Chad Johnson lost $2,000 in a pick-up soccer game in Tampa last night

It probably didn’t help that Johnson’s pregame meal consisted of two bread rolls and a Coke.

click to enlarge Chad Johnson lost $2,000 in a pick-up soccer game in Tampa last night
Photo via Cinco Soccer/Instagram


Retired NFL wide receiver Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson is in town, presumably for Super Bowl week, and he lost some cash at a recent pick-up soccer game.

The six-time Pro-Bowler and Florida resident is an unabashed footy fan, and last night he surprised players at Tampa’s Cinco Soccer (5305 E. Henry Ave) for a session of five-a-side. 

A video posted to Twitter shows Johnson running the field and even getting a goal. 


“Not every day we have a Football Legend attend our facility,” said Cinco Soccer in an Instagram post. “Might have been one hour of your time, but it’s a lifetime memory for us here at Cinco, Thank you.” 

In the post, the soccer facility interviewed Johnson after the match and asked how he thought he performed. “It’s cold as hell, said Ocho. “It’s cold as hell, but I had fun. I felt like Neymar, OK. Not really, but you get the god damn point. I had fun. I’ll be back tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that. It’s better than sex.” 

While he had fun, he didn't get the W. After the game, Johnson retweeted a screengrab of a $1,000 Apple payment and a wad of cash with the caption “Double or nothing tomorrow?” 

In another post on Twitter Ocho reiterated that while he’s terrible at soccer, he still had a great time at Cinco Soccer. “It’s fucking awesome,” said Johnson. “It’s fucking awesome, but I suck. It doesn’t matter.” 

It probably also didn’t help that Johnson’s pregame meal consisted of two bread rolls and a Coke

In a text message to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay Cinco founder Keith Rados says Johnson is also invited to come back later this week for a round of soccer video games. “We challenged him to an outdoor game of FIFA ‘21, 'Cinco Soccer vs Ochocinco,'" said Rados, adding that the idea came about after Johnson stated he was “the best at FIFA.”

They're really going take all his money. 

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About The Author

Colin Wolf

Colin Wolf has been working with weekly newspapers since 2007 and has been the Digital Editor for Creative Loafing Tampa since 2019. He is also the Director of Digital Content Strategy for CL's parent company, Euclid Media Group.
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