Wales’s Gareth Bale Finds Loophole in Team’s Golf Ban at World Cup

Welsh soccer star Gareth Bale is a known golf addict, but he’s taken his obsession to a new level at the World Cup in Qatar.

Earlier this month, Wales manager Rob Page announced that he had banned his players from playing golf for the duration of training camp and the tournament. But Bale found a creative way to skirt around the team policy: Apparently the five-time Champions League winner has found access to a golf simulator at the team’s luxury hotel. The virtual golf system, along with other amenities, has been keeping the whole team busy.

“We’ve just been in the swimming pool, playing table tennis, pool and golf,” Bale’s teammate Mark Harris told reporters. “Team spirit is great anyway but games like that help you. Gareth’s very good at the golf.”

Earlier in the month, Page spoke to the media and mentioned the team’s golf ban, which aims to keep the squad dedicated to the task at hand.

“There’s no golf. We’re out there to do a job,” Page said. “In the past I may get Gareth, Kieffer Moore or Aaron Ramsey come up to me and say ‘What’s the plan for tomorrow afternoon? Are there meetings?’ I’d say, ‘No, there’s no meetings, so if you want nine holes then go and play.'”

Clearly, Bale and the rest of the Wales team have found a way to keep grinding on their swings, even if it is screen golf at the hotel.

Bale’s social media is flooded with golf content. The former Real Madrid forward even participated in a campaign with the R&A and Wales Golf to promote the mental and physical health benefits of the game.