The Mac Allister brothers will face off against each other in the Europa League on Thursday evening, as Liverpool host Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise. It got us reminiscing here at SportsLens about some of the other siblings who have lined up on opposite sides of the pitch, or perhaps even played together, so join us as we take a look at some of the great footballing brothers down the years.
The Best Footballing Brother Duos
Kevin, Alexis and Francis Mac Allister
The ‘Mac Allister brothers’ sound like they could be Glaswegian gangsters in a BBC crime drama, but the two Argentines will line-up against each other this evening at Anfield.
World Cup winner Alexis is one year his brother’s junior, which means Kevin Mac Allister would more than likely be doing the looking after when the pair were left home alone (couldn’t resist the pun).
The latter will attempt to lay a few traps of his own in the Europa League this evening, as Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise make the hop across the channel to face Liverpool.
The siblings have actually faced each other before in their native Argentina four years ago, where their even older third sibling Francis also played. However, the younger two never actually made it onto the pitch that day, so Thursday’s meeting at Anfield is likely to be a touching moment for the Mac Allister clan.
RELATED: Liverpool Vs Union Saint-Gilloise Predictions, Betting Tips, Bet Builder Tips, Odds And Preview
Yaya and Kolo Toure
The Toure brothers are the inspiration behind one of English football’s most intricate, meticulously composed chants, the lyrics to which consist solely of their names.
Yaya once said “they drink to too much” when shown a video of fans chanting it in the concourse at Manchester City, where both him and Kolo shared a dressing room.
The supremely talented sibling duo both rank high as Premier League legends, and featured alongside each other well over 100 times for club and country.
Kolo also came on an 83rd-minute substitute for Liverpool in March 2015, signalling the first of three occasions they faced each other as rivals.
Jerome and Kevin-Prince Boateng
Although technically half-brothers, the Boatengs are one of a select few footballing siblings who decided to represent different nations and international level – Jerome chose Germany, while Kevin-Prince opted for Ghana.
In 2010 the pair made history after becoming the first brothers to play against one another in an international match, but they also lined up on the same side on six occasions for HBSC 2, Hertha Berlin and the Germany U21 side.
Kevin-Prince later admitted the relationship with his brother has often been testy, and it reached breaking point in 2021 when Jerome was found guilty of assaulting a former partner, to which his brother said he wants “nothing to do with him.”
Gary and Phil Neville
This list certainly wouldn’t be complete without mentioning England’s most iconic footballing brothers.
After both coming through the ranks as Manchester United youth players, the pair lived the dream for 13 years together, representing one of the biggest teams in world football side-by-side.
The brothers admit they rarely speak, with a once-a-month update sufficing according to Phil. They will more than likely be remembered for an iconic meeting in 2005, not long after Phil had finally flown the nest to secure a move to Everton.
Speaking years later, Phil said: “It was one of the early games, and I went down the tunnel, and you just think, he’s going to say hello. And he didn’t.
“Then there’s a camera right in front of where the captains are and I thought, ‘typical Gary – he’s playing to the cameras, playing for show’. The minute we went past the camera, seriously, he went, ‘all right Phil, how’s it going?.
“What an absolute idiot. For the cameras, for Sky Sports and his image, he thought, ‘I’m not saying hello to him’.”
Five years later the brothers both led their respective teams out at Goodison Park, but remained business-like in the tunnel as the cameras remain firmly fixed on their emotionless expressions, with both of them trying their hardest to ignore one and other.
Bobby and Jack Charlton
Not many brothers can say they have won a World Cup together, which makes Bobby and Jack Charlton unique footballing brothers.
West Germany’s Fritz and Ottmar Walter are the only other siblings to achieve that feat 12 years prior, but the Charlton brothers never shared a pitch at club level with Bobby representing Manchester United for the vast majority of his career, while Jack is perhaps best remembered as Leeds’ most iconic one-club man.
However, their relationship wasn’t all a glossy, rose-tinted World Cup memory, with the brothers rarely speaking to each other for over two decades.
Their mother Cissie died and Jack accused Sir Bobby of not visiting her before her death. However, the passing of 1966 teammate Ray Wilson in 2018 is said to have allowed them to put their differences aside to attend his funeral.
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