Over the last decade or so, footballers have become more eager in trying to collaborate with their favorite musicians. Some of the famous collaborations included UK rapper Stormzy creating the song for the Paul Pogba unveiling video that Manchester United launched in 2016.
The UK rapper Santan Dave is also good mates with a lot of players, including ex-United stars Jesse Lingard as well as Pogba.
Due to the increase in musical streaming platforms and the wider availability of music over the last decade, some obscure and local artists have started to find popularity in other countries as well.
There is a special connection between some modern-day footballers with that of the up-and-coming musicians. This could be because some stars can resonate with the songs of the musical artists of their own generation.
Portugal forward Rafael Leao is being used in a very specific role by Fernando Santos at the Qatar World Cup.
Despite his impressive work for AC Milan last season, whom he helped win their first Serie A title in a decade, Leao is only used as a substitute by the Portuguese side.
He can’t seem to be able to win a starting place for himself over Joao Felix and it could be because of his slight inconsistency in the final third.
That’s why Santos opts to bring him after the hour-mark when he can terrorize the exhausted defenders with his rapid pace and clever dribbling skills through the left wing.
It actually worked wonders in their World Cup opener against Ghana. After being introduced in the 77th minute, Leao scored three minutes after coming on to help his side get an important win over the African giants.
But some hawk-eyed fans seem to have noticed something really interesting during his celebrations.
Some fans pointed out that Leao appears to have an OTF tattoo on his arm.
For those unknowing, OTF (Only the Family) is a rap collective group that is based in Chicago, Illinois. It was formed by the American rapper Lil Durk, who has been nominated for a Grammy award twice in his career.
OTF doesn’t have a studio album yet, with most of their records being as part of a compilation album with other rappers.
It appears that Leao might be a big fan of the current USA rap scene and is fond of Lil Durk’s songs as well.
OTF isn’t exactly hugely popular, but the Portugal winger is clearly obsessed with Durk and his music – or else he definitely wouldn’t want to etch their identity into his skin by making a tattoo that is quite visible.
Unfortunately for Leao, the American rapper is yet to respond to him dedicating a tattoo for his group and showing such unbound love for him.
But if the Portuguese winger can continue his impressive performances at the World Cup and play a major role in helping his side go far ahead in the competition, he might just get enough mainstream attention in the USA for Durk and other prominent rappers to know exactly who he is and how big a fan he is of OTF.
