New York’s Mayor Bill de Blasio recently honoured the Italian legend Andrea Pirlo by dedicating a whole day to the midfielder.
The 38-year-old was always held in high regard but this move has taken that appreciation onto a whole new level.
We decided to look back at five of the most extravagant ways sportspeople have been honoured for their efforts:
Alan Shearer has street named after him
Blackburn Rovers fans will forever remember how important former England striker Alan Shearer was in helping them to win their first and only English league title back in 1995.
Shearer was the club’s top scorer notching an incredible 34 league goals to help Rovers end an 81-year run without a domestic crown.
The Newcastle-born footballer was thought of so highly by the club and the town that they decided name a street after him – the forward attended a ceremony in 2015 to unveil the sign for Alan Shearer Way.
Super shiny statue erected to honour David Beckham
Perhaps one of the biggest personalities to emerge from English football in recent times, David Beckham has always undertaken various duties alongside his playing career.
As a brand ambassador for clothing store H&M there were various silver statues presented of the former Manchester United midfielder across various American cities such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
After a decorated career with United winning six Premier League crowns, two FA Cups as well as Champions League title Beckham has since played for other European giants like Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.
Whole stadium named after Diego Maradona
Not just a legend in Argentina, Diego Maradona will arguably be remembered as one of the greatest ever footballers.
The attacking midfielder, who was known for being an incredibly skilful player, enjoyed a glittering club career, which included winning two Serie A titles with Napoli.
Back in his homeland they decided to honour the World Cup and Ballon d’Or winner by naming the home stadium of Argentinos Juniors in Buenos Aires after him.
Monster sandwich created in celebration of Tim Tebow
When quarterback Tim Tebow joined the New York Jets the iconic Carnegie Deli decided the move should be celebrated by naming a sandwich after the Philippines-born player.
In keeping with his bulky frame the ‘Jetbow’ was loaded with roast beef, American cheese and various other toppings, weighing in at an estimated 3.5 pounds.
The 30-year-old, who is a former two-time national champion, later moved onto the New England Patriots before last featuring for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Butcher commemorates Claudio Ranieri’s achievements by naming sausage after him
Everything about Leicester City’s title-winning season had people dumbfounded from the cost of the team assembled to the previous Premier League experience of their manager at the time Claudio Ranieri.
It won’t come as a great surprise then in that absolutely crazy campaign a local butcher decided to name a sausage after him when the Foxes had moved five points clear in the league.
Ingredients which made up the Ranieri included ‘fennel, garlic, chilli as well as a hit of Champions League’.
