Rewind to the 2022 UEFA Champions League. It’s the second leg of the semifinal clash between Real Madrid and Manchester City at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, Madrid’s home. City scored a late goal, giving it a 5-3 advantage on aggregate. But Real Madrid switched into another gear as the whole of Santiago Bernabeu was on the edge of their seats. Madrid scored three goals in five minutes—a comeback for the ages. While all this was happening, guess where lifelong Real Madrid fanboy Carlos Sainz was? At a promotional photoshoot.

Ferrari isn’t known for its strategies. It’s not. But as furious as Sainz may have gotten because of his team’s on-track strategy blunders, this off-track planning was inexcusable. He was forced to miss this final six minutes of the game—the period when all of Madrid’s goals came. But as unhappy as he was to miss the comeback, Madrid’s victory made up for it. A year later, another Madrid-affiliated happening would’ve made his day at the Brazilian GP.

Carlos Sainz got to meet a Real Madrid legend at the Brazilian GP

Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite, or Ricardo Kaka—or just Kaka, as he’s widely known—is one of the most well-known soccer players in the history of the sport. The Brazilian rose to fame in Sao Paulo even before he was 20. He became a World Cup winner with Brazil as a teenager! That’s how good he was. Seeing his talent, AC Milan snatched him up. After spending six seasons with the Italian team, he went to Real Madrid. You can see how he’s of interest to Carlos Sainz, then.

Before we talk about Carlos Sainz, Kaka hasn’t been a stranger to Formula 1. Seven years ago in 2016, when F1 came to Brazil, Kaka welcomed then-Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. As part of an event in partnership with Santander (a Ferrari sponsor), the three of them competed in a special Santander challenge. Now, in 2023, Kaka competed in another (friendly) challenge with Sainz.

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The Spanish driver couldn’t have asked for a better welcome to Brazil than by someone he’s looked up to. Kaka made his way to the Ferrari garage at Interlagos and couldn’t help but play a few rounds of keepie-uppies with Sainz. Ferrari posted the exchange on Instagram, writing, “When @carlossainz55 met @kaka ⚽️🤝” Kaka even said at the end of the video, “Well, I think we have a football player here.” Oh, wouldn’t Sainz have loved to hear that!

Diehard Real Madrid Fan Carlos Sainz Receives a Prestigious Award To Cherish for a Lifetime

Speaking of Brazil and soccer, Sainz may have made another F1 driver—more specifically, one of his best friends—a die-hard fan, but not of Real Madrid. 

Sainz probably inspired Lando Norris to restart watching soccer

Remember when Sainz and Lando Norris were teammates at McLaren? More than rivals, the two became very close friends who loved spending time with each other off-track. Sainz literally influenced Norris’ love for golf. The 23-year-old went from calling golf the most boring sport ever to stating how it’s the sport he loves most outside of F1. Looks like Sainz has had the same effect on Norris when it comes to soccer.

While Norris used to be a Manchester United fan as a kid, he never really got back to watching the sport. But for the past couple of years, Brazilian soccer has interested him quite a lot. In 2021, he went to Sao Paulo club Palmeiras’ game, and they won 4-0. He posted a picture of himself at the stadium and wrote, “4-0 win last night. I’m number 4. It wasn’t a coincidence @palmeiras” Last year, the Brit became their lucky charm once more as he supported them and they won 2-1. This year, in the build-up to the Brazilian GP, Norris was asked what he likes about Brazil. He said, “Out of the few things that I have done, which is coming here, or going to support Palmeiras, I’ve really enjoyed all my moments here.” 

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Carlos Sainz really seems to have expanded Norris’ range of sports interests. After doing so, he also fulfilled a dream every Real Madrid fan would have. Do you think Sainz can convert this impressive soccer form into F1 form on track this weekend?