Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton is one of Arsenal’s most famous supporters, but it was a family member who pushed him to cheer on the Gunners.
Arsenal can count one of the most successful racers of all time among their fans. Hamilton has won seven world championships and over 100 Grands Prix.
Hamilton was just 19 years old the last time Arsenal won the Premier League title in 2004. He hadn’t reached Formula 1 at that point but now, as he approaches the end of his career, he could see his team end their drought.
With 20 games played, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal sit six points clear of Manchester City at the top of the table. Hamilton will hope Ferrari, who haven’t won either F1 championship since 2008, can also halt their barren run within the next year or two.
Lewis Hamilton says his sister bullied him into supporting Arsenal
Given that Hamilton is a known Arsenal fan, it was a surprise to see him involved in a Chelsea takeover bid in 2022. The Briton was part of a consortium led by Sir Martin Broughton, one that also featured tennis icon Serena Williams.
When the topic was raised in a press conference ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Hamilton expressed his admiration for Chelsea, six-time champions of England and two-time champions of Europe. He has a familial connection to the Blues through his uncle.
However, he reiterated that he was still a Gunner, having been rather forcefully persuaded by his sister, Samantha Lockhart, to pick them over Tottenham Hotspur or Manchester United.
“I’ve been a football fan since I was a kid,” Hamilton explained. “I played football from probably from the age of four until I was 17. I was in teams every year. I played in the school team every year through my childhood. I’ve been to numerous games.
“When I was young, around the corner from where I lived, I used to play football with all the kids and a couple of my close friends at the time, I really wanted to fit in. I was the only kid of colour there. But I know that the kids all supported someone different.
“One was Tottenham and one was Man U, and I remember switching between these teams when I was younger and getting home and my sister punching me several times in the arm, basically beating me, saying, ‘You have to support Arsenal’.
“So I remember at five or six years old that I then became a supporter of Arsenal. But my Uncle Terry is a big Blues fan. I’ve been to so many games with him to watch Arsenal and Chelsea play.
“And ultimately I’m a sporting fan. It is the biggest sport in the world. And Chelsea is one of the biggest clubs in the world, and most successful. And when I heard about this opportunity, I was like, ‘Wow, this is this is one of the greatest opportunities to be a part of something so great.'”
Could Lewis Hamilton have been a football player instead of an F1 driver?
In 2015, Hamilton was involved in a five-a-side game organised by Sky Sports featuring Arsenal legends like Thierry Henry and Sol Campbell.
Asked if he considered pursuing football over motorsport, Hamilton said that the camaraderie on the pitch appealed to him. By contrast, F1 is arguably the loneliest sport of all.
“Naturally, as a kid, I was growing up, just like every boy does, watching football and playing it a lot,” he said. “I really enjoyed the whole experience of being in the team, lifting each other when we had bad days.
“I was centre midfield because I was training so much. I could run up and down all day long. I was playing forward, mid and defence always. I was never particularly in one position.”
Hamilton isn’t the only F1 driver who roots for a Premier League club. Former teammate and fellow Briton George Russell is a Wolves fan, like his father, while McLaren’s Oscar Piastri says he has become an Arsenal fan through his girlfriend’s family.
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