Football shirts facts #2 – The King of Pop in the OGC Nice shirt
Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, whose work is known in virtually every corner of the globe, is not associated with football. However, during his rich musical career, he took part in one rather unusual photo shoot, which slightly changes this picture.
In 1983, shortly after the huge success of the album "Thriller", Michael Jackson took part in a photo shoot for one of the American magazines. During the shoot, which took place on the grounds of his Los Angeles estate, his personal photographer asked him to wear something more casual for a few photos in the garden. The outfit chosen by Michael turned out to be quite unexpected, because the musician returned to the photographer in the shirt of the French club - OGC Nice.
Photographer liked this idea very much and, as he later recalled, there was something special about this shirt, and the large inscription "Olympia" in the middle of the jersey made it even more so. Probably the photographer associated the "Olympia" logo with Mount Olympus, the seat of the Greek gods. Ironically, it had nothing to do with Greek mythology or the power of the gods. Olympia is simply a French manufacturer of… socks :).
In fact, it is not known why the Nice shirt was in Michael Jackson's wardrobe at that time. Looking for information on this subject, I came across two theories of the origin of the jersey.
First one says that the shirt was brought and prepared by the stylist of the King of Pop for one of the earlier photo sessions. The second, presented by the French music journalist Yves Bigot, suggests that this shirt was given to Michael as a gift during one of his concerts in France in 1979. Theoretically, the second of these stories looks quite likely, but there is one inaccuracy in it, which quite strongly disturbs the credibility of the journalist's words. Yes, during his tour in 1979, Michael Jackson had two concerts in France (Avignon on February 29, 1979 and Paris on March 2, 1979), but they were in the first half of the year, which does not match the presence of the sponsor "Olympia" on the shirt. The sock manufacturer did not appear on OGC Nice jerseys until the 1979/80 season.
Credits photo:
- Footdimanche.com, https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0145/5102/3716/files/Michael_Jackson_le_coq_sportif_480x480.jpg?v=1642191657
- No Standing, https://nostanding13.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/wpid-img_20131120_075904.jpg?w=682
