and then we get [to dinner] on the iPad, so it’s kind of a combined bag.
“Right before they took me out of the car, I saw the [winning] goal, so I thought it was offside. He couldn’t get out of the car until he was sure he was a target. So here you have a few minutes in which the nerves were on the surface.
“I know some of them [the Spanish national team footballers]. I spoke to them before starting the game. When I finished, one of the first FaceTimes I did with [captain] Álvaro Morata just to wish them the best of luck. I tried to give them all my strength to try to have a smart combination.
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