A famous professional footballer has spent thousands of hours playing Counter-Strike 2, and he is still active.
Who is it about? Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior (33), commonly known as Neymar, is a Brazilian professional footballer who has been playing for Santos FC since January – the club where his career began.
- Throughout his career, Neymar also played for the top European clubs FC Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain before moving to the Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal.
- The club paid 222 million euros for his move to PSG, the highest transfer fee ever paid for a footballer (via Transfermarkt).
- He has won various titles, including the Champions League with Barcelona in 2015.
- Additionally, he finished third in the FIFA World Player of the Year voting in 2015 and 2017.
Neymar is considered one of the most talented active footballers, especially known for his dribbling skills. However, he has also faced a lot of criticism from the public for theatrically rolling on the ground after minor fouls.
However, Neymar is not just a professional footballer; he is also a passionate gamer who even occasionally streams on Twitch. And there is one shooter that particularly captivates him.
11,000 hours in Counter-Strike
Which shooter is the footballer playing? A screenshot shared on Reddit shows that Neymar is primarily playing a popular shooter, Counter-Strike 2, alongside the football simulation EA FC 25. The Brazilian has spent a total of 11,353 hours in Valve’s successful title, which adds up to over 15 months (about 1.3 years).
How can a professional footballer play so much? As a professional athlete, it is important to maintain the required physical fitness – especially when playing for some of the best clubs in the world like Neymar does in pursuit of the most coveted titles.
So how is it possible that Neymar has been able to play for so many hours?
On the one hand, professional athletes also have some free time each day. They can also dedicate a few hours to hobbies like gaming. Additionally, Valve combines the playtime of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Counter-Strike 2. Therefore, he has not only accumulated these hours since the release of CS2 in September 2023, but had several years to accumulate them.
Moreover, Neymar has suffered numerous injuries in his career, which have kept him out of the game for a total of 1,391 days. In 2023, he suffered an ACL tear and returned only 340 days later (via transfermark.de).
With such severe injuries as an ACL tear, training is off-limits for a long time. What better way to pass the time than gaming?
What do gamers say about Neymar’s playtime? The screenshot of Neymar’s playtime in CS2 was shared in the subreddit of the shooter. There, one player jokingly commented: “Neymar should touch some grass.”
Another user, considering the athlete’s injury history, understands why he spent so much time gaming: “It feels like he has been injured half of his career, lol. There are worse ways to spend time in bed than with CS.”
Another user commented: “I have a friend who was a professional footballer (not a big name or anything), and it’s amazing how many of them are degenerate gamers. Many of them go to training and then play video games all day.”
Thus, Neymar is not the only gamer among professional footballers. The Norwegian forward Erling Braut Haaland from Manchester City is also a gamer, even though he feels embarrassed about his favorite game: “It’s too embarrassing” – Football star admits to being a gamer, but is ashamed of his favorite game
