GCSE results day is here and footballers who went on to become Premier League legends have faced their own fair share of exam successes and failures
14:00, 21 Aug 2025
Harry Kane, Frank Lampard and Bukayo Saka in their schooldays
Harry Kane, Frank Lampard and Bukayo Saka in their schooldays
It's that time of year when GCSE results are released as teenagers across the UK will be hoping for top grades.
For many students including young football stars in the making, GCSEs mark the beginning of a promising journey, while others may find the exams more daunting. It's a milestone every youngster crosses on their way to adulthood.
Even the wealthiest and most celebrated Premier League footballers have experienced the nerve-wracking moment of opening that dreaded envelope on results day - although some didn't even sit the exams.
As young people nationwide receive their grades, here we take a look at how some past and present Premier League stars performed in their exams.
Wayne Rooney
Wayne Rooney - Throwback Thursday – Here is a school picture of me when I was 12.
Wayne Rooney was playing for Everton during GCSE exam season(Image: Facebook/Wayne Rooney)
Wayne Rooney was already turning heads at Everton before he was even due to take his GCSEs. Shortly after exam season ended, he scored an unforgettable 30-yard goal against Arsenal while playing for the Toffees in 2002, aged just 16, reports the Mirror.
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His exam results suggest that his life could have taken a very different path had he not become one of the greatest players in Manchester United's history.
The former England skipper readily admits that he left school without any qualifications, attributing this to his increasing commitments with Everton around the time he should have been sitting his exams.
Wayne Rooney aged just 10
Wayne Rooney aged just 10(Image: Mercury Press)
However, he has recently hit back at those who label him as unintelligent. He revealed to BBC Sport: "It's no secret that I didn't even take GCSEs but I think people assume because of that that I'm not educated, which is really wrong.
"I made a conscious effort when I was at Everton and Manchester United to educate myself in a lot of different things, such as black history and religion.
"The reason I did that was because I wanted to hold conversations with my team-mates who are from different backgrounds. That was something I did to help me with my team-mates and help understand how they have been brought up. That's probably something people don't understand about me."
Steven Gerrard
Steven Gerrard revisits his former school Cardinal Heenan High School, West Derby, Liverpool back in May 1999. Photo by Colin Lane
Steven Gerrard at Cardinal Heenan High School in Liverpool(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
When it came to footballing nous, Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard towered above his peers. Like many players who reached the elite level from a young age, England's greatest midfielder of his generation channelled most of his focus towards the pitch rather than the classroom.
But in terms of academic achievement, he struggled somewhat, managing just one C grade alongside six Ds and two Es in his GCSE results.
Yet his leadership qualities were already shining through from an early age, according to Gillian Morgan, his former teacher at Huyton and Roby Primary School who also managed their football squad.
She recalled: "The thing I remember most about him was his ability as a leader on the field. I think he started playing for the school team when he was nine years old and even then Steven was always trying to help others."
Gerrard's academic struggles didn't hinder his glittering career, which concluded with a Champions League triumph, UEFA Cup success, two FA Cups, three League Cups and 114 England caps.
Frank Lampard
Frank Lampard aged 9 collect
Frank Lampard enjoyed a world class education(Image: Mirror Syndication International)
Chelsea legend Frank Lampard proved himself a master of multiple disciplines, shining both in the classroom and on the pitch.
The Coventry City boss attended Essex's most historic educational establishment, the independent Brentwood School, where he rubbed shoulders with future boxing mogul Eddie Hearn.
He secured 12 GCSEs at A* or A grade, including top marks in Latin. Reflecting on his studies of the ancient Roman tongue in a previous interview, Lampard revealed: "I got an A* in Latin, more through application than talent for Latin, I would say. I don't know how I did it. In terms of application, I was quite a good boy at school.
"I wanted to do well, I wanted to please my teachers and my parents back home, and Latin was one I think I probably just crammed in a lot of revision at the right time and managed to get an A*, which everyone is so surprised about!".
Marcus Rashford
Undated handout photo provided by David Horrocks of England and Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford, aged 6, attending a soccer school at his first club Fletcher Moss Rangers in Manchester . Issue date: Friday July 9, 2021. PA Photo. Marcus Rashford used to love embarrassing his coaches by honing his nutmegging skills on the adults even as a five-year-old
Marcus Rashford aged six before he became a football superstar(Image: PA)
Marcus Rashford might now be wishing he'd opted for GCSE Spanish given his move to Barcelona. The England star departed school with nine GCSEs and even remained for A-Levels in Sixth Form.
While juggling both pursuits, Louis van Gaal handed him his Manchester United debut, where he netted twice against Danish outfit FC Midtjylland in the Europa League round of 32.
Despite his impressive performances for United as a student, a source revealed that he remained utterly focused on his studies.
The source revealed: "Marcus is a very level-headed guy and he knows his education is really important. He could have scored 10 goals against Arsenal and it still wouldn't have stopped him coming back into school and working hard."
Bukayo Saka
An event to showcase this year's London Youth Games - UK javelin thrower Goldie Sayers meets kids at Greenford High School
Bukayo Saka (left) in his school days(Image: Ealing Gazette)
Much like Rashford, Bukayo Saka expertly managed to juggle his footballing commitments alongside his academic aspirations. He departed school to pursue his football career armed with an impressive set of GCSE results.
Reflecting on his school days with the Arsenal website: "My mum and dad always encouraged me. They never stopped me from playing football, they just wanted to see a balance and I was also interested in my education.
"I actually got quite good grades, so they were pleased on that side. I got four A*s and three As in my GCSEs, so I did quite well at school. My favourite lesson was obviously PE, but I also liked business studies a lot, I got an A* in that."
Harry Kane
Harry Kane David Beckham Academy
A young Harry Kane (right) meets David Beckham(Image: getty)
It's well known that Tottenham Hotspur's top scorer Harry Kane was a fan of Arsenal in his youth.
However, he was also an academically gifted student who excelled in his GCSEs at Chingford Foundation School, the same school attended by David Beckham.
Mark Leadon, the former head of PE at the school, disclosed that Kane passed all his GCSEs and was a "model student."
Speaking to the East London Guardian, he said: "He was conscientious, behaved himself and was a good all-round sportsman. He never saw himself as a superstar, he just got on with it."
Whether Kane studied GCSE German remains unknown. If he did, it would certainly come in handy now that he's playing for Bayern Munich.
Regardless, he's thriving in Bavaria, kicking off the new season with a goal in Bayern's DFL Super Cup victory over VfB Stuttgart.
Harry Maguire
Harry Maguire (left) being beaten to the line in the 400m race at St Marys Catholic School.
Harry Maguire (left) was also an athletic prodigy in his time at school(Image: St Marys Catholic School / SWNS)
Affectionately dubbed 'Slab head' during England's journey to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup, Harry Maguire has used his head for more than just football. He left school with exceptional GCSE grades.
He amassed a significant collection of A*s and As, particularly impressing teachers with his mathematical prowess.
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Sue Cain, the United defender's former deputy head teacher, once suggested he could have become a proficient accountant if football hadn't been his primary passion.
She remarked: "Harry was such a modest lad. He had his head screwed on even at that age. He did everything you asked him to do and he never questioned why. He was popular, and he was huge."