Soccer Legend Gerard Piqu�� Busts in High Stakes Poker Tournament at EPT Barcelona
A familiar face arrived at Casino Barcelona, eager to challenge some of the world��s top poker players at the PokerStars European Poker Tour stop in Barcelona.
Soccer legend Gerard Piqu�� took his seat in a �20,000 buy-in tournament, joining a star-studded field that included Poker Hall of Famer Erik Seidel, triple crown winner Mike Watson, and 2024 WSOP Main Event third-place finisher Niklas Astedt.
Piqu�� is no stranger to the felt, having played at the World Series of Poker and other EPTs. However, the World Cup winner fell below his usual high standards this time around.
Piqu�� Runs into Kings at EPT Barcelona
PokerNews live reporter Patrick Cole was on the scene to capture Piqu��'s bust-out hand. Here's how he reported the action:
In Level 8, where the blinds were 1,000/2,500/2,500 big blind ante, the action folded to Gerard Piqu��, who raised from the small blind to 5,000. Jules Dickerson made it 16,000 from the big blind.
Piqu�� took a moment before four-betting all in for around 80,000. Dickerson quickly called as the covering stack.
Gerard Piqu��: 2?2?
Jules Dickerson: K?K?
Piqu�� needed to find a deuce to stay alive, but the K?10?8? flop gave Dickerson top set and left Piqu�� drawing to runner-runner quads. His exit was confirmed on the 6? turn, and the 10? river was merely a formality for the former FC Barcelona star. He tapped the table and departed the tournament area.
EPT Barcelona �20,000 No-Limit Hold'em Live Updates
Piqu��'s Poker Playing Past
In 2014, Piqu�� made an appearance at the WSOP in Las Vegas, although his first recorded poker cash came in 2011.
"I love to compete in many situations and like to compete against the best players in anything, in this case, poker," he told PokerNews in 2016. "So when I sit down at a table and know some of the players, and I know them because they are really good players, I really enjoy it.��
In 2019 he finished second for �352,950 in a �25,000 Single-Day High Roller. Former teammate Arturo Vidal joined him in the same event.
Piqu�� was back at the EPT poker tables three years later, trying his luck in Prague's �50,000 EPT Super High Roller. He fired two bullets into the event but fell short of making the paid places.
The following year, Piqu�� was back in poker streets in Barcelona, notching a sixth-place finish in the series' �50,000 Super High Roller Second Chance for �65,000.
While Piqu�� missed out on turning a profit today, he'll have plenty of opportunities to add to his $738,611 in live earnings with the host of High Rollers pencilled in at EPT Barcelona.
In this Series
- 1 NAPT, EPT and Women's Winter Festival Up for Grabs With Power Path in October
- 2 Complete Guide to EPT Barcelona 2024 - Everything You Need to Know
- 3 PokerStars Announces Game Integrity Rule Changes at EPT Barcelona
- 4 WSOP Main Event Final Tablist Boris Angelov's Banner Summer Continues at EPT Barcelona
- 5 Steve O'Dwyer Outlasts the Field Into the Early Hours to Win the �12,300 PokerStars Cuatro Knockout
- 6 European Poker Tour (EPT)'s 20th Anniversary: Looking Back at the First Ten Years
- 7 Soccer Legend Gerard Piqu�� Busts in High Stakes Poker Tournament at EPT Barcelona
- 8 Kayhan Mokri Gets His Second EPT Barcelona Title in the �20,000 No-Limit Hold'em
- 9 O'Dwyer Hits a Royal Flush as Kaverman Takes Down EPT Barcelona �25K
- 10 PokerStars & Gerard Piqu�� Dish Out Amazing Prizes at Silver Pass Meet-Up in Barcelona
- 11 Tapas, Beaches & Street Art: Top Non-Poker Things to Do at EPT Barcelona
- 12 Jean-Noel Thorel Wins Super High Roller Warm-Up (�512,370)
- 13 Diego Beirigo Wins �550 Estrellas Cup (�155,840)
- 14 Seth Davies Ready to Ride Momentum at EPT Barcelona Fresh Off SHRB Win
- 15 First EPT Champion Alexander Stevic is Back in Barcelona Where He Won it All in 2004
- 16 European Poker Tour (EPT)'s 20th Anniversary: Looking Back at the Past Ten Years
- 17 PokerStars' Cedric Billot Looks Back at His Two-Decade Love Affair with the EPT
- 18 Berthold Winz Dominates Final Table En Route to Estrellas Poker Tour High Roller Victory
- 19 David Dongwoo Ko Overcomes Legends to Win EPT Barcelona �5,200 8-Game (�37,750)
- 20 Leonard Maue & Nick Petrangelo Chop Up �50,000 Super High Roller Second Chance
- 21 Gergo Nagy Turns Four Big Blinds into �268,600 at EPT Barcelona
- 22 This Chess Grand Master Gets His Third EPT Title with �25K Triumph
- 23 PokerStars Ushers in a New Era of Women's Poker with Women's Winter Festival
- 24 Honeymooner Murilo Milhomen Crowned EPT Barcelona Mystery Bounty Champion
- 25 Former Silver Pass Winner Soraya Estrada Takes Down EPT Barcelona Women's Event
- 26 Song Leads as Nasreddine Makes Back-to-Back EPT Main Event Final Tables
- 27 Stephen Song Serenades the Deck to EPT Barcelona Main Event Title
- 28 Mike Watson Adds �10,300 EPT High Roller Title to Summer Triple Crown