- Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic known for his skills on the pitch and for his extremely confident character.
- From tattooing his spirit animal on his back, to referring to himself in third-person, the player has consistently shown that he has one very big ego.
- Ibrahimovic, who currently has an annual income of $7.2 million at LA Galaxy, is on the verge of becoming a free agent again.
- Here's some examples of his excessive lifestyle.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic's contract with LA Galaxy expires at the end of the year and it is still unclear who will offer the 38-year-old Swedish striker his next loaded contract.
Will it finally be time for some humility and modesty? Probably not. After all, the star player is not only known for his talent on the pitch, but also for his, shall we say, not-so-modest lifestyle.
At the age of just 26, Ibrahimovic became the highest-paid footballer in the world. For his contract extension with Inter Milan in 2008, he received the record sum of $10 million a year.
Ronaldo, Messi, and Neymar have now dethroned him, but with an annual income of $7.2 million, the Swedish footballer is still the best-paid player in MLS history.
Here are some examples of Ibrahimovic excessive and ego-centric lifestyle.
SEE ALSO: Zlatan Ibrahimović scored a bicycle-kick goal so amazing he even impressed himself
He flaunts a giant tattoo of a lion, an animal Ibrahimovic has often compared himself to.
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In 2018, Ibrahimovic took to Instagram to show off a massive lion tattoo on his back. The piece of art is symbolic — the Swedish player has compared himself to the majestic animal on numerous occasions, once telling BT Sport 1 that "lions do not compare themselves to humans" after he was asked to rate himself against other strikers.
Source: Sport Bible
He refers to himself in the third-person.
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Ibrahimovic certainly doesn't lack any self-confidence. One way we know this is that he often refers to himself in the third person.
One of the more memorable quotes from the Swedish striker was when he remembered being offered a trial by Arsenal when he was just starting out in his professional career. Speaking of that time, Ibrahimovic said: "Arsene Wenger asked me to have a trial with Arsenal when I was 17. I turned it down. Zlatan doesn't do auditions"
Source: Goliath
He lived in a luxury hotel in Paris for two years.
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While playing for Paris Saint-Germain, Ibrahimovic lived in a luxury hotel for two years. The suite is said to have cost him $3,346 a night. Later, he moved into his own house, which he rented for $44,622 a month. Since he didn't want neighbors, Ibrahimovic also rented out the two other adjacent homes.
In 2015, the striker also bought a church in Stockholm for $11.5 million, because why not? Ibrahimovic had previously mentioned that he would prefer to live in the Swedish capital over his hometown Malmö because "it feels more international."
Source: CNN
With an autobiography and his own perfume brand, Ibrahimovic promotes himself outside of football.
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Ibrahimovic would have never been satisfied with just his salary, of course. In addition to advertising deals, he has also released his own perfume and published a book entitled "I Am Zlatan Ibrahimovic."
On top of all of this, he plans to have his life story made into a movie at the end of his career, so that his work will outlast him on screen.
Ibrahimovic has long considered himself immortal. In the run-up to a qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup, a reporter asked him who he thinks would survive the elimination round, to which Ibrahimovic responded: "Only God knows that." When the reporter said: "It's kinda hard to ask him," the striker simply replied: "You're talking to him now."
Source: Bleacher Report
He owns a collection of fast and flashy cars.
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Obviously, Ibrahimovic also gifts himself many luxury cars. His impressive collection includes a Maserati GranTurismo MC White Road, two Porsche's, two Ferrari's, and an Audi S8 Quattro. He has also been seen driving a hot-pink Lamborghini Gallardo.
When he played for former club PSG, Ibrahimovic stirred up trouble after parking his car in an area reserved only for staff members as it was located closer to the training ground. The professional athlete didn't feel like walking from the players' car park. When complaints were issued, he decided to park his car in front of the entrance of the staff car park instead, blocking all vehicles from entering and exiting the area.
Source: Daily Mail
The legendary striker has had certain salary expectations that have been difficult to meet.
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When his contract with Paris St. Germain expired in 2016, Ibrahimovic was looking for a new club. While many clubs expressed their interest, they found it difficult to meet his demands.
Ibrahimovic wanted to double his salary and asked for $775,000 per week from his new club, according to the Daily Mail. That would have made him the best-paid footballer in the world again. Instead, his salary ended up being around $258,000 per week.
His behavior off the pitch was also difficult to deal with at times, for coaches and other players. During an altercation with his former coach Pep Guardiola, Ibrahimovic once said: "You are s------ yourself because of Jose Mourinho. You can go to hell!" He allegedly also threw a box full of training gear across the room, saying his coach "had no balls." Guardiola went to say that he regretted signing the player.
Source: Goal
Ibrahimovic had a bronze statue dedicated to him in his hometown Malmö.
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Last month, a bronze structure of Ibrahimovic was unveiled in the player's hometown Malmö, Sweden.
The LA Galaxy strikee was not always rich, though. He grew up in a rough neighborhood in the Swedish city, which is also where he started to play football. He revealed in several interviews that he used to steal bicycles to get to the training grounds, which were further out of the city. "My father had no money to buy me a bike, so I just took one," he said.
Source: BBC
He once chose only himself when asked to put together an all-star football team.
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Ibrahimovic has referred to himself as the best player in the world many times. But not only does the LA Galaxy striker thinks he's the best player, he also thinks that the best team in the world would consist of 11 "Zlatans"— even in goal. In his caption, he wrote""I only have to decide the coach. Maybe will be Zlatan."
He rented an entire square so fans could watch him play at a public viewing.
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Of course, Ibrahimovic also thinks of others. Once he rented a whole public square in Malmö so that fans could watch one of his games on the big screen.
He raised awareness for poverty by tattooing 50 names on his body.
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The striker has also gotten behind good causes. In 2015, Ibrahimovic made headlines when he took his jersey off after scoring a goal, revealing 50 new names tattooed on his body. The names were meant to represent the 805 million starving people in the world, a gesture that was supposed to raise awareness for world hunger in accordance with the United Nations.
While the tattoos were not real, his actions were still courageous. He received a yellow card after his celebration and gladly accepted it.
Source: Bleacher Report