Most modern-day footballers fancy themselves as style icons — but the beautiful game has seen its fair share of horrific haircuts in recent times.

Only last week, Antoine Griezmann made the outlandish call to dye his hair pink, earning himself a spot on the list of football’s most controversial chops.

From Ronaldo to Rodrigo Palacio, we take a look at five of the worst haircuts in modern football history. 

Ronaldo (2002)

Legendary Brazilian striker Ronaldo had mothers all over the world cursing his name after the 2002 World Cup.

The iconic No9 led the Selecao to glory with a Golden Shoe-winning haul of eight goals — all while sporting a ludicrous semi-circle shaved into the front of his head.

Many years later, O Fenomeno confessed the thinking behind the trim was to sport a haircut so outrageous that it would divert discussion away from concerns over his fitness heading into the tournament.

What he did not factor in, however, was the millions of children who had tuned in around the world that were now desperate to copy the cut in tribute to their new hero.

It certainly made for an interesting summer in barber shops.

David Beckham (2003)

One year on from Ronaldo’s monstrosity, David Beckham made his own pitch for the decade’s worst haircut by sporting a startling set of braids.

Golden Balls was in the process of trading Manchester United for Real Madrid and at the time was considered a style icon, appearing on the front cover of numerous fashion magazines.

In the eyes of many, the right winger could do no wrong when it came to his flamboyant cuts but this particular chop is something even the man himself regrets.

Speaking to chat show host Graham Norton in 2015, he explained: "The cornbraids were a bad decision!

"It was bad timing as well as I was going to South Africa at the time with England and ended up meeting Nelson Mandela, so that's why I regret that one."

Marouane Chamakh (2013)

When he first arrived in England, Marouane Chamakh had a reputation for scoring goals — but Premier League fans largely remember the Morocco international for his wacky hairdo.

Joining Arsenal from French outfit Bordeaux in 2010, the imposing centre forward failed to hit the heights in North London and managed just 14 goals in 67 appearances across all competitions.

Chamakh hopped across the capital to join Crystal Palace in 2013, but found himself still struggling to find the net or hold on to his thinning locks.

After firing only 10 goals in 66 appearances, the Eagles released him in 2016 and he would next rock up at Championship side Cardiff with his head fully shaved.

That sight sparked genuine shock among supporters but no upturn in performances, with the forward playing two times for the Bluebirds before deciding to hang up his boots.

Rodrigo Palacio (2014)

Viewers at the 2014 World Cup were forced to do a double-take when Argentina striker Rodrigo Palacio entered the field.

A reliable goalscorer for Inter Milan at the time, Palacio also became notorious for the utterly bizarre strand of braided hair hanging from the back of his head.

Known as a rat tail, the feature is primarily associated with rock and punk culture and fell rapidly out of fashion after an initial buzz period in the 1980s.

Nobody briefed Palacio on that however, with his peculiar trim making regular appearances from the bench as La Albiceleste, inspired by Lionel Messi, made it all the way to the World Cup final.

Sadly, Palacio’s finishing in the showpiece was of a similar standard to his haircut as he fluffed a great one-on-one chance before Germany triumphed in extra-time.

Antoine Griezmann (2022)

Flying the modern-day flag for rogue hairstyles, Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann is no stranger to an eye-catching look.

The 31-year-old forward, who was a key part of the France squad that agonisingly finished runners-up at the recent World Cup in Qatar, trialled everything from wavy locks to a top knot in his formative years.

More recently, Griezmann has settled on a buzzcut but is still having plenty of fun dying it a range of different colours.

As if recent bleach blonde and bright green efforts were not striking enough, the ex-Barcelona man sported a luminous pink hair dye for Atleti’s final LaLiga game of 2022 against Elche.

Rest assured the crafty playmaker will be concocting some even crazier styles to show off in 2023, too.