Mario Balotelli strange things". In 2010, he was photographed in the company of two noted Mafia mobsters. Balotelli gained a cult following after joining Manchester City. Manchester City supporters regularly sang a song with lyrics which made reference to his activities. Musician Tinchy Stryder recorded a song in Balotelli's honour, "Mario Balotelli". Balotelli has been the subject of numerous newspaper stories since joining Manchester City; some have been confirmed as true while others have turned out to be erroneous. Within days of joining Manchester City, Balotelli was involved in a car crash. It was reported Balotelli was carrying £5,000 cash at the
Racism in association football were also brought to the attention of the European football governing body UEFA and the EU. In April 2009, Inter's Mario Balotelli, an Italian footballer of Ghanaian descent, was subjected to racial abuse from Juventus fans. They were handed a one-game home fan ban as a result. At UEFA Euro 2012 playing for Italy, he fell victim to monkey chants during a match against Spain. After his move from Milan to Liverpool in August 2014, he was the target of more than 8,000 abusive posts on social media between that time, and by March 2015, more than 4,000 of these