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In perhaps the least surprising clip of last week, UFC star Conor McGregor was seen being an absolutely wild man on the football pitch.

The Irishman full-on body-kicked some dude in the ribs while attempting to volley the ball as he turned out for his pub team, Black Forge FC. ‘The Notorious’ is often involved in various shenanigans with the beautiful game, and recently gave Arsenal fans a heart attack when he decided to ‘play fight’ with their star man, Bukayo Saka.

It remains to be seen whether McGregor is actually any good at football, but it makes sense that UFC icons would be handy on the pitch. They have exceptional stamina, and timing, and know a thing or two about kicking.

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Accordingly, the EssentiallySports team had a root around finding some other clips of UFC stars showcasing their soccer skills worldwide. Come, let’s find out!

Ciryl Gane has a savage boot on him

Ciryl Gane is one of those guys who landed in the deep end of the gene pool. Standing at a daunting 1.93m tall, the Frenchman has style and bags of athletic talent. In one of our favorite clips of UFC fighters being ballers, Gane can be seen absolutely leathering the ball into the top corner.

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Who would win a soccer match: UFC stars or professional footballers? Let's hear your thoughts!

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As a former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion, it’s not surprising that the big man packs some power!

Jose Aldo vs Neymar

Brazil and football have always been a dream combination. Go down to Rio’s iconic Copacabana beach and you’ll see locals doing the kind of tricks with a ball that would make Albus Dumbledore blush. It’s only natural then that one of the city’s favorite sons would be a bit of a magician with a football.

Former champion and arguably the featherweight GOAT, Jose Aldo has got bags of skill and gave us a proper ‘wow’ moment in a charity match a decade ago when he pulled off a frankly outrageous rainbow flick against Brazil’s all-time leading goalscorer, Neymar. What a guy!

Khabib can ‘smesh’ a ball

McGregor’s old pal Khabib made a career out of ‘smeshing’ the life out of his opponents. He was, and still is to be fair, one scary individual. The idea of Khabib the footballer is still an intimidating thought. The man puts 100% commitment into everything he does, and his work ethic has got to be up there with the very best of them.

Now retired, ‘The Eagle’ should have more time to enjoy smashing balls instead of heads—and he certainly has the power! In this clip, we see the Dagestani score a rocket of a goal—very nice ‘brahta!’

Jiri Prochazka can slot them

Jiri Prochazka is a fascinating man. While stories of him spending days on end in a dark room without food are well-known, some may not be aware that the former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion used to be a football hooligan. The Czech fought in big gangs back in the day but has now adopted the principles of his favorite book, The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi.

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Jiri, rocking his patented ‘war hair’ in this clip, showed the calm of a ninja to coolly plant his penalty into the back of the net. Prochazka returns to the Octagon at UFC 311, where he’ll face Jamahal Hill to see who gets the right to have another crack at champion Alex Pereira.

So, it’s clear that the UFC has its fair share of multi-talented fighters—but which of them do you think is best at football?

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Who would win a soccer match: UFC stars or professional footballers? Let's hear your thoughts!

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