13 fun facts about Alisson Becker

Alisson comes from a footballing family. His father and grandfather were both amateur goalkeepers in his home town, Novo Hamburgo (translation: New Hamburg), and he was understudy to his older brother Muriel at Internacional. His brother is currently a professional goalkeeper for Cypriot Club AEL Limassol. One can say goalkeeping runs in his blood.

Becker started his journey at Internacional aged 10 in 2002 and made his senior debut in 2013. The former AS Roma goalkeeper was a backup to his brother Muriel and finished his first season with six appearances. The goalkeeper had to fight for being the first choice.

One such competition he faced was against former Brazilian international Dida. In 2014/15, the two-time UEFA Champions League winner had a stint with Internacional where Alisson was trying to establish himself as the number one.

Alisson was nicknamed German during his time at Roma by his teammates due to his birth place in Brazil. Born in Novo Hamburgo, a city reportedly founded by German immigrants in the 18th century, Alisson's father, Jose Agostinho, speaks German, as does his grandmother. "In my region, there are plenty of reminders of Germany: the architecture, the culture, the holidays - we even have a huge Oktoberfest," said Alisson.

Despite the nickname and the German influence while growing up, Alisson speaks no German himself.

In 2018, after two very successful seasons at AS Roma, Liverpool poached the Brazilian goalkeeper for a record fee of £66.8 million, the highest number at the time. He overtook the transfers of Ederson (most expensive in pound sterling) and Gianluigi Buffon (most expensive in Euros).

However, the record didn't stand for long. Chelsea broke the record just four weeks later when they signed Kepa Arrizabalaga for a reported £71.6 million (€80 million) from Athletic Bilbao.

Alisson helped the Reds win their sixth UCL title in his first season at the club. The Brazilian made a visible difference and kept a cleansheet in the final against Tottenham Hotspur. He was key in Liverpool reaching the finals, producing some astonishing saves against Barcelona in the semi-final.

For his astonishing performances with Liverpool, helping the Merseyside Reds win the UCL in his first season at the club, Alisson was named the best goalkeeper in the world by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics in 2019.

In 2019, he was also the recipient of The Best FIFA Goalkeeper and won the inaugural Yashin Trophy.

Alisson kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the Premier League in 2019 with 21, despite the Reds losing out on the title to Manchester City. The Brazilian also kept more clean sheets than any other goalkeeper in the Champions League.

That meant Alisson had collected two Golden Glove awards and that tally was increased to three at the Copa America. Brazil didn't concede a goal in their five games, meaning that Alisson collected another golden glove.

This made the Brazilian the first goalkeeper in football history to win three separate Golden Glove awards in a single season.

The Brazilian's impact at Liverpool was reflected in his numbers as well. Alisson was named the best goalkeeper in the Premier League in both the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons and won the Golden Glove award for keeping the most clean sheets in the league in back-to-back seasons.

Alisson is integral to Brazil's success as well. He was an important part of the team that won the Copa America in 2019 and 2021, ending both tournaments with the most clean sheets. Becker was honoured with the Best Goalkeeper Award for his performances at the 2019 Copa America.

While the Brazilian has made a name by denying goals, he also has a goal to his name for Liverpool, becoming the only goalkeeper in Liverpool's 129 year history to score a goal. In 2021, Liverpool were chasing a top four spot when Alisson scored an incredible injury time winner against West Brom with a header from Trent Alexander-Arnold's corner.

Alisson became the sixth goalkeeper to score in the Premier League.

Alisson is a goalkeeper by profession but is a musician in his leisure time. He knows more than a thing or two about music and playing the guitar. There are videos of him singing and playing the guitar and he can be seen doing so, if you take a look at his Instagram profile.

The goalkeeper usually takes the instrument with him and has even made an appearance on a Brazilian talk show called ‘The Noite with Daniel Gentili’, where he performed for the audience.

If he gets time off, he likes nothing better than to sit back with his rod and tackle. "I love fishing," he said. "When I was younger I always used to go with my dad and my friends. Whenever I go on holiday to Brazil, I try to take three or four days to go fishing with my mates." He often partnered Lazio's Ciro Immobile at Fregene – a coastal town not far from Rome for fishing.

Among important facts about Alisson Becker is that he and his wife, Dr. Natalia Loewe Becker, have been WHO (World Health Organization) goodwill ambassadors for health promotion.

The WHO director general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the appointments at the 72nd World Health Assembly in Geneva and gave a speech saying, “Each of our new ambassadors are champions in their own right. From helping their communities rebuild and develop sustainably, to fighting for better mental health and wellbeing, to being role models for healthier living.”