Bizarre Athletic Superstitions, From Locker Room Urinals to Dirty Sock

Bizarre Athletic Superstitions, From Locker Room Urinals to Dirty Socks

Athletes often rely on strange pre-game rituals to secure a victory, ranging from shared bathroom habits to unwashed socks.

NationPulse Desk

Oct 30, 2026 · 9:26 PM 4 min read

Key takeaways

John Terry and his Chelsea teammates regularly delayed matches by waiting to use the same locker room urinal.

Sergio Goycochea relieved himself in the penalty area before every penalty shootout for Argentina.

Goran Ivanisevic watched Teletubbies before matches during his 2001 Wimbledon victory.

Andre Agassi stopped wearing underwear during matches starting from the 1999 French Open.

Athletes frequently spend years training hard and preparing mentally before performing in front of crowds, but some rely on unique superstitions to secure an advantage. Several well-known sports figures followed incredible routines that they believed helped them succeed.

John Terry

Before matches at Stamford Bridge, the former Chelsea defender always used the exact same urinal in the locker room. Terry mentioned that after winning a game following this routine, teammates Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard joined in, eventually causing the team to walk out late. Terry stated, “Me and Frank started it a long time ago; in the Chelsea dressing room we have three urinals and me and Lamps started weeing in one. We won the game and that was it.” He added, “The next week there was a queue of me, Frank and Ash. The next week there were four of us and the week after there were five. Even now, up until today, you have Cesar Azpilicueta and Cesc Fabregas, we are all there in one big queue.” Terry also noted, “A few months ago the club secretary said to me: ‘we have had a few calls from the FA complaining because we have been going out late’ and I didn’t have the heart to tell him it was because we were all waiting to go for a wee.”

Sergio Goycochea

Argentina goalkeeper Goycochea took his bathroom routine directly onto the field, relieving himself in the penalty area prior to penalty shootouts. He explained, “I did it against Yugoslavia (in the 1990 World Cup quarter-finals) – we won, so then when the semi-final against Italy went to penalties I did it again – and it worked!” He added, “From that moment on I did it before every shoot-out. It was my lucky charm.”

Goran Ivanisevic

Wildcard entrant Ivanisevic captured the 2001 Wimbledon title partly by watching the Teletubbies show before his matches. The Croatian player recalled, “My coach one day said, ‘You have to watch this, this is so funny’.” He continued, “And I won my match that day. So then I couldn’t stop. My favourite was the purple one, Tinky Winky.”

Andre Agassi

American tennis player Agassi abandoned wearing underwear from the 1999 French Open onward after forgetting to pack a pair before a match. Agassi stated, “I got to the locker room and realised I’d forgotten my underwear.” He further explained, “What can a man do? I just commandoed it. After that it was a case of ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’. It actually feels good.”

Jason Terry

NBA player Terry prepared for the NCAA national championship game between the Arizona Wildcats and the University of Kentucky by wearing his full uniform to bed after struggling to sleep. Terry said, “The next day, we ended up winning the national championship. After that, I was like, ‘OK, I think I’m superstitious and I need to keep this thing going.’”

Serena Williams

Tennis star Serena Williams reportedly wore identical unwashed socks throughout a tournament and insisted on using the exact same shower.

Kolo Toure

Former Arsenal and Manchester City defender Kolo Toure maintained a strict rule to be the final player leaving the tunnel, which backfired during a Champions League match against Roma at the Emirates Stadium when the second half started without him. Rushing onto the pitch without permission from the referee earned him a yellow card.

Mariafe Artacho del Solar

Australian volleyball player Mariafe Artacho del Solar lost an earring during her opening match against Cuba at Tokyo 2020 and treated the loss as a lucky charm, playing the rest of the tournament with just one earring. She joked, “Earrings are like my undies. I can’t leave home without them.”

Marta Kostyuk

Kostyuk secured her first WTA 1000 title in Madrid in May after her team kept a pair of underwear mistakenly mixed into tournament laundry that featured the words “Lucky Shorts” printed inside. She told Movistar Plus, “We have a tournament laundry service and sometimes the clothes get mixed up and last year we ended up with this piece of underwear where in it was written ‘Lucky Shorts’. So we kept it.” Her coach Sandra Zaniewska preserved the item, and Kostyuk added, “We made this promise that if I’d win we would bring the ‘Lucky Shorts’ for the photoshoot with the trophy.”