Ben Gannon, Premier League Forward, Is a Devotee of Saint Michael the Archangel

(ZENIT News – Porta Luz / London, 04.02.2026) – Born on November 11, 2005, in the small town of Dalry in Scotland, Ben Gannon, a Premier League forward, is, at the age of 20, a devout Catholic and devotee of Saint Michael the Archangel. He gratefully displayed a medal with the traditional image of the beloved leader of God’s hosts, during a recent interview for the BBC Scotland program «A View from the Terrace.» «He protects you and keeps you safe from anything that could take you away from God,» he said.

Like everyone else at different times in their lives, after leaving home to become a Premier League player at just 16 years old, he went through a period in which he began to succumb to various temptations and drifted away from God. «I think the higher the level, the easier it is to fall into the trap of ostentation and social media,» the player revealed.

But today, having regained his faith, this young striker for AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League thanks God for His mercy. «I believe God keeps us humble and grounded, always reminding us that we wouldn’t have any of this without Him. I fully trust God to keep me strong,» he said.

He was just a teenager living far from home, struggling to make his way, when he was injured and discovered that football can be a lonely place. Amid spiritual turmoil, having been raised Catholic, he began a process of returning to God after an intimate moment in which . . .»I felt God calling me and I had an overwhelming need to return to Him,» he confided.

Ben hasn’t had an easy start. After playing just 53 minutes in four games, as a substitute, in this season’s Premier League, he suffered a third serious injury. I was left with my hamstring – the back of my right thigh – «hanging by a thread» on the night of November 2025 when Scotland qualified for the World Cup.

But he’s a young man with character who finds strength in God, because «simply» – he says – after returning to Him he’s been able to «cope better with all these things and know, ‘Oh, it’s not a coincidence!'» he remarks.

Since then, his perspective has changed. Instead of considering his three major surgeries as incidents that have «tormented» him, he sees them as something that has «prepared» him.

Football Isn’t Everything

Reflecting on that certainty, he simply adds: «I don’t know what that something is, but it has made me who I am, the player I am. With each injury I’ve suffered, I’ve dealt with it better each time, and as my faith has matured, it’s become much easier because now I know what’s important.”

«Football,» he affirms without hesitation, «isn’t everything. I’d love to play as long as I can, but if I ever feel like everything around me is getting in my way, maybe that’s simply the plan for me.» «I find it much easier to deal with setbacks because they are no longer really setbacks . They are only part of the plan. When you have God on your side, you know He’ll never forget you, He won’t abandon you,” he concludes.