Prof. Msgr. Vladimir Felzmann aka Father Vlad 

still working to help God make this World a better place 

Prayer – often just a silent conscious contact with God – is alive and kicking in sport; as it could, indeed should be, in your life, if you wish to live that to the full. 

There are also sport-prayers which you can access on the web. Just two examples. 

“An Athletes’ team prayer before a game”: “Dear Lord God, thank you for all the gifts you have given us. Help us to enter into this event with love, wisdom and strength in our hearts. We pray that we would look to you in awe and worship. May we put into practice all that we have learnt in our training, and bring to mind all the skills and planning from our preparation times. May each of us be aware of your goodness in our lives, and may this goodness pour out of  us as a witness to your endless grace. You Lord are our inspiration, our teacher and our protector. Our trust is in you today and always .Amen.” 

This could, perhaps, work as a template for your own family’s prayer. 

Then there is a coach’s prayer for a sports team: “Our Father in heaven, thank you for the privilege of training this team. I thank you for each player and all the great talents you have given them. Watch over them now as they compete today. Protect them from injury and fill them with strength and courage as they give of their best. Amen. 

For ‘team’ think ‘my children’. In my life, apart from my phatic prayer with God, there are the TAPS: My Thanking, Asking, Praising and saying Sorry to Jesus and the Blessed Trinity. Whenever I watch sport on telly, I feel that Christ sitting next to you and share my feelings: admiration, surprise, disappointment, opinion on what coach/manager should do differently. 

As I walked around the Sir Mo Farah track at St Mary’s University to raise funds for their chapel organ, I think my conversation with God – who knows what is going in beneath my bald dome. It’s more energising than even music on Spotify. I suspect his Twelve Apostles – given their previous occupations –when discussing Roman authorities and their soldiers – would have used what on TV warnings is called “Strong language”. 

Yet we never hear him criticising them – on this at least. So, having worked as a civil engineer on site – where without strong language little gets done – with Jesus, I express myself freely. 

Football’s history in England is intimately connected with the church. Aston Villa, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Bolton Wanderers,  Everton, Fulham, Manchester City, Queens Park Rangers, Southampton, Swindon Town and Tottenham Hotspur were all founded by churches. 

Fans chant songs such as When the Saints Go Marching In, You Never Walk Alone and the hymn Abide with Me is sung before every FA Cup final – the oldest cup competition in the world. Even today, the Christian faith is still openly displayed on football  pitches, with players frequently crossing themselves before entering their pitch, and lifting their eyes and hands heavenwards when they score– not to mention offering up prayers when it comes to penalties. 

In tribute to this, I offer you six players currently lighting up English footy with both their footballing talent and their Christian faith.

1. Ederson Moraes, Brazilian goalkeeper, completed a permanent transfer this September to Turkish side Fenerbahce after eight trophy-laden years at Manchester City. He was the most expensive goal keeper in the world, and is not afraid to display his faith. He has a large image of a dove and the words “I belong to Jesus” tattooed across his chest.

2. David Luiz, Arsenal, says “Everything in life belongs to God.” He has even written a children’s book about faith and football, called Defending the Line. When Luiz won the Champions League playing for Chelsea, he celebrated in front of the fans wearing a t-shirt saying, “Deus é fiel”, Portuguese for “God is faithful”.

David Luiz Moreira Marinho (born 1987) is a Brazilian international footballer who played as a centre-back for Chelsea F.C. from 2011 to 2014.

Veteran center-back David Luiz is set to continue his professional career in an unexpected corner of European football.

Pafos FC, a first-division club in Cyprus, officially announced the signing of the Brazilian defender, who agreed to a contract running until June 2028.

3. Joel Ward, Crystal Palace, kneels down to pray before every match, and has a tattoo inked on the inside of his left arm: “What no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, and what no human mind has conceived, the things God has prepared for those who love him.” (In case you are wondering, it is 1 Cor 2,9) Joel is actively involved with the Christian charity “Faith and Football”.

In 2012, Ward was signed by Crystal Palace, and helped the side achieve promotion to the Premier League in his first season. He has since gone on to make the most top-flight appearances of any player in the club's history, as well as serving a season as club captaina nd winning the FA Cupin 2025 in his last season at the club.

4. Raheem Sterling, Chelsea, City, has been known to tweet Bible verses and statements like “Trust in Him”, and in interviews has de-scribed how he prays before every match. 

Sterling began his career at Queens Park Rangers, before signing for Liverpool in 2010. He was awarded the Golden Boy award in 2014. In July 2015, following a lengthy dispute over a new contract, he was signed byManchester City in a transfer worth £49million with add-ons, the highest transfer fee ever paid for an English player at the time. He went on to help City win back-to-back Premier League titles in the2017–18and2018–19seasons. In the 2018–19 season, he was named to the PFA Premier League Team of the Year and won the PFA Young Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year. He won two further Premier League titles with the club in 2020–21 and 2021–22, before signing for Chelsea in July 2022. Sterling is currently the all-time English top assist provider in the UEFA Champions League, with 23.[2]He joined Arsenal on loan for the 2024–25 season before returning back to Chelsea.

5. Willian Borges da Silva(born 9 August 1988), known mononymously asWillian, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a winger or wide midfielder for Campeonato Brasileiro Série AclubGrêmio.

Willian began his career at Corinthians before joining Shakhtar Donets kin August 2007 for a fee of €14million. During his six years at the club, he won several honours, including fourUkrainian Premier League titles and theUEFA Cup in 2009. In 2013, he briefly signed with Anzhi Makhachkala before moving to Chelseafor £30million, winning the Premier League and the League Cup in his second season in England. He signed for Arsenal in August 2020 but only played at the club for one season.

Willian made his debut for Brazilin 2011 and had since represented his country at the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cups, as well as the 2015 Copa América, the Copa América Centenario, and the 2019 Copa América, a tournament Brazil won on home soil.

Willian, regularly falls to his knees and points to the sky when he scores. During his bereavement of his mother, he told the press: “I had so  much help from  God, Jesus Christ, my wife and two daughters.”

6. Christian Benteke began his career at Standard Liège, playing a part in their2008–09 Belgian First Division triumph. Following a season at Genkhe was signed for £7 million by Aston Villa. He scored 49 goals in 101 matches for Villa across all competitions.

 He spent a single season at Liverpool, scoring a total of 10 goals, before being transferred to Crystal Palace at the start of the 2016–17 season.

Benteke earned 45 caps for Belgium between his debut in 2010 and 2022. He missed the 2014 FIFA World Cupthrough injury, but was part of their team that reached the quarter-finals of UEFA Euro 2016 and Euro 2020.

Christian points to the sky whenever he scores. When at Aston Villa and asked about this habit, Benteke told the Birmingham Mail: “I do the celebration because I believe in God. So, when I score, the first thing I have to do is say thank- you to Him. He has given me the power to score. I am a very religious person. I pray before the game and I pray after the game. I thank Him for the good things that He has given me. Before each match I pray to Him  to make sure that nothing bad happens to all 22 players on the pitch. That is important. I ask for Him to look after everyone. Before we are footballers, we are men, we are people together.”

Many professional footballers openly demonstrate their faith through prayer on and off the field, including Christian players like England'sMarc Guéhi, Bukayo Saka, and Conor Gallagher, who may kneel or cross themselves.

Muslim footballers like Mohamed Salah, Ousmane Dembélé, N'Golo Kanté, and Karim Benzema also show their devotion, often through the sujood prayer position or by pointing fingers to the sky to symbolize God's oneness.

Marc Guéhi was seen kneeling in prayer before a match..

Players like Guéhi and Conor Gallagher have spoken about their Christian faith and how it guides them.

Some players, like Hugo Ekitike, point a finger to the sky, which symbolizes the oneness of Allah.

I know quite a few football fans who, typically on Saturdays  pray to God for their team’s success. Following their progress over many years, it seems to me that God does not support any one team. Though, I believe, God knows that football – as so many other sports -  are good for humanity; not just the competitors but also the social, and emotional cohesion of supporters

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