If there’s one way to intimidate your rivals in football, enlisting a former heavyweight world champion as an ally is one way to go about it.
Benfica shared a surprising video message from Mike Tyson on their 120th anniversary – though it was more friendly than formidable.
The Portuguese giants posted a clip of Tyson, 57, draped in a Benfica scarf congratulating them on their landmark.
‘Congratulations on a 120-year anniversary. Black Panther forever,’ he said on Wednesday.
‘Black Panther’ was the nickname of Eusebio, the Benfica legend who won the European Cup, Ballon d’Or, and 11 league titles while with them.
Mike Tyson surprised fans by congratulating Benfica omn their 120-year anniversary – but he has been connected with them for a long time
Tyson has had a soft spot for Benfica for at least a decade and has been pictured in their kit many times
His message certainly prompted confusion in the comments, with one person writing: ‘But since when has Mike Tyson been a Benfica fan? Lmao’.
Well, it turns out, quite a while. We don’t know for exactly how long, but it has been at least a decade and could be much, much longer.
The boxing legend has been pictured in Benfica shirts numerous times over the years and has even posed with the team for photographs.
His affinity for the Lisbon-based club apparently stems from when a Portuguese-American friend gave him a ‘Glorioso’ jersey years ago.
‘It’s been many years, but I still have that sweater at home. It was offered by a friend of mine, a son of Portuguese immigrants in the United States,’ he told Diario O Jogo, as quoted by the Mail in 2015.
‘He always spoke to me about Benfica and his passion for the club, so I was curious. I’ve read about the story of the Glorious (Benfica’s nickname).’
One of the old pictures of Tyson shows him in a Vodafone-sponsored kit. The telecoms company sponsored Benfica between 1996 and 2005, so it could be around that era that his passion was ignited.
When Eusebio died in January 2014, Tyson tweeted: ‘R. I. P. Eusebio Black Panther BENFICA forever’.
Tyson claims he was given a jersey ‘years ago’ by a friend who of Portuguese descent
He even had a photograph with the team when they played in the International Champions Cup in July 2015
He posed with the squad prior to their International Champions Cup match against New York Red Bulls in July 2015 but could only simmer in the stands as they lost 2-1.
However, it is unclear if Tyson is an ardent fan or merely a casual observer. It so happens that the American is rather fickle when it comes to football shirts.
Not merely satisfied with Benfica kits, Tyson has been snapped wearing jerseys of Manchester United, Argentina, Wolves, Denmark, Rangers, and even Peterborough United, so perhaps his devotion to one team isn’t die-hard.
He has also, rather sacrilegiously, been papped donning the kits of England and Scotland.