All the votes have been tabulated and Eden Hazard has come up short in his bid to be the cover star for EA Sports FIFA 17. Borussia Dortmund's Marco Reus won out in the end and will grace the front of the popular video game franchise this year. It wasn't announced where the Chelsea man finished in the voting, but he joins James Rodriguez and Anthony Martial as the others who miss out.
Congratulations to @woodyinho for winning the #FIFA17 Global Cover Vote! pic.twitter.com/qOZkHc6SNq
— EA SPORTS FIFA (@EASPORTSFIFA) July 21, 2016
While it's unfortunate that the Eden didn't win, perhaps it's a blessing in disguise. He's already coming off of a very difficult season, having any added pressure to perform well would be unwanted, I'd think. Then there's always the superstitious side of it. EA Sports cover athletes haven't exactly been very successful of late.
Lionel Messi, who has graced the cover of FIFA the last few years, just got a jail sentence handed to him. Then there's the UFC who had Jon Jones on the cover of their first game (arrested and suspended) and Ronda Rousey and Conor McGregor on their second (both lost for the first time in their UFC careers).
Who knows why he didn't come out on top, maybe it was jealously from all the other Premier League fans voting for the non-PL player. Nevertheless, it could be a good thing.