Wojciech Szczęsny has opened up about his nicotine habit. The FC Barcelona goalkeeper talked about it in a recent interview with [The Athletic](https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7479898/2026/07/31/wojciech-szczesny-interview-barcelona-arsenal-smoking/), in which he admitted that smoking was a “terrible” habit, but one he nonetheless was addicted to.
“It might not seem the most professional thing in the world, but I am who I am. People know that I have one addiction that I cannot get rid of,” he said.
Szczęsny even has a chant at Barça in which he is directly referred to as a smoker.
“I’ve never had my own chant before, so that’s already a surprising thing,” he said. “I enjoyed it. I try to be as authentic as I can, and people seem to appreciate it.”
The keeper said one reason that people connect to him may be that he’s open about his addiction.
“I would imagine that a lot of players have certain addictions, whether it’s nicotine or alcohol or gambling, I don’t know. But there’s one player who is quite open about it, and that’s me. And it’s an addiction that I’m not even willing to fight. I embrace it, and maybe it just feels authentic to people.
“People don’t think I smoke because they saw a hidden photo of me from the paparazzi. I admitted to my addiction, and it’s an addiction that a lot of people in the world have.
“People can probably relate to it. I don’t even think about recommending people to take up smoking. I think it’s a terrible thing and everybody should avoid it. It’s a weakness of mine, but I’m fine with that weakness.”
Szczęsny has embraced the truth, terrible as it may be. He even wore a hat that said “smoker” during a trophy parade.