The death of heavy metal star and Aston Villa fan Ozzy Osbourne has got us thinking of when those two worlds combine and those in music show their love for the beautiful game.
When the Prince of Darkness was not entertaining huge crowds, he was part of one at Villa Park – but the Black Sabbath singer is not the only heavy metal star to have a football soft spot.
We’ve done some digging and picked out seven heavy metal icons who loved their football.
Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) – Wolverhampton Wanderers
No one can accuse Robert Plant of being a plastic when it comes to his love of Wolves.
The Led Zeppelin frontman first went to Molineux in 1954 and, when touring allowed, has been a regular ever since.
In 2009, he was named vice president and songs like Stairway to Heaven, Kashmir and Whole Lotta Love have often been blasted out the Molineux stereo system.
Chester Bennington (Linkin Park) – Ipswich Town
Before the metalheads pick up their pitchforks and come for us, we know Linkin Park is not a traditional heavy metal band, but this connection was so strange that we thought we had to include it.
Despite being born in Phoenix, Arizona, lead singer Chester Bennington came to support a club 5,000 miles away – Ipswich Town.
As to how he became a fan, the club was introduced to him through his dad Lee, who was friends with a Suffolk police officer, Alan Howard.
Lee, also a police officer, was in the UK in the 1990s and went with Howard to Town games, quickly developing a love for the Tractor Boys which he passed onto his son.
Brian Johnson (AC/DC) – Newcastle United
The fact that Brian Johnson used to be in a band called “Geordie” means it is no surprise that he is also a massive fan of the football club.
A supporter all his life, the AC/DC frontman almost swapped the stands for the boardroom in the 1980s when he was asked to invest in the club.
After a chance encounter with Jackie Milburn, the former centre forward asked the rockstar to buy some shares of his beloved club, but Johnson recocked his touring schedule would not allow him to do the job properly.
Johnson passed on the opportunity, but remains a huge fan.
Steve Harris (Iron Maiden) – West Ham United
You only need to look at his bass guitar to work out that Iron Maiden’s Steve Harris is a Hammers fan.
Although he was born in Leytonstone, so should technically be a Leyton Orient fan, we will let Harris off because he trained with West Ham when he was a kid.
He developed a love for the club but gave up playing as his true love was elsewhere. He still plays in his free time though and has his own team, the Maidonians.
Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters/Nirvana) – West Ham United
So this may be more of the more tenuous ones.
But according to some completely legit sources we found on the internet, Foo Fighters frontman and Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl supports West Ham.
Legend has it that during a Foo Fighters tour in the early 2000s, Grohl told VH1 that he was spending so much time in London that he decided to choose a team and plumped for West Ham.
There’s even a picture of him in front of their badge, so it must be true.
west ham united celebrity fan of the day Dave Grohl the foo fighters pic.twitter.com/HZDNjrmDqT
— Boleyn badges the west ham united nostalgia man (@boleynbadges) August 11, 2021
Lars Ulrich (Metallica) – Chelsea
The origin of how Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich became a Chelsea fan is actually not to do with football but tennis.
Lars’ dad Torben Ulrich was a professional tennis player and, on one trip to London for the Wimbledon Championship, the two went to Stamford Bridge on an evening off and the future drum master fell in love.
That was back in 1973 and the Dane has remained a huge fan ever since.
QUIZ: Can you name Chelsea’s top 30 goalscorers of all-time?
Ozzy Osbourne (Black Sabbath) – Aston Villa
Then, of course, there is the iconic Ozzy Osbourne and his love for the Villa.
The heavy metal star grew up around the corner from Villa Park and his love for the club was immortalised in a tifo ahead of their Champions League knockout tie against Celtic. Mega.
Aston Villa Football Club is saddened to learn that world-renowned rockstar and Villan, Ozzy Osbourne has passed away.
Growing up in Aston, not far from Villa Park, Ozzy always held a special connection to the club and the community he came from.
The thoughts of everyone at… pic.twitter.com/lcyBomOdxq
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) July 22, 2025
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