If there’s one thing people like more than football, it’s animals. Few can resist a cute pup, cuddly cat or rascally raccoon. OK maybe not so much the raccoon, but everyone definitely loves pictures of footballers with animals.
Soccer players, just like the rest of us, love their pets — and animals in general. We love soccer players and animals, so we felt it prudent to compile a list of the 30 cutest pictures of footballers with animals.
And because we’ve already wasted enough of your time before getting to the cute pics, we’ll shut up and let you get on with saying “daww” over and over.
The 30 Cutest Pictures Of Footballers With Animals
Roberto Carlos
The Brazilian with the meanest left foot in football has extremely soft hands to cradle this sleeping pup.
Lieke Martens
The best female footballer in the world needs a higher quality camera phone, but you can just about make out a face in the ball of fluff she’s holding.
Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi is one of the smallest footballers on the planet but he’s got one big doggo. Aptly named Senor Hulk, this Dogue de Bordeaux is a large French Mastiff and nearly as big as Messi himself, but we still want to give him a big hug.
Alexis Sanchez
The only thing Alexis Sanchez loves more than remonstrating with teammates is his dogs Atom and Humber, who had their own signs at Emirates Stadium before the Chilean winger moved to Manchester United.
Kristine Lilly
Oh just one of the finest USWNT players of all time posing with a friggin bear. No big deal.
Andres Iniesta
Which is cuter, the dogs or that sweater?
Cristiano Ronaldo
We could have made a joke that Cristiano Ronaldo’s pets are his muscular abs or something, but that would have deprived you from seeing this adorable photo.
Gio dos Santos
This obnoxiously cute dog belongs in a purse but perched on the shoulder of a footballer works just fine too.
Pedro
We’re usually not big fans of PDA but we’ll let this one slide.
Wayne Rooney
Pigs at the beach are just as natural as Wayne Rooney’s hairline.
Carlos Tevez
Not quite sure who is more terrified of the other in this pic.
Alexandra Popp
German striker Alexandra Popp better watch out or the trash panda will steal her Olympic gold medal.
Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo is good enough that he can get two mentions on this list, especially with the way he’s terrifying this innocent pup.
Sydney Leroux and Dom Dwyer
Is it OK to say we like pics of Sydney and Dom with their dog more than with their baby Cassius?
Marcelo
Is Marcelo’s dog trying to look like him or vice versa?
Abby Wambach
Abby Wambach was a beast on the pitch and a menace for defenders, but look how delicately she kisses the little apple head of this Chihuahua.
Eric Cantona
This monkey is wondering why Eric Cantona doesn’t shave his unibrow.
Mesut Ozil
Mesut Ozil has two sweet pugs, so we can only assume he’s a fan of Milo and Otis. One of the dogs, named Balboa, is a pretty decent footballer in his own right.
Isco
True love.
Hector Bellerin
Dog is not pleased.
Wesley Sneijder
Someone please tell Wesley to put his pup in a seatbelt!
Peter Crouch
Pets are often just another member of the family. This is literally the case for Peter Crouch.
Rafael Márquez
This puppy looks confused as to why Rafa is laying down on concrete steps instead of running up them like Rocky.
Theo Walcott
Some people don’t think snakes are cute. Those people will be the first ones eaten when the snake people take over.
Christen Press
Christen Press has a cute dog named Khaleesi, so consider this little kitten Drogon.
Thierry Henry
Goofy cats are the best cats.
Graham Zusi
The dog looks how we all feel every time Zusi is announced in the starting lineup for the USMNT.
Julie Ertz
This is the cutest photo of a stingray you will ever see.
Samuel Umtiti
Samuel Umtiti’s pup is helping him choose whether he wants to swipe left or right.
Antoine Griezmann
Antoine’s dog is adorable, but this pic loses major cuteness points because of the creepy Derrick Rose doll in the background.