The lights at the World Series of Poker shined a little brighter this week, when international soccer star Neymar competed in WSOP’s $10,000 Limit Hold’em Championship at the Paris Las Vegas Casino. The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Brazil forward, owner of the richest international football contract in history thanks to his €222 million signing with PSG from Barcelona in 2017, was eliminated from the poker tournament on Day 1.
Neymar, 30, serves as a longtime celebrity representative for PokerStars and now shoots promos and ads as their cultural ambassador. He has shown public interest in professional poker for the better part of a decade, having first won his WSOP seat in June 2016 after winning a preliminary PokerStars two-table satellite tournament in Las Vegas. He was unable to attend the main event that year because it clashed with his schedule with Brazil at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Better late than never. Neymar was able to finally claim his seat on Monday, when he entered the tournament of 74 with a big smile on his face. Photos of the footballer at the tables quickly went viral, with tens of thousands of likes and shares across multiple social media platforms.
Welcome back @neymarjr ! pic.twitter.com/mVxg3ag8fr
— WSOP (@WSOP) June 13, 2022
Normally very tight with his ball control on the field, Neymar was a bit loose on the WSOP tables. He played early and often, jumping into action with a variety of starting hands. His high level of activity ultimately prevented him from advancing to Day 2 of the tournament.
Monday's results notwithstanding, Neymar clearly has a talent when it comes to cards. He has competed in multiple poker events around the world through PokerStars, including the 2018 Brazilian Series of Poker. He placed sixth in that tournament, walking away with $21,072 in winnings.
A nine-time champion across three different soccer leagues, Neymar provides the WSOP with some valuable international celebrity from outside of the typical pro poker circuit. It seems like a good bet that he will be around poker in some capacity for many years to come.
"It's true! [Professional poker] is one of the things I love doing the most," the Brazilian told French website CNEWS last year. "I feel very comfortable, and I think that after playing football I will be able to travel and play tournaments that I have always wanted to participate in but have not been able to because of my schedule."