With teams announced and Euro 2016 about to kick off, global music streaming service, Deezer has created the European ‘Deezer 11’, the dream team of ‘pop’ footballers.
By examining the long-standing relationship between football and music – from renowned chants to rousing championship raps – the line-up is composed of European players past and present who have tackled the music industry, and have been ranked according to the frequency of their music streams on the platform over the last 12 months.
It comes as no surprise that England midfielder John Barnes takes the coveted title of the most streamed footballer in the ‘Deezer 11’ with his 90s smash hit and team up with New Order, World In Motion – perhaps the only thing England will win this year. Receiving almost five times as many streams as his closest rival Jesé Rodríguez, World in Motion is almost as synonymous with John Barnes as his powerful left foot.
Real Madrid’s youth superstar, Jesé Rodríguez has put in impressive performances both on the pitch and the dancefloor which has resulted in him landing the number two spot for the Spanish hit, Yo Sabía. Dutch footballing superstar Johan Cruyff ranks third despite hanging up his professional boots by the time he released Oei, Oei, Oei (Dat Was Me Weer Een Loei).
Kevin Keegan and his famous ‘bubble perm’ scores on both sides of the channel; in at number four with Head Over Heels In Love, and completing the top five is Welsh ex-player and hard-man Vinnie Jones with Big Bad Leroy Brown, who once tried his skills at singing before moving into films.
The ‘Starting 11’ ranked in order of streams:
- John Barnes – World In Motion
- Jesé Rodriguez (Jey M) – Yo Sabía
- Johan Cruyff – Oei,Oei, Oei (Dat Was Me Weer Een Loei)
- Kevin Keegan – Head Over Heels in Love
- Vinnie Jones – Big Bad Leroy Brown
- Andy Cole – Outstanding
- Slaven Bilic – Vatreno ludilo
- Franz Beckenbauer – Gute Freunde Kann Niemand Trennen
- Ruud Gullit – Not The Dancing Kid
- Peter Schmeichel – We Can Do It**
- Youri Djorkaeff – Vivre Dans ta Lumière**
Christian Harris, Deezer UK & Ireland Managing Director said: “At Deezer, we wanted to celebrate the definitive football songs from across Europe with our ‘Deezer 11’. Fortunately the UEFA Euro 2016 winners are not determined by chart positions of classic footie anthems. If they were, it’s more likely that Spain will be singing Yo Sabía (I Knew) in anticipation rather than England setting the footballing World in Motion this summer.”
