The Weirdest Soccer Games of All Time

Hundreds of shot games person been released implicit the past fewer decades, with the likes of FIFA (now FC), Pro Evolution Soccer, and Football Manager dominating the country for the astir part. But beyond those superior simulations with a existent emotion for the game, determination are besides galore much obscure titles that person deed the pitch. No, not the likes of Ronaldo’s V-Football oregon Mario Strikers; we’re going into a acold deeper niche than that. We’re talking games starring action-platforming heroes, and those calved retired of real-world bitterness. These are the weirdest shot games you astir apt didn’t cognize existed.

Go! Go! Beckham! Adventure connected Soccer Island

Ever find yourself playing Super Mario World and reasoning to yourself, “I truly privation I was controlling English shot fable David Beckham close now”? Well, Go! Go! Beckham! Adventure connected Soccer Island mightiness beryllium the crippled for you. A 2D platformer for the Game Boy Advance, you measurement into the studded boots of the erstwhile Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder to prevention the fantastical Soccer Island from the evil Mister Woe’s reign of terror. He’s transformed each carnal into monsters, and it's David’s occupation to usage his impeccable shot skills to prevention the day. Made by Denki — a workplace formed by David Jones, 1 of the archetypal creators of Grand Theft Auto — it’s bonkers, and, possibly astir surprisingly, not really that bad.

Inazuma Eleven Go

Inazuma Eleven is simply a postulation of RPGs from Ni No Kuni and Professor Layton developer Level-5 that ditches turn-based combat and puzzle-solving for on-pitch action. Each crippled successful the long-running bid could find a spot connected this database owed to each having its ain quirks, but we’ve gone for Inazuma Eleven Go, the commencement of a caller trilogy, and a crippled that sees a schoolhouse shot squad measurement up to instrumentality down the authoritarian “Holy Emperor” and escaped shot from his oppression.

After a decade-long spread betwixt mainline entries, Inazuma Eleven precocious escaped its DS and 3DS situation with the merchandise of Victory Road connected each modern consoles successful 2025. Check them retired if you’ve ever fancied redeeming the world, taking down evil organisations, and time-traveling done the powerfulness of football.

Peter Shilton’s Handball Maradona

Some radical take to forgive and forget. Others take vengeance done pointedly titled software. In 1986, Diego Maradona punched the shot into the nett to nonstop England packing from the World Cup. Just months later, a crippled for the Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, and Commodore 64 was released called Peter Shilton’s Handball Maradona, named aft the English goalkeeper who watched arsenic the legendary Argentinian cheated his mode to glory. Not lone is the rubric funny, but Handball Maradona’s mechanical attack itself is alternatively unsocial among shot games, since you tin lone ever play arsenic a keeper. You don’t adjacent get to play afloat matches, either, but are alternatively shuttled done a bid of preset scenarios that you’ll person to support against, specified arsenic penalties and corners. I’m not definite wherefore you’d privation to play it, but I admit the bitterness it was calved retired of, each the same.

RedCard

RedCard asks the question: “What if you could interruption a subordinate successful fractional and get distant with it successful nonrecreational football?” The reply arrives with a crunch. For the astir part, this PS2, Xbox, and GameCube crippled is simply a mediocre shot sim. But wherever things disagree is erstwhile the referee turns a unsighted oculus to immoderate beardown tackles you whitethorn take to perpetrate that would different spot you get sent off. Throw successful immoderate much arcadey elements, specified arsenic being capable to complaint up a metre that, erstwhile full, allows you to execute peculiar moves similar flying kicks into different player’s skull, and you person a bully dose of silly amusive connected your hands. Plus, the screen implicit present successful Europe featured an enjoyable recreation of Vinnie Jones grabbing Paul Gascoigne by the nether regions. FIFA would never.

Mega Man Soccer

Released for the SNES successful 1994, Mega Man Soccer is technically a sequel to Mega Man 4, and sees Dr Wily’s robot masters from the erstwhile games instrumentality to instrumentality the spot of each the players connected a shot pitch. It’s past erstwhile again down to Mega Man to enactment things close and prevention the athletics that we each emotion from Wily’s evil plans. Along the way, he’ll person to squad up with immoderate of Dr Light’s versions of the robot masters and utilise their peculiar attacks, specified arsenic Air Man’s Tornado Shot and Wood Man’s Leaf Shot, which smartly blend the series’ action-platforming roots with football. Does it each travel together? Not entirely, but it’s a relic of a clip erstwhile Mega Man was overmuch much successful measurement with Mario.

Chris Kamara’s Street Soccer

It whitethorn beryllium borderline unbelievable, but erstwhile upon a time, footballer-turned-commentator Chris Kamara had his ain video game. And it's his vocal talents that helium lends to Chris Kamara’s Street Soccer, arsenic helium comments connected each extremity successful this precursor to FIFA Street. It’s a small, silly five-a-side shot crippled that features out-there locations from astir the world, similar Easter Island and Death Valley, without ever truly giving immoderate crushed arsenic to wherefore teams would play the beauteous crippled there. A fund merchandise for the archetypal PlayStation, it harkens backmost to an epoch of shot games erstwhile it felt similar anyone could get their sanction connected a screen — yes, adjacent you, David O’Leary — but possibly nary were rather arsenic left-field arsenic Chris Kamara’s Street Soccer.

Battle Soccer: Field No Hasha

If you’ve ever dreamed of seeing Ultraman smash a decorativeness past a flying King Ghidorah and into the apical corner, past lad bash I person the crippled for you. A Japanese exclusive, Battle Soccer: Field No Hasha pits squads of immoderate of the country’s astir celebrated fictional characters against each other, with teams specified arsenic the Gundam Warriors, King’s Soldiers, and Super Beasts warring it retired connected the shot pitch. Realism wasn’t the sanction of the crippled present connected the Famicom, but for those who question delight successful seeing Godzilla blasting a shot with his atomic ray earlier sending it toward different kaiju opponent, determination was plentifulness of silly amusive to beryllium had.

Soccer Kid

“At last, football’s reply to Sonic the Hedgehog,” the satellite cried erstwhile Soccer Kid was primitively released connected the Amiga successful 1993. At least, it astir apt did, anyway. A side-scrolling platformer successful which the titular Soccer Kid runs and jumps his mode astir the globe, kicking his trusty shot into foes and treasure chests, it's go somewhat of a cult favourite implicit the years. A highly challenging escapade astatine times — but shouldn’t immoderate ngo to retrieve scattered pieces of the World Cup from an alien pirate beryllium difficult, anyway? — it's 1 of the fewer games, alongside Go! Go! Beckham! Adventure connected Soccer Island, that cleverly uses the fundamentals of shot extracurricular of the transportation itself.

Simon Cardy is simply a Senior Editor astatine IGN who tin chiefly beryllium recovered skulking astir unfastened satellite games, indulging successful Korean cinema, oregon despairing astatine the authorities of Tottenham Hotspur and the New York Jets. Follow him connected Bluesky astatine @cardy.bsky.social.