Rhino Factoids: Blur on the Pitch

19 years ago today, Damon Albarn of Blur took to the soccer field to raise money for charity, and although he was a bit wobbly at first, he nonetheless walked away victorious.

The Music Industry Soccer Six competition is, for lack of a better point of comparison, a bit like charity softball games here in America, with UK artists battling against each other for a good cause, but given how serious the sport is taken on that side of the Atlantic, you can bet that the winners held their victories over the losers’ heads for quite some time.

In 1997, Albarn’s competition included Robbie Williams, Mark Owen, Iron Maiden, the Levellers, the Lightning Seeds, Shed Seven, and Stereophonics, all of which we can assure you were very big at the time in the UK, even if you don’t necessarily have any idea who some of them are. When Albarn first took the field, he was reportedly a bit worse for wear from Chelsea having won the F.A. cup the night before (if you know his fandom for the team, then you know this story checks out), but he managed to pull it together before long and found his way to victory, defeating the Levellers 4-1.

It was a win for charity, a win for Albarn, and a win for Britpop. Not bad for a day’s work.