1) Pep Guardiola
2) Any bald
football coach
The term "bald fraud" is jokingly used among
football fans to describe bald coaches, especially if they have exhibited signs of fraudulence.
The term originated on Reddit, specifically the subreddit r/soccer, and was originally addressed to Pep Guardiola.
The rival manager José Mourinho claimed in 2014 that Guardiola was bald because he didn't enjoy his job and was constantly stressed. "When you enjoy what you do, you
don't lose your hair. Pep Guardiola is bald. He doesn't enjoy
football." Mourinho made that remark in jest, as he often does with other managers.
Guardiola was known to be a control freak at his clubs, and sometimes appeared to be in distress, although that was just his management style. The "fraud" part also came from the fact that he (at the time) hadn't been able to replicate his success with Barcelona with his subsequent clubs, despite spending millions on transfers.
Guardiola later won big with Manchester City, but the
meme still stuck.
It has since been applied to other bald managers who have exhibited fraudulent behavior.
Example of fraudulence include:
1) Losing an important game (Guardiola vs Ancelotti in 2022 and 2024)
2) Underperforming (Ten
Hag)
3) Achieving results that feel undeserved by playing ugly
football or low possession (Allegri)
Managers who have been defined as bald frauds:
Jorge Sampaoli
Max Allegri
Erik Ten Hag
Maurizio Sarri
Stefano Pioli
Zinédine Zidane
Luciano Spalletti