The Christian faith of Dani Alves

At a recent evangelistic event in Madrid, Dani Alves told 40,000 people how encountering Christ in prison transformed his life. Tim Bechervaise explores the faith journey of one of football’s most decorated players

As a Tottenham Hotspur fan, the Riyadh Air Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid does not hold fond memories. In 2019, it was there that Spurs lost against Liverpool in the Champions League final, and only last month, our goalkeeper had a horror show in 5-2 defeat to Atlético Madrid.

It was therefore very welcome to see it in a different light when it hosted an evangelistic gathering called The Change Madrid. With more than 40,000 people in attendance, it’s one of the largest contemporary Christian events in Europe.

What made it particularly intriguing is that their headline speaker was Dani Alves. It’s not just that Alves is the second most decorated footballer of all time behind one Lionel Messi – having won 43 trophies with teams including Barcelona, Juventus and Paris St German – it’s also his life away from the pitch.

“I spent 14 months in prison, but in prison Christ set me free,” Alves began his message in Madrid. “I don’t know what prisons you may be facing, but Christ will break those prisons and walls.” As sermon openings go, it’s quite the way to capture attention.