These World Cup Crazy Celebs Tell Us How World Cup Crazy They Are

He is rooting for… “Belgium — they’re not the most exciting team but they’ve got a young crop of talented players. You know every time it’s always one of the powerhouse countries who make it to the finals, but I think this year might be the year where one of the underdogs will do well.”
If he can’t meet you for dinner this month, this is why: “I wish I could be fully consumed by World Cup fever but no lah. Ideally, I’d watch all the matches but ’cos I am busy with work now, I would have to give some a miss. But I would check out the timings for the matches that I really want to watch and I will arrange my schedule around it. Like no dinner plans on this day ’cos there’s a match at 8pm or I cannot have PT lessons at 9pm ’cos there’s a match at 11pm. If I really can’t watch a match, I will catch the replays and highlights on YouTube. I need to be in the loop.”
In case you still don’t believe his love for the game… “The craziest thing I did was to skip school for the World Cup finals. I don’t think it was uncommon for kids to do it then. It was the year France beat Brazil three-nil. The match went on till 5, 6am and there was extra time and so I made the most correct and logical choice (laughs). But that’s not the craziest thing I did for soccer. I once climbed into a stadium at night to play soccer with my friends and we got caught by the police but nothing happened to us... thankfully.”

He’s tuned in... to the World Cup: “This is the first time I’m able to follow every match. I think I’ve watched all the 8pm and 11pm matches but not the 2am ones ’cos it’s too late and I have work.”
Love doesn’t have to take a backseat during this period: “My girlfriend seldom watches football but when I’m with her, she will watch it with me. She’s not very interested but she’s okay with accompanying me. If she’s bored, she’ll just play with her phone.”
He’s psychic when it comes to results: “I don’t bet, but my ‘feel’ has been very accurate this World Cup. I think it’s ’cos I’m a real soccer fan and I’ve been taking note of what’s happening throughout the years. Like the Argentina vs Iceland, Portugal vs Spain and Brazil vs Switzerland matches. I was very confident they would end in draws and they did.”
So shouldn’t he start betting? “It’s exactly ’cos I don’t bet that’s why my feel is so accurate. There’s nothing to cloud your judgment. If I’m betting, I’ll take into account a lot of other factors like whether to bet big or bet small, and overthink the whole thing. But I do tell those around me who bet on what ‘feel’. Like I had a feeling Sweden vs Italy would end in 1-0 and it really did.”
And that’s why we’ll be calling him before the finals: “Sure you can call me but I think the finals are the hardest to predict ’cos the players will play on the safe side. And if there’s extra time, it’s even harder to predict. My feeling is more accurate when it’s just 90mins.”

He’s a fanatic, we geddit: “For me, football is more than just a game — it’s life. And that’s why the World Cup is very important for hardcore fans like me. It’s very motivational. When you watch the players sing their national anthems on the pitch, you can feel their pride. Or the countries who are underdogs and get in for the first time, it’s an honour. It’s more than a sport, it’s to show the world what their country can do.”
We’re not surprised he’s a fan of CR7: “I’ve liked Ronaldo since I was 13 and he’d just joined Man U. Now 15 years later, he is still like a beast. He is my idol, I think if I saw him I would cry and shiver.”
But isn’t his friend Kim Lim pals with Ronaldo? “She knows how much I like him, and I’m still waiting for her to surprise me (laughs). I was filming on that day he visited her in the hospital and so I couldn’t go down [to meet him]. Wasted! I couldn’t concentrate on work that day (guffaws).”
All bets are off… sorta: “I only bet on alcohol. And only between friends. I used to bet with money when I was very young. Now I’ve realised how hard it is to earn money (laughs).”
But not all football fans are made equal: “The World Cup is a very serious matter for me. There are a lot of ‘fans’ now who don’t really know soccer but make a lot of comments. When I listen to what they say, I feel like telling them to shut up ’cos they know nothing man. I also have a case of sour grapes when I see some famous influencers who get flown to Russia to watch the matches. I’m like ‘Wah lau, they don’t know soccer. They only know how to dress sexy and take pics (laughs).’ I’m sad but it’s really sour grapes lah (laughs).”

She’s a football wife: “I watch most of the games only ‘cos Glenn [Ong] catches all of them. The TV is tuned to the World Cup All. The. Time. So I’m just sitting there and watching everything. Weeks before it started, he asked me whom I was supporting and I said, “I don’t know, Portugal?” ’Cos I have Portuguese blood (laughs).”
She’s also an Ice(land) girl: “We were at this sports store as Glenn wanted to get a jersey and when I tried on the Portugal one, I was like, “Eh, this is boring” — I have been supporting them the past few times. So the guys at the store were like, “What about Iceland?” I was like, “Iceland is in?!” So I decided to read up on their story and it’s incredible! Most of them aren’t even pro- footballers, like the goalkeeper is a filmmaker and the coach is a dentist. And having been to Iceland, I know how small the population is! So I saw it as a sign and bought their jersey. For their first match, they managed to draw with Argentina, which is a very strong team. And their goalie even saved a penalty from [Lionel] Messi. I think [the goalie] going to remember that for life.
There are more reasons other than football to be a fan: Do I know more about the World Cup then most women? I think so ’cos as I am watching, Glenn would tell me about the players and the teams. I don’t talk to my girlfriends about the matches, unless they watch them too or there are some standout things, like the Iranian team (laughs). They’re all impossibly good-looking! They look like models! (Laughs).”

He has work on his mind: “I like watching soccer, especially the World Cup but I’m not a fanatic, like I won’t lose sleep or let my work suffer ’cos of it. Unfortunately this year, I’m filming so I don’t have the time to meet up with friends to watch the matches.”
He’s a safe bet: “I do bet but with a small wager, like $50. And it’s just to see who wins the entire World Cup. I think my friends all know that I don’t earn that much so they don’t want to ‘eat’ my money (laughs).”
He could have a future career on ESPN: “[My wife] Andrea (De Cruz) only watches the matches if it’s on TV and I’m there. And I’ll have to give her live commentary like, ‘Oh, this fella will score a goal if the ball comes to him’ or ‘Wah lau this referee kayu!’ (Laughs).”