# Contact Sports & Wearing Glasses **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [April 8, 2009, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410 "2009-04-08T17:59:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/1 "2009-04-08T17:59:47Z")
During a visit to the optician this afternoon, I happened upon a magazine article concerning the Dutch footballer Joop van Daele. The Feyenoord defender apparently wore glasses on the field of play. Apparently, during the second leg of the Intercontinental Cup in 1970, Oscar Malbernat of Estudiantes removed van Daele’s spectacles, threw them on the grass and trampled on them. Whether Joop had a spare pair available to him is not recorded, but the broken glasses are now exhibited in the club museum. I have found evidence of other isolated examples of spectacle-wearing footballers, including goalkeeper J F Mitchell who wore them during his entire career, and who was capped for England in 1925. If anyone is aware of any other participants in a contact sport who wore glasses, and who played the game at a high level, then please let me know. The later the example, the better. Many thanks. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/2 "2009-04-08T18:12:34Z")
Bob Griese, quarterback for the Miami Dolphins 1967-1980. “1977 was a rebound year for both Griese and the Dolphins. Bob began to wear eyeglasses on the field, revealing for the first time that he had always been legally blind in his right eye. His passing statistics soared when he donned the spectacles.” > **[Bob Griese](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Griese)** > > Rob Allen Griese (/ˈɡriːsi/ GREE-see; born February 3, 1945) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback for the Miami Dolphins of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL). He earned All-American honors playing college football with the Purdue Boilermakers before being drafted in 1967 by the Dolphins of the AFL. Widely regarded as one of the greatest quarterbacks of the 1970s, Griese led the Dolphins to a then record three consecutive S... ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/3 "2009-04-08T18:45:40Z")
[Chris Sabo](http://www.dattanadkarni.com/documents/lens/lens-8.jpg) wore goggles/glasses when he played. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/4 "2009-04-08T18:57:16Z")
Here are some: > **[Annibale Frossi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annibale_Frossi)** > > Annibale Frossi (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-small{font-size:85%}.mw-parser-output .reference-text .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-small{font-size:100%}Italian pronunciation: \[anˈniːbale ˈfrɔssi\]; 6 July 1911 – 26 February 1999) was an Italian football manager and player, who played as a forward. > Frossi is perhaps best known for wearing correctional glasses during his playing years after suffering from myopia from when he was a... > **[Brandon Burlsworth](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandon_Burlsworth)** > > Brandon Vaughn Burlsworth (September 20, 1976 – April 28, 1999) was an offensive lineman for the Arkansas Razorbacks football team from 1995 to 1998. He joined the team as a walk-on and eventually became an All-American. > Burlsworth graduated in 1994 from Harrison High School, where he was an All-State selection and volunteer walk-on football player to the University of Arkansas, despite having scholarship offers from smaller universities. After he redshirted his first year (1994), he transform... > **[Geoff Blethyn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoff_Blethyn)** > > Geoffrey Russell Blethyn (born 28 October 1950) is a former leading Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the Victorian Football League (VFL), Claremont in the Western Australian Football League (WAFL) and Port Adelaide in the South Australian Football League (SANFL). > The son of Oliver Blethyn (1910-2004), and Honor Evelyn Blethyn (1917-2000), née Searle, Geoffrey Russell Blethyn was born at Moreland, Victoria on 28 October 1950. > A full-forward, Blethyn had a slim frame and... > **[Armand Jurion](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armand_Jurion)** > > Armand Joseph Jurion (born 24 February 1937), nicknamed Jef, is a Belgian former professional footballer who played for the Belgium national team from 1955 to 1967. Jurion spent most of his club career at R.S.C. Anderlecht where he won nine championship titles and one Cup and was awarded two Golden Shoes. He played in the match Belgium-Netherlands in 1964 with ten teammates from the Anderlecht team after the substitution of goalkeeper Delhasse by Jean-Marie Trappeniers. > "Jef" began to play at ... > **[Ray Nitschke](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Nitschke)** > > Raymond Ernest Nitschke (December 29, 1936 – March 8, 1998) was an American professional football player who spent his entire 15-year career as a middle linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) with the Green Bay Packers. Enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1978, he was the anchor of the defense for head coach Vince Lombardi in the 1960s, leading the Packers to five NFL championships and victories in the first two Super Bowls. > Nitschke was born in Elmwood Park, Illinois, the... ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2009, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/5 "2009-04-08T22:50:33Z")
Simply because of his presence on significant teams while I was growing up and first getting into sports, I always think of [Horace Grant](http://www.nba.com/playerfile/horace_grant/index.html) when I think athletes with glasses. Nowadays it’s either contacts or laser surgery almost exclusively. ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/6 "2009-04-09T13:53:47Z")
> [@Chez\_Guevara](#): > > If anyone is aware of any other participants in a contact sport who wore glasses, and who played the game at a high level, then please let me know. The later the example, the better. > > Many thanks. Slightly surprised you’re not aware of [Edgar Davids](http://www.soccertimes.com/oped/2003/mar07.htm), though it’s slightly unclear as to whether he simply wears them for protection from further exacerbating his glaucoma, or needs them for good vision but cannot wear contacts due to his glaucoma. The linked article also refers to Willam Gallas wearing glasses, but since it refers to him as a Chelsea striker (the “Chelsea” was accurate when written, “striker” less so) its veracity is somewhat questionable. ETA: of course, neither of these examples are “glasses” in the traditional sense, being specially designed plastic goggles, so perhaps you excluded them for that reason. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/7 "2009-04-09T14:01:11Z")
Kurt Rambis? ---
**Author:** ![ColonelDax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@ColonelDax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColonelDax)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/8 "2009-04-09T14:14:24Z")
> [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](#): > > [Chris Sabo](http://www.dattanadkarni.com/documents/lens/lens-8.jpg) wore goggles/glasses when he played. [Ryne Duren](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryne_Duren) was another glasses-wearing baseball player, as was [Jim Konstanty](http://www.oldbaseball.com/hom/jim_konstanty2.jpg) of the “Whiz Kid” Phillies. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/9 "2009-04-09T15:56:01Z")
Well, the first pro basketball superstar in the US was George Mikan, whose glasses were his trademark. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2009, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/10 "2009-04-09T15:58:04Z")
> [@Dead\_Cat](#): > > …of course, neither of these examples are “glasses” in the traditional sense, being specially designed plastic goggles, so perhaps you excluded them for that reason. That’s the reason. However, not associating goggles with glasses is probably an error on my part. Eyewear technology has moved on since the days of Joop van Daele and if he was around now I dare say he’d be wearing goggles along with the others. For one thing they are less likely to come off, and for another they are not as potentially injurious to either the wearer or to other players. [Here](http://www.sportgeschiedenis.nl/userfiles/VanDaeleG1.jpg) is a photo of van Daele, complete with spectacles. Regrettably, I can’t find one of J F Mitchell. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/11 "2009-04-10T01:57:56Z")
These are not recent athletes but [Kareem Abdul Jabbar](http://three19.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/kareem-abdul-jabbar-my-one-big-shot-02-af.jpg) wore goggles. Not sure if they were prescription though. [Joe Lavender](http://caimages.collectors.com/psaimages/183/81890693/151%20Lavender_original.jpg) was a defensive back for the Redskins who wore glasses. I am sure there are many athletes in contact sports who wear contacts. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/12 "2009-04-10T02:53:55Z")
According to Wikipedia, [Al Arbour](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Arbour) was the last NHL player to wear eyeglasses on the ice. [Here’s](http://www.fansedge.com/Images/Product/33-96/33-96564-F.jpg) a picture of him playing without a helmet but with the specs. Another bespectacled baseball player was [Darrell Porter](http://redbirdnation.blogspot.com/porter272x300.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/13 "2009-04-10T03:52:37Z")
Kent Tekulve of the Pittsburgh Pirates. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/14 "2009-04-10T06:58:37Z")
[Nate Robertson](http://americajr.com/entertainment/parade/nate_robertson300dpi.jpg) wears glasses, but is baseball even considered a contact sport? Is soccer, for that matter? ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2009, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/15 "2009-04-10T15:57:49Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#): > > Is soccer, for that matter? How on earth could it be otherwise? ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2009, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/16 "2009-04-14T16:12:21Z")
> [@Chez\_Guevara](#): > > That’s the reason. > > However, not associating goggles with glasses is probably an error on my part. Eyewear technology has moved on since the days of Joop van Daele and if he was around now I dare say he’d be wearing goggles along with the others. For one thing they are less likely to come off, and for another they are not as potentially injurious to either the wearer or to other players. > > [Here](http://www.sportgeschiedenis.nl/userfiles/VanDaeleG1.jpg) is a photo of van Daele, complete with spectacles. Regrettably, I can’t find one of J F Mitchell. Thought so. I believe that when I first started playing football (soccer) around 1993 or so, it was permitted for players to wear glasses if they secured them with a strap round the back of the head. But I’m almost certain that wearing them now would not be allowed - given that the current rules of our league do not even allow a wedding ring with protective tape around it, I can’t see traditional glasses going down well. There’s just way too much risk of injury for the wearer and other players. I can’t imagine any rugby player has ever worn ordinary glasses, and I’m amazed American Footballers have - even as a quarterback, you’d have to have a _really_ good defence to avoid problems. > [@BlankSlate](#): > > [Nate Robertson](http://americajr.com/entertainment/parade/nate_robertson300dpi.jpg) wears glasses, but is baseball even considered a contact sport? Is soccer, for that matter? I’m not sure that baseball is a contact sport, contact between the players is certainly not an integral part of the game as it is with football, say. I was always taught that basketball is a non-contact sport, for the same reason. But heavy contact between players can certainly occur in these sports. Soccer is certainly a contact sport - “sholuder-charging”, for example, is specifically allowed in the laws. Also, even a clean tackle normally involves indirect contact between players (with the ball in between). Competing for a header is another example. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2009, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/17 "2009-04-14T19:12:26Z")
[Kurt Rambis.](http://lakers.topbuzz.com/gallery/v/kurt-rambis/rambis5ki.png.html) Played for the LA Lakers. I’m not sure when he retired, but based on the length of the shorts in that photo, it was in the 80’s. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Sensitive](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/58956e/32.png) [@Darth\_Sensitive](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Sensitive)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2009, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/18 "2009-04-14T19:26:04Z")
I’d say that basketball is a contact sport. There’s the “banging” in the post, hand checks, blocks, charges, and screens. It isn’t as physical as soccer, which is a contact sport, but I’d say it counts. Baseball is on the line, but in my opinion, the non contact side. Hockey, rugby, and football - those are _collision_ sports! ---
**Author:** ![Quercus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/7ab992/32.png) [@Quercus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus)\ **Post date:** [April 15, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/contact-sports-wearing-glasses/492410/19 "2009-04-15T13:47:40Z")
> [@Darth\_Sensitive](#): > > I’d say that basketball is a contact sport. There’s the “banging” in the post, hand checks, blocks, charges, and screens. It isn’t as physical as soccer, which is a contact sport, but I’d say it counts. Having played both, I think basketball is more of a contact sport than soccer. Given the OP, perhaps the best way to put it is that I can’t recall seeing any professional soccer players wearing [mouthguards](http://www.sportsofboston.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/070208_james_posey.jpg) in team colors.