During an interview with UEFA for Discovery+ in Sweden, Zlatan Ibrahimovic shared his perspective on sports personalities engaging in political activism.
The AC Milan forward specifically mentioned LeBron James, a prominent NBA player known for his advocacy work such as supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and criticizing former US President, Donald Trump.
While acknowledging his admiration for LeBron James, Ibrahimovic stated, “I like him a lot. He’s phenomenal. But I don’t like when people with a status speak about politics. Do what you’re good at doing.”
He emphasized, “I play football because I’m the best at playing football. I’m no politician. If I’d been a politician, I would be doing politics. This is the first mistake people do when they become famous. For me, it is better to avoid certain topics and do what you’re good doing, otherwise you risk doing something wrongly.”
Following Ibrahimovic’s comments, former American Olympic sprinter Michael Johnson criticized him by saying, “Okay, Ibra… You’re really good at football so you shouldn’t voice your opinion about LeBron using his platform for good. Or your opinion on anything outside football!!!”
Since June of the previous year, LeBron James has been leading a group of athletes focused on safeguarding the voting rights of predominantly black communities.
