Mario Balotelli will headline a Legends vs Creators Baller League UK match at London’s O2 Arena.
The Italian, whose contract with Genoa expires later this month, will bring his talents to the ever-growing indoor league as part of its season finale on June 12.
GettyMario Balotelli will appear at the O2 Arena on the final night of Baller League UK[/caption]
The 34-year-old will line up alongside Premier League legend Jay-Jay Okocha who dazzled English football fans with his wizardry during his spell at Bolton Wanderers.
The pair will take on the biggest names in content creation led by president of Baller League UK, KSI.
Joining him will be YouTube sensation Chunkz as the duo get set for battle against former Premier League title winner Balotelli.
The event will include two semi-final matches with 1st vs 4th in Baller League UK facing off while 2nd and 3rd will also battle for a place in the final.
The two winners will go head-to-head in a winner-takes-all finale to crown the overall Baller League UK champions.
Two teams that have already booked their place in the final four are ‘Deportrio’ and ‘Yanited’.
Deportrio, who sit top of the table, are managed by Sky Sports pundit and Balotelli’s former Manchester City teammate Micah Richards, alongside Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer.
Meanwhile, Yanited, who will also contest the final four, are led by YouTube star Angry Ginge.
More big names are expected to be announced prior to the finale.
Balotelli’s career has seen him grace the Premier League, Serie A, Ligue 1 and the Turkish Süper Lig.
AlamyKSI ill pair up with Chunkz to take on Balotelli and Okocha at the O2 Arena[/caption]
The striker donned the colours of both Inter and AC Milan winning three Serie A titles and most notably, the Champions League with the Nerazzurri under Jose Mourinho.
A spell at Manchester City saw him pick up a Premier League title and FA Cup before later returning to English football with Liverpool.
However, his time at Genoa appears to be a brief one having signed for the club last October.
Therefore, Baller League UK provides him with the opportunity to put himself in the shop window as he bids to find a new club.
Balotelli will no doubt bring a level of spontaneity to the O2 Arena in line with some of his iconic moments in football.
The Italian is famed for his ‘Why always me?’ moment when he revealed the words underneath his shirt after opening the scoring in the Manchester derby in the 2011-12 season.
It came hours after he had caused £400,000’s worth of damage to his Cheshire mansion by setting off fireworks within the house, causing parts of it to set on fire.
Following City’s FA Cup semi-final win over the Red Devils at Wembley in 2011, Balotelli wound-up Rio Ferdinand and his United teammates.
The striker thrusted the badge on his shirt in the direction of the United fans leading to a melee at the end of the game.
One of his more humorous moments came when he was playing under Mourinho at Inter which saw the ‘Special One’ label him at ‘unmanageable’.
During a Champions League clash, Balotelli was Inter’s only fit striker and had picked up a first half booking.
Mourinho revealed he spent “14 minutes of the 15 speaking only to Mario”, begging him to avoid a red, only for the Italian to get sent off within a minute of the second half kicking off.
