FC Barcelona’s biggest threat during this weekend’s El Clásico won’t be Karim Benzema or even Vinícius Júnior. The “Drake Curse” has entered the chat (yet again) ahead of Barça’s appointment clash with Real Madrid because his OVO owl will be stitched on the club’s jersey in celebration of Drake being the first artist to hit 50 billion Spotify streams.
Spotify was introduced as Barcelona’s official kit and stadium sponsor earlier this year, so Drake’s OVO placement would seem to be a natural extension of their long-term partnership. The chart-topping artist was understandably excited when announcing the unprecedented feat on Instagram, admitting, “This doesn’t feel real but it is.”
Barça fans were likely more focused on his usage of the laughing and shrugging emojis, though. The “Drake Curse” stems from athletes and teams who count Drake as a fan ruthlessly losing, though the Toronto Raptors’ 2019 NBA championship and recent betting luck in UFC seem to have debunked its chokehold. Regardless, fans are still terrified that the LaLiga giants are now destined to lose to Los Blancos.
“What level of ‘Drake Curse’ could this unlock?” The Athletic UK’s Carl Anka tweeted.
Kelsey Trainor was a little more optimistic, “Maybe the Drake curse is real, but this is a really cool activation where a sponsor and a team are thinking outside of the box on traditional marketing sponsorships. What other artists could be featured in Barca activations with Spotify?”
But Irish airline Ryanair went full savage, resurfacing old photos of Drake in Manchester United and Juventus gear alongside an April 2012 tweet from Drake that said, “Man I just love the sport! I have friends on different teams. Proud of them today. Stop watching man so closely.”
See examples from the “Drake Curse” Twitter frenzy below.
Barca got unlucky #drakecurse https://t.co/HAmmDR53Mo pic.twitter.com/ZfGfNWbxUP
— Ryanair (@Ryanair) October 14, 2022
What level of "Drake Curse" could this unlock? https://t.co/RmWhw323pg
— Carl Anka (@Ankaman616) October 14, 2022
Maybe the Drake curse is real, but this is a really cool activation where a sponsor and team are thinking outside of the box on traditional marketing and sponsorships.
What other artists could be featured in Barca activations with Spotify? https://t.co/Lr714WOMtI
— Kelsey Trainor (@ktrain_11) October 14, 2022
guess they haven’t heard about the drake curse https://t.co/Cth0BBZabE
— PATRIOTS (2-3) (@TakeAShilllPill) October 14, 2022
Drake curse pending
https://t.co/LhU4hLxkrf
— Jamille Antonio Matt (@j4mmaa) October 14, 2022
If Barcelona lose against Real Madrid, we can say it was the Drake Curse pic.twitter.com/kG9vzTjLDb
— Ziad is NOT in pain (@Ziad_EJ) October 14, 2022
We had not yet even finished the international break curse and boom the Drake curse is now with us, sigh pic.twitter.com/UN0LlIWVRu
— J Sinns Jr (@RealTwist12) October 14, 2022
IF we lose on Sunday versus Real Madrid, here’s the perfect excuse..
IF we win, “Drake’s Curse” has no effect on us.
— 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐋𝐄𝐒 (@ChaaliiyKay) October 14, 2022
The Drake Curse… pic.twitter.com/YJBfgy7nlB
— Ziad is NOT in pain (@Ziad_EJ) October 14, 2022
I hope this takes away the drake curse from Benzema and puts on Barcelona pic.twitter.com/RQ3qcpzw6z
— 𝙎
. (@MadridNations) October 14, 2022
The Drake curse right before El Clasico https://t.co/qodCo1VjCh pic.twitter.com/0gYaZ6mtnV
— Amit Zohar (@amitttrmfc) October 14, 2022
https://twitter.com/xavibaII/status/1580799608061501440?s=20&t=krAhCUr5brf3w8aBCib52Q