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Edgar Davids is an iconic footballing legend. Aside from his footballing skills, he was famous for being one of the few footballers to wear glasses during matches. With the invention of contact lenses and corrective surgery, you might be wondering why he chose to wear glasses.
So, why did Edgar Davids wear glasses? Edgar Davids suffers from glaucoma and underwent surgery to treat it in 1999. He wore glasses to protect his eyes following the surgery.
In the rest of this article we’ll look at some other interesting questions related to Edgar Davids and wearing glasses on the pitch in general.
Why did Edgar Davids wear glasses?
In 1995, following eye injuries, Edgar Davids developed glaucoma; a condition where the optic nerve connecting the brain to the eye becomes damaged. Davids underwent surgery in 1999 and subsequently started to wear protective glasses.
Did Edgar Davids always wear glasses whilst playing?
No. Edgar Davids wore his iconic glasses for the first time on 4th September 1999. He made his first team debut for Ajax on 6th September 1991. So for around the first 8 years of his playing career, Davids didn’t wear glasses.
Which glasses did Edgar Davids wear?
It’s surprising hard to pinpoint exactly which glasses he wore considering they are so iconic. But it seems he wore Oakley Racing Jackets to begin with and at some point switched to a pair of Nike glasses.
Do any other players wear glasses on the pitch?
Players with visual impairments tend to wear contact lenses or have corrective surgery rather than wearing glasses for obvious reasons. Players who wear contact lenses include David de Gea and Christiano Ronaldo.
It’s more rare for players to wear glasses and it’s usually to protect their eyes rather than to purely help their vision. Edgar Davids is by far the most famous glasses-wearing player but he isn’t the only one.
- Alex Song has worn glasses to prevent an eye infection.
- Joop van Daele wore regular spectacles on the pitch and they were once destroyed by the opposion after he scored the winning goal.
- Armand Jurion is another player that wore glasses during matches.
Are there any rules regarding the wearing of glasses on the pitch?
The FA recmommends glasses should have polycarbonate lenses (a very strobng material) and a sports band rather than temple pieces to make sure they are secure.
Other than that, it’s down to the referee to ensure the players are not a danger to themselves or any other player.