Tattoo Survey + Full Results

An August 2019 survey of 2,000 UK sports fans saw Sergio Ramos’ finger tattoos voted as the worst among sportsmen.

The poll also ranked ink from other male athletes, with Mike Tyson’s infamous tribal face tattoo coming second on the list overall. Surprisingly, Tyson’s tatt is popular enough amongst sports fans to land him on the list of the 20 best tattoos too. Raheem Sterling’s machine gun leg tattoo fueled tabloid outrage in May 2018, so it’s somewhat unsurprising to see his ink rank highly, coming in at fifth, with Alessandro Diamanti and Jay Bothroyd claiming third and fourth spots respectively.

On the other end of the spectrum, ‘Goldenballs’ himself – David Beckham – took home the trophy for best sporting tattoo, according to fans. Lewis Hamilton’s elaborate artwork saw him finish second place on the podium, while the outline of Africa inked on Anthony Joshua’s shoulder took home the bronze. Barcelona legend Lionel Messi came fourth on the list, despite undergoing a cover-up job on his magical left peg.

The study was commissioned by Compare.bet, whose spokesman said: “It’s unusual nowadays for a modern athlete not to have any tattoos.”

“One of the most famous is Cristiano Ronaldo, who supposedly doesn’t have any because he gives blood so often.”

“But of course, with so many sports stars covered in ink, some of them are bound to be more memorable – for better or worse – than others.”

The ultimate quiz for sports enthusiasts has also been created, testing fans’ knowledge on whether they know their idols from their ink.

Compare.bet’s spokesman added: “With so many athletes having tattoos, it can sometimes even be hard to work out whose is whose. We’ve created a quiz to test people’s knowledge of sporting ink, and some of them are much harder than you’d think.”

TOP 20 WORST TATTOOS

1. Sergio Ramos
2. Mike Tyson
3. Alessandro Diamanti
4. Jay Bothroyd
5. Raheem Sterling
6. Andres D’Alessandro
7. Tim Howard
8. Nile Ranger
9. Conor McGregor
10. Daniel Agger
11. David Beckham
12. Damian Delaney
13. Leroy Sane
14. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
15. Artur Boruc
16. Wayne Rooney
17. Lionel Messi
18. Stephen Ireland
19. Nigel De Jong
20. Dele Alli

…AND THE BEST

1. David Beckham
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Anthony Joshua
4. Lionel Messi
5. Conor McGregor
6. Leroy Sane
7. Daniel Agger
8. Nigel De Jong
9. Zlatan Ibrahimovic
10. Wayne Rooney
11. Mike Tyson
12. Greg Rutherford
13. Stephen Ireland
14. Tim Howard
15. Raheem Sterling
16. Dele Alli
17. Sergio Ramos
18. Ezequiel Lavezzi
19. Alessandro Diamanti
20. John Stones

1. Which of these current or former athletes do you think has the BEST tattoos? Select as many as you like

Name	%
Alessandro Diamanti	4.05
Andres D’Alessandro	2.35
Anthony Joshua	10.45
Artur Boruc	2.9
Conor McGregor	8.45
Damian Delaney	3.45
Daniel Agger	7
David Beckham	21
Leroy Sane	8.35
John Stones	3.85
Jay Bothroyd	2.95
Greg Rutherford	5.05
Ezequiel Lavezzi	4.1
Dele Alli	4.55
Lewis Hamilton	10.75
Lionel Messi	10.05
Marco Materazzi	2.5
Mike Tyson	5.3
Nigel De Jong	4.05
Nile Ranger	1.55
Stephen Curry	3.35
Sergio Ramos	4.15
Ryan Mason	3.8
Raheem Sterling	4.65
Stephen Ireland	5.05
Tim Howard	4.8
Wayne Rooney	5.45
Zlatan Ibrahimovic	5.55
None of the above	40.1

2. Which of these current or former athletes do you think has the WORST tattoos? Select as many as you like

Name	%
Alessandro Diamanti	20.65
Andres D’Alessandro	17.05
Anthony Joshua	8.15
Artur Boruc	10.75
Conor McGregor	13.20
Damian Delaney	11.25
Daniel Agger	12.20
David Beckham	11.35
Leroy Sane	11.10
John Stones	8.25
Jay Bothroyd	20.45
Greg Rutherford	7.90
Ezequiel Lavezzi	7.90
Dele Alli	8.90
Lewis Hamilton	8.50
Lionel Messi	9.55
Marco Materazzi	8.05
Mike Tyson	23.60
Nigel De Jong	9.30
Nile Ranger	13.55
Stephen Curry	6.50
Sergio Ramos	28.80
Ryan Mason	8.25
Raheem Sterling	17.65
Stephen Ireland	9.40
Tim Howard	16.55
Wayne Rooney	9.95
Zlatan Ibrahimovic	10.95
None of the above	19.70

3. Do you think it’s ‘the norm’ now for athletes to have tattoos?

Choice	%
Yes, definitely	27.40
Yes, somewhat	50.55
No	22.05

4. Do you have tattoos currently?

Choice	%
Yes, multiple	13.90
Yes, one	11.35
No	74.75

5. Have you ever got a tattoo based on the design of one an athlete has?

Choice	%
Yes, many times	12.67
Yes, once or twice	14.06
No	73.27

6. Do you respect an athlete more if they DON’T have tattoos?

Choice	%
Yes, lots	25.50
Yes, a bit	22.75
No	51.75

7. Why do you think athletes tend to get so many tattoos? Select all that apply

Choice	%
They have too much time on their hands	24.10
They have too much money	41.60
They get bored easily	18.25
They see others doing it and want to copy them	33.80
They have more experiences to remember, therefore want to commemorate these with tattoos	13.15
It’s a way of showing off	49.65
None of the above	17.55

8. What do you think is fine for an athlete to get a tattoo of?

Choice	%
Their mum’s name	27.70
Their own name	15.95
Their kit/squad number	22.35
Their own face	8.55
Their team’s logo	23.50
An iconic moment from their career	32.00
A religious script	21.30
Their partner’s name/face	24.60
Their child’s name/face	34.65
Their Instagram or Twitter handle	6.70
A gun	4.05
None of the above	40.05

9. What do you think athletes should NEVER have tattoos of?

Choice	%
Their mum’s name	12.70
Their own name	22.75
Their kit/squad number	14.95
Their own face	33.20
Their team’s logo	17.45
An iconic moment from their career	9.75
A religious script	21.60
Their partner’s name/face	20.00
Their child’s name/face	14.20
Their Instagram or Twitter handle	31.35
A gun	57.65
None of the above	22.05

10. Where do you think is the worst place for an athlete to have a tattoo?

Choice	%
Foot	1.15
Leg	1.95
Crotch	11.40
Hip	0.80
Stomach	2.00
Chest	1.05
Shoulder	1.25
Arm	1.20
Hand	2.35
Neck	4.90
Face	50.80
Backside	3.45
None of the above	17.70

11. If you were an athlete, would you have lots of tattoos?

Choice	%
Yes	8.15
No	71.90
Not sure	19.95

12. Which sport do you think has players with the worst tattoos?

Choice	%
Football	53.45
Rugby	6.30
American football	9.00
Basketball	6.70
Hockey	2.65
Cricket	3.10
Tennis	2.35
Athletics	5.75
Darts	11.05
Formula One	3.50
Fishing	3.05
None of the above	28.40

13. How many tattoos would you have if you were a professional athlete?

Choice	%
0	1.23
1 – 3	6.13
4 – 6	13.50
7 – 10	20.86
11 – 13	7.36
14-16	9.20
17-20	7.98
21-23	3.68
24-26	4.29
27-30	3.68
31-33	0.61
34-36	0.61
37-40	1.23
41-43	0.61
44-46	0.61
47-50	1.23
51+	1.84
I don’t know	15.34
Average	14.4

14. Do you think professional athletes with lots of tattoos will regret them when they’re old?

Choice	%
Yes, definitely	35.55
Yes, somewhat	41.95
No	22.50

15. On balance, do you like athletes more when they have tattoos, or no tattoos?

Choice	%
Tattoos	5.75
No tattoos	46.50
Neither/both the same	47.75

16. How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘I think professional athletes get paid too much’

Choice	%
Strongly agree	42.25
Somewhat agree	29.70
Neither agree nor disagree	23.35
Somewhat disagree	2.70
Strongly disagree	2.00

17. How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement? ‘Professional athletes have a tendency to overdo it with tattoos.’

Choice	%
Strongly agree	38.70
Somewhat agree	31.55
Neither agree nor disagree	25.85
Somewhat disagree	2.45
Strongly disagree	1.45

18. Have you ever liked a footballer or other athlete less after they got loads of tattoos?

Choice	%
Yes, lots	12.60
Yes, one or two	20.30
No	67.10

19. Do you think there should be a limit on what, or how many, tattoos athletes should be allowed?

Choice	%
Yes	28.60
No	71.40

20. Do you think athletes getting tattoos is a trend which will become more or less popular, or stay the same?

Choice	%
It will become more popular	16.40
It will stay the same	33.55
It will become less popular	25.75
I don’t know	24.30