We all know that sportspeople are famously superstitious. Pre-match rituals, preferred positions, mantras, and habits that they believe bring them luck on the pitch are all carefully maintained. While there isn’t much scientific evidence to suggest that any of these superstitions have an effect on their own, psychologically they can help players get into the right frame of mind for the game. The only downside is, when they’re not able to complete their pre-match rituals, it may negatively impact their performance.
The Truth Behind the Lucky Jersey
One of the most popular superstitions is the lucky jersey. Many players across different sports have a jersey number they consider lucky and the color of the jersey they believe they perform best in. As fans, we might feel more confident when we see that our star playing is wearing their preferred green number 27 rather than the teal 42 they wore during their recent dip in form.
Is there any truth to these superstitions? New research from PlayStar looked at how different color jerseys and jersey numbers performed over the 2024 season in other sports to find out!
Are there any patterns, or is it all just wishful thinking?
It’s Red for Luck in the National Hockey League
Ice Hockey is not generally seen as a particularly superstitious sport, but plenty of players have had their own peculiar habits. Joe Niewendyk would always eat two pieces of toast with peanut butter before the game. Brendan Shanahan continued wearing his junior hockey shoulder pads in Detroit and always listened to Madonna pre-game. If you were in the dressing room with Jocelyn Thibault, you’d get used to him pouring water on his head at precisely six and a half minutes before a game!
When it comes to colors, red is the most successful jersey color in the NHL, with five of the top highest scorers wearing it. Despite wearing blue, not red, Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers secured equal top spot with 15 goals.
When it comes to jersey numbers, more players in our rankings are taking to the ice with the number 8 on their backs than any other.
Nine Is the Magic Number in Major League Soccer
Soccer players are famously superstitious. Whether crossing themselves, kissing the pitch, or always wearing the same lucky shin pads, ask any professional player, and they’ll likely admit to lucky pre-match habits.
What do the stats reveal about MLS superstitions? If you’re looking to make the goal-scoring tables, you’d better wear a number 9 shirt. Four players in the top ten were wearing the iconic striker’s jersey, with another wearing 99. That said, wearing a number 20 shirt didn’t hold back the league’s top scorer with 23 goals, Christian Benteke.
When it comes to jersey colors, there’s no clear pattern with black, pink, and red, all worn by two players on the list.
Blue Means Touchdowns in the National Football League
With such big money and fan pride at stake, it’s no surprise that NFL players can be superstitious. The legendary Tom Brady would always wear his freshman shoulder pads issued to him in Michigan in 1995, making his shoulder pads older than some of his teammates towards the end of his career!
When scoring touchdowns, the clear winner’s jersey color winner is blue. It’s worn by half of the top NFL touchdown scorers, including top scorer Derrick Henry of the Baltimore Ravens, who had scored 15 touchdowns by the 22nd of November. The only player wearing orange on the list, Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals, was just behind on 12 touchdowns.
Regarding numbers, there’s no actual pattern other than jerseys with at least one 2 printed on them appear five times on the back of NFL high scorers.
Keeping It Blue in the NBA
If you’re looking for patterns, the basketball results might make you think there’s more to lucky colors than mere superstition.
If the footballers play better in blue, the same applies to the NBA. Half of our top ten field goalscorers play for a team that wears blue jerseys. Green also has a respectable showing, with Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks leading the way with 32.1 and Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtic picking up the third spot with 29.9. Top scorers are spread across ten different teams, and there’s no real pattern to the number they wear ranging from 0 to 77.
So if you’re looking for success on the basketball court, choosing a club wearing blue makes sense.
Navy or Blue Gets You an MLB Home Run
Once again, blue is featured heavily in the top ten tables. This time, it’s baseball, appearing four times on our list of top home run points scorers in the MLB. Blue doesn’t have it all its own way, with navy just behind with three appearances, including on the back of Aaron Judge, the top scorer at the New York Yankees.
When it comes to numbers, it’s hard to discern a pattern, but celebrity psychic Inbaal Honigman thinks there might be significance to Aaron Judge wearing the 99 shirt:
“When we double up any number, it bestows its blessings twice and more. Repetitive numbers are viewed as Angel Numbers in modern spirituality and are acknowledged as empowering messages from the other realms,” she says.
“The number 99 represents the end of a cycle and stands for self-improvement and striving to be better, even the best.”
So if you want to achieve your sporting best, wear a blue shirt, with at least one number 9 on it!
Methodology
Playstar analyzed the top 10 scorers from the MLB, NBA, MLS, NHL and NFL. Data is correct as of 22/11/2024.
