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Chad Johnson made a name for himself in the NFL, where he transformed into an experienced six-time Bowl wide receiver and two-time All-season.
but that is rarely the only football enterprise to which Johnson is extraordinarily captivated.
In the fourth quarter, Johnson will join soccer broadcast veterans Kate Abdo and Maurice Edu in Qatar to host FOX's nightly highlights of activities and recap airing “FiFA World Cup Tonight.”
In explaining his lifelong love of soccer, Johnson took former U.S. men's team defenseman and “State of the Union” host Alexi Lalas back to his elementary school days in the city of Liberty.
“I remember my physical education coach, Mr. Telles, threw away the whole balls, and the only thing that attracted me became the black and white soccer ball,” noted Johnson, who was previously called Ochocinco. “That’s where I found out about the football video game again. But obviously where I'm from, we didn't have the elements, I didn't have the money to play the online football game. So what did I do? I watched what was happening on television at the time… since then, I always wanted to play football, but I never had the time to play.”
Johnson's first chance to play organized football came in high school, however, football season interfered with football, which he perceived as a potential skilled career.
Once he arrived in the NFL as a second-round decision, Johnson spent his offseasons traveling to Europe to watch his then-Nike teammates Cristiano Ronaldo and Thierry Henry play football at the highest level, and he persisted in that culture when he left. retired.
“I’ve been doing this for a long, long time,” Johnson noted. “And after almost 20-something years now, I know very little… not much, because I've never done it at an excessive level, but I know a lot.”
It's true that Johnson never played at an excessive level, however, he had a four-day tryout with MLS members, leading Kansas City through the 2011 NFL lockout. He also performed semi-pro in his home state from Miami with Boca Raton FC. His dream is to play for Serie A, an aspect of Napoli, like his favorite player of all time, Diego Maradona.
“It’s Napoli and then everything and more,” Johnson pointed out of his fan pastimes.
Except he gets the call from Napoli's supervisor, Luciano Spalletti, Johnson will have to settle for having fun with Napoli in EA's activities FIFA franchise, an online game in which he said it's "the best in the lineup." planet".
“I've been enjoying FIFA for the longest time,” Johnson noted. “Due to the fact that '98, if I'm not wrong. I've been enjoying it ever since. Definitely, if I couldn't be good at it in real life, you've become extraordinary at it in video games. It's always been my favorite.
“I’ve been showing it in Americans’ homes – it’s well documented. People who talk bad about me on Twitter. Like, I'm in Los Angeles right now. I could tweet: 'Does anyone want to play FIFA? Let me acknowledge. and I'll go through their Twitter, and if they have a feed that's actually them enjoying the game online, I'll probably go over to their house and play, as long as they have food in the fridge. for essentially a decade. It's a little bad, but I don't care.”
Johnson doesn't count on having much time to play FIFA while in Qatar because of how busy he will be with his broadcasting duties, but he's not complaining about his new job – he can barely comprehend his enjoyment.
“I spoke to my wife last day, and he or she said, 'What's that like?' and it really corresponds to the day of the draft”, highlighted Johnson upon receiving the invitation to be an analyst at the World Cup. “Being drafted and seeing your identity go through that ticker, it's a feeling you can't clarify.
“I’m going to a global Cup. I can monitor video games and then talk about video games as an analyst for FOX activities – it's like being drafted into the NFL. The feeling is no different.
“and he or she is asking me, 'Why are you crying?' What do you suggest why am I crying? Whenever someone is called up, what is the first thing they do? To cry. That’s huge.”
You can watch the “State of the Union” podcast on YouTube or subscribe on podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts.
