Weston McKennie of Juventus applauds his fans during the Serie A TIM match between Hellas Verona FC and Juventus - Serie A TIM at Stadio Marcantonio Bentegodi on February 17, 2024
Credit : Alessandro Sabattini/Getty
Weston McKennie shares his pre-game ritual, including a multi-step beauty routine, to feel calm and focused before matches
The soccer star’s routine includes showering, applying face cream, body oil, hair oil, and chapstick before hitting the field
McKennie says the ritual helps him relax and mentally prepare, following his motto: "Look good, smell good, play good"
What do Chris Martin, Serena Williams and U.S. soccer star Weston McKennie have in common?
They’re big on superstitions and have a series of rituals to boot, especially before performing on the world stage.
The Coldplay frontman brushes his teeth ahead of every concert, Williams would tie her shoes a specific way before matches and, most recently, McKennie shared he follows a multi-step beauty routine before hitting the field.
Prior to joining Team USA for this year’s World Cup, the USMNT soccer star and Chobani Nutrition Ambassador followed a specific pre-competition ritual before every game, though he admits he doesn’t “do it as much anymore.”
“When I’d arrive in the locker room, I would take a shower, and then I would go through this, like, whole beauty routine,” McKennie tells PEOPLE. “I would get out of the shower, and then I would put my face cream on. Then I would put body oil on, and then I would put oil in my hair and put chapstick on.”
He adds, “My coaches before would always be like, ‘What are you doing? Are you getting ready for, like, a runway walk or a modeling shoot? You're out here to play soccer,’ and I'm like, ‘Look good, smell good, play good.’”
In addition to his routine’s beauty benefits, McKennie also shares how meditative the experience is.
Weston Mckennie of Juventus in action during the Serie A match between Juventus and Napoli at Juventus Stadium on September 21, 2024
Weston Mckennie of Juventus in action during the Serie A match between Juventus and Napoli at Juventus Stadium on September 21, 2024
“It was just a calming kind of ritual that I had because, you know, hot water relaxes me, and just, like, being able to take my mind off of the game, kind of and it lets you just be like, ‘Okay, I'm cool.’ he says. “And then whenever you get to the game, you're like, ‘All right, it's time.’”
While McKennie hasn’t revealed if he’ll be following the multi-step routine when he plays for Team USA this summer, the athlete did share his excitement around the growing popularity of soccer stateside.
“It's a worldwide sport loved all around the world, and there's nothing bigger than the game or even the tournaments that we play in,” he says. “Like — the World Cup, you get billions of people that watch it.”