- Joel Muñoz
- Apr 8
- 3 min read
Like Messi: Chinese striker Wu Lei has his favorite drink, yerba mate.
Chinese soccer star Wu Lei has adopted yerba mate as his favorite beverage, influenced by his Argentinian teammates. Sharing a mate before matches has become a ritual, highlighting his affinity for this South American tradition that improves energy and concentration on the field. Mate has accompanied Wu Lei at key moments in his career.
Fans around the world know that their idol Lionel Messi, as well as many other soccer stars in Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil, love to drink mate before stepping onto the field and proudly display their passion on social media.
But mate is also going viral among the world's biggest soccer stars. Argentine Messi, Uruguayan Suárez, Frenchman Griezmann, and now RCD Espanyol's top scorer Wu Lei, the first Chinese player to score against FC Barcelona in any European competition, has caused a stir on Chinese social media by appearing to share a mate with his teammate, Mono Vargas.
Has mate brought luck to the Chinese striker?
Wu Lei has always had a certain influence from Argentina. During the 2008 Olympic Games, when he was just 16 years old, he was the Argentine national team's caddie and had the opportunity to take photos with Lionel Messi and Kun Agüero. But watching his idol Messi, and especially playing with "Monito" Vargas, Wu Lei's Argentine midfielder and teammate at RCD Espanyol Barcelona, has been an inspiration for Wu Lei, who now knows the benefits of a good mate.
Recently, the Asian forward shared a post on his official WEIBO account (a kind of Twitter in China) congratulating his teammate Vargas on being called up to the Argentine national team. The image showed both players smiling in the locker room sharing a mate. This was precisely the day of the match when, two minutes from time, Wu Lei became the first Chinese footballer in history to score against FC Barcelona, tying the score at two goals. A surprising and impressive result that catapulted Wu Lei to the top of La Liga news.
A pleasant coincidence that reminds us that yerba mate has often been considered the secret to soccer players' success.
Wu Lei, from caddy to star
Wu Lei, a young man born in the 1990s, has now become a Chinese football idol, ranking 55th on Forbes Magazine's list of Chinese celebrities. On January 17, 2020, he won the Chinese Ballon d'Or.
After this play against Barcelona, where he also fulfilled his dream of sharing the field with his childhood idol, Messi, Wu Lei made headlines in major newspapers and radio stations. World Sports News described it as a thrilling play, with a perfect finish. The Aspen newspaper even claimed that Wu Lei's goal against Barcelona would be seen by over a billion people.
This player, who is now recognized by thousands of fans in Spain and China, simply admires other great players and teammates with whom he shares the court, and even drinks a good mate in his free time.
However, drinking mate isn't exclusive to star players. Yerba mate, a beverage now considered among the fifty best in the world, has become a custom that brings people together when they share it and enjoy it in their leisure time, amid a time-honored ritual that is spreading throughout the world.